Posted on 12/14/2017 8:08:13 PM PST by dayglored
Microsoft has quietly added beta versions of an SSH client and server to the next major update of Windows 10. The SSH client and server will allow admins and developers to securely connect to other systems without needing a third-party app like the popular PuTTY.
Over the years we have seen Microsoft transform from a fairly closed company to one that embraces and supports open source software and standards.
This move isnt unexpected but is another step in that direction.
With OpenSSH baked in, it becomes for developers to create secure connections between systems for transferring data and issuing commands.
The feature can be enabled through the Add a feature option on systems running the Windows 10 Fall Update.
Thanks and a tip o' the Sysadmin hat to FReeper ShadowAce for the ping to an ArsTechnica article about this. Unfortunately, we can't post threads on ArsTechnica articles, but there were many others out there to choose from.
Secure Shell is a remote login protocol and set of programs, both for a server and for a client computer. It not only allows a client to login to a remote server and run command-line commands, it can also carry graphical interface data, transfer files, and a host of other useful network activities.The downside for the time being is that this initial beta release is Very Beta -- many critical features are missing or inoperative. But that's to be expected. I have strong reason to believe this will be a winner.Secure Shell has been a core utility in Unix, Linux, and even MacOS (which is based on Unix) for decades. Until now, Windows users had to rely on third-party programs to run SSH (client) or SSHD (the server) on Windows (e.g. PuTTY, Cygwin). The big deal here is that SSH and SSHD are now going to be a native part of Windows 10. A great step forward.
And for those of us System Admins who use Windows as a workstation, it will improve our ability to communicate and control the Unix, Linux, and other servers in our server farms without having to resort to third-party add-ons.
Thanks to ShadowAce for the heads-up!!
10 update pushed at me last night. Makes it difficult to post threads to FR.
GRRRR.....
When you installed Windows 10, the computer was no longer under your total control.
Well, no kidding!
(There was a 4 letter word that I was going to use instead of kidding.)
So now instead of using the reliable never-fail 3rd party PuTTy that’s worked for years, I’ll get to use a buggy incomplete Microsoft version?
Thanks for nuttin!
Ummm, that happened with Windows versions long before 10.
At least until 10, you had the ILLUSION of control...
But for example, I run Win7, and I can tell you that Windows Updates have changed my security and user preference settings numerous times in the past, and I've had to discover and revert them to my own.
PuTTY has been good to me for many many years. There are also many times when I need a simple, scriptable, command line SSH client, or an SSHD server. For those, I've had to use Cygwin, which carries a significant burden.
But yeah, so far, the native SSH isn't at all ready to kill off the existing utilities.
My problem is that I’m not a software guy. I can tell you how and why we built the next generations of hard drives.
Ummm, "sshd"? "fsck"?? "grep"???
;-)
HAMR
Thanks for posting. I’ve only needed SSH when I couldn’t resolve something on my websites through WHM and CPanel. Those have gotten so much better lately, I don’t bother w/ SSH or FTP anymore. I also used to access fftp accounts via WinExplorer, but haven’t used that for years.
Does this help me in anyway? Probably useful for people way above my pay grade...
[[(There was a 4 letter word that I was going to use instead of kidding.)]]
Was the word ukulele ? lol
Close...
I ditched MS while using Win 7. It started when a “security” update, which was really to prepare for Win 10, caused Corel video editor to not start. I rolled back the update and turned off updates, but that left my system vulnerable.
Then my laptop (also Win 7) failed to recognize my flatbed scanner that was working the day before. Re-installing the drivers was no help, but plugging it into another USB port caused it to be recognized.
That was the last straw. Now the only computer in the house that runs windows is an old Dell I bought from Goodwill. It has Windows Server 2008 and MS SQL server 2005 running on it. No keyboard or monitor, I access it with Remmina remote desktop client and it’s only used to run some genealogy software every once in a while.
Every time Microsoft updates Windows 10, they screw up our computers. Windows Spotlight hasn’t worked since their Fall Update. And, their updates screw with your privacy settings.
They can’t get anything right!!!
Good to hear Microsoft has finally decided to join us here in the 21st century. ssh is a fantastic tool, which those of us in the unix world have been using for ages. I hope they stole a decent implementation of it.
More security breaches will arise from the hacker-techies that know how to exploit this for bad ends.
Make my PC MORE remotely accessible? Under the guise that the method is “secure”? No way. Some few of the techies writing the code for Microsoft will leave and join the hackers taking with them the knowledge of where the holes are.
I quit allowing Win10 updates to my system. Set the networking/Internet access to “metered”, which halts automatic updates and required permission for updates to run.
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