Guideupdated Sep 20266 min
How to Enable SSH on Windows Server 2025
Enabling SSH on Windows Server 2025 lets only Administrators and the OpenSSH Users group sign in. You turn it on with PowerShell, then choose who's in it.
SSH
Windows OpenSSH, from a stopped service to key-only login for named accounts. Three guides for Server 2022 and 2025.
Windows ships OpenSSH but leaves the parts that differ from Linux undocumented
in the places you look first: the service is installed but stopped, there is
no root so PermitRootLogin is inert, and an administrator’s authorized_keys
is silently ignored.
In order: enable sshd on Server 2025 or on 2022, then key authentication for administrators. The same three, read as one procedure, are the OpenSSH on Windows Server series.
3 articles
Guideupdated Sep 20264 min
Configure SSH Key Authentication for an Administrator on Windows Server with PowerShell
Windows OpenSSH ignores an administrator's authorized_keys. Put the key in administrators_authorized_keys with the right ACL, scripted for a fresh server.
Guideupdated Sep 20265 min
How to Enable SSH on Windows Server 2022
Install the OpenSSH server with PowerShell, start sshd at boot, confirm the port 22 rule, and connect, plus where an administrator's key really goes.