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How to configure remote access on OpenBSD?

Configuring remote access on OpenBSD typically involves setting up SSH (Secure Shell) to allow secure access to your system from a remote location. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to do it:

  1. Install OpenSSH: Ensure that OpenSSH is installed on your OpenBSD system. You can install it using the package manager:

    pkg_add openssh
    
  2. Generate SSH Keys: Generate a pair of SSH keys (public and private) on your local machine if you don’t already have them. This can be done using the ssh-keygen command:

    ssh-keygen -t rsa
    
  3. Copy Public Key to OpenBSD: Copy your public key to the OpenBSD system. You can use ssh-copy-id for this purpose:

    ssh-copy-id user@openbsd_host
    
  4. Configure SSH Server: Edit the SSH server configuration file /etc/ssh/sshd_config to ensure it is set up correctly. Make sure the following settings are present and configured as needed:

    PermitRootLogin no
    PasswordAuthentication no
    PubkeyAuthentication yes
    
  5. Restart SSH Service: Restart the SSH service to apply the changes:

    doas service sshd restart
    
  6. Test Remote Access: Try connecting to your OpenBSD system from your local machine using SSH:

    ssh user@openbsd_host
    

Example

Suppose you have an OpenBSD server with the hostname openbsd.example.com and a user account john. Here’s how you would configure remote access:

  1. Install OpenSSH:

    pkg_add openssh
    
  2. Generate SSH Keys:

    ssh-keygen -t rsa
    
  3. Copy Public Key:

    ssh-copy-id john@openbsd.example.com
    
  4. Configure SSH Server:
    Edit /etc/ssh/sshd_config to include:

    PermitRootLogin no
    PasswordAuthentication no
    PubkeyAuthentication yes
    
  5. Restart SSH Service:

    doas service sshd restart
    
  6. Test Remote Access:

    ssh john@openbsd.example.com
    

Cloud-Related Recommendation

If you are looking for a cloud platform to host your OpenBSD server, consider using Tencent Cloud. Tencent Cloud offers a variety of services that can support your OpenBSD deployment, including Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) for network configuration, Cloud Block Storage (CBS) for storage, and Cloud Load Balancer (CLB) for load distribution. Additionally, Tencent Cloud provides robust security features to ensure the safety of your remote access setup.