Linux and Unix admins are accustomed to using Open Secure Shell (OpenSSH) to connect to servers because it has been included in those systems for decades. Windows users, on the other hand, have traditionally had to download third-party tools like Putty or WinSCP to utilize SSH capabilities.

However, that changed when OpenSSH became available as an optional feature in Windows 10 and Windows Server 2019. Because Windows now natively offers both SSH server and SSH client, there is no reason to ever use telnet or FTP, which have no encryption capabilities — SSH offers superior security when you need to connect to a server or copy files over a network connection.

This article details how to install OpenSSH and use it to securely transfer files using either WinSCP or PowerShell.

What is OpenSSH used for?

OpenSSH is a tool that provides secure communication sessions over a computer network using the SSH protocol. It can be used for a variety of tasks, including the following:

These tasks are secure because OpenSSH includes the Secure Copy protocol (SCP) and the SSH File Transfer protocol (SFTP), and OpenSSH encrypts all traffic through a secure tunnel, enabling you to transmit sensitive data across the internet or unsecure network. The tunnel is created when the client and server exchange public keys.

How to Add the OpenSSH Feature on Windows

Prerequisites

To install OpenSSH on a Windows machine:

Click the Login button and supply the password for the account you specified. The next dialog box will display the server’s ECDSA key fingerprint, as shown in the screenshot below. This key is used primarily to ensure that the client is communicating with the right server.  When the client connects to the server for the first time, the public host key is passed on to the client. Click Yes to proceed.

In the next window, the left pane will display the source machine’s default folder, and the right pane will display the default folder for the user on the target server. Navigate to the desired folders. In the example below, we right-clicked on a file to download it to the client device. Alternatively, you can drag the files from one side to the other.

If you are moving or copying data files, chances are you need to protect that data — not just during the transfer operation but throughout its lifecycle. Data access governance software from Netwrix provides an effective and scalable approach to file activity monitoring. Moreover, it will help you reduce the risk of cybersecurity incidents by enabling you to understand who has access to what and strictly limit access to sensitive data. You can:

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