Public key authentication is an alternative to password authentication, providing a
more secure authentication method that allows users to avoid entering or storing a
password, or sending it over the network. It is done by using the client computer to
generate the key-pair (a public key and a private key), provide the public key to
the server or the point-to-point, and have the public key installed on that
machine.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The Web UI currently doesn't support the key-based
authentication. This feature is for transfers initiated in the application (Including the Hot Folders) and the ascp command.
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Obtain the client's public key
The client should send you an e-mail with the public key, either a text string attached in the secure e-mail, or saved as a text file. In this example, the client's login user account is asp1.
For instructions of creating public keys, refer to Creating SSH Keys, or Creating SSH Keys (Terminal) for command-line instructions.
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Install the client's public key to its login user account
To install the account's public key, create a folder called .ssh in the user's home directory. This example sets up the public key for the following user:
| Item |
Value |
| User name |
asp1 |
| User's home directory |
C:\Documents and Settings\asp1 |
Open a Command Prompt () and execute the following commands to create the user's public key folder:
> cd "C:\Documents and Settings\asp1"
> md .ssh
Use a text editor to create the following file, without file extension:
C:\Documents and Settings\asp1\.ssh\authorized_keys
Add the user's public key-string into this file and save it. The user should now be able to establish fasp connections with public key authentication.
Some text editors append the file extension automatically, such as .txt. Make sure to remove the file extension from the file authorized_keys.