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📘 Introduction

SSH keys offer a secure and passwordless method of accessing your server. DirectAdmin’s Evolution skin allows you to create SSH keys directly from the control panel. This article shows how to create and authorize SSH keys using the modern Evolution interface.

🛠️ Pre-requisites

Ensure the following before proceeding:

• You can access DirectAdmin with Evolution skin.

• Your DirectAdmin user account has permission to manage SSH.

• You know the SSH username and server IP/domain for testing access later.

🚀 Steps to Create SSH Keys

Step 1: Log in to DirectAdmin

Access the DirectAdmin login page, usually at: https://yourdomain.com:2222

Enter your username and password, then click Login.

Step 2: Open the SSH Key Management Page

• In the left sidebar, scroll down and click on SSH Keys under the Advanced Features section.

Step 3: Create a New SSH Key

1. Click the + CREATE KEY button at the top right.

2. A popup form titled “Create SSH Key” will appear (as shown in your screenshot).

3. Fill out the form as follows:

   • Key ID: Enter a short identifier for your key, e.g., mykey
     (The full name will be mykey_rsa  automatically).

   • Authorize: ✅ Check this box if you want the key to be added to the authorized keys immediately.

   • Comment: Enter a description or email (e.g., admin@yourdomain.com ).

   • Key size: Choose between 2048 (default) or 4096 for better security.

   • Password: (Optional) You may add a passphrase to secure the private key.

4. Click the CREATE button.

Step 4: Verify

Once created:

• You will see the new key listed under SSH Keys.

Step 5: Retrieve the Private and Public Keys

• Go to System Info & Files → File Manager

• Navigate to: /home/yourusername/.ssh/

• You will see:

  • mykey_rsa → 🔐 This is your private key

  • mykey_rsa.pub → 🔓 This is your public key

• Double Click the icon to view their contents

Step 6: Save the Private Key on Your Local Machine

• Open Notepad (or a plain-text editor)

• Paste the entire contents of mykey_rsa including:

• Save the file ( Do not add .txt or any file extension)

✅ Conclusion

DirectAdmin stores your SSH key pair inside your .ssh folder after generation — the private key is not downloadable directly, so make sure to retrieve and save it manually from File Manager. Once you’ve saved the private key on your machine, you can connect using the ssh -i command in any OpenSSH-compatible terminal.

For further help or troubleshooting, feel free to reach out to our support team via support@ipserverone.com