Generating a SSH Key (Windows)

In order to generate a SSH key you first need to get the program `PuttyGen` from the official website.

Scroll down the page and find the area highlighted in red in the screenshot provided.

Select the version appropriate for your computer, in most cases you will want the 64-bit version.

Run `puttygen.exe` and click the "Generate" button. The default options under "Parameters" as shown in the image will cover most scenarios where a SSH key is required and can be left as is.

PuttyGen needs some random data to ensure the key it generates is secure. Move your mouse around in the area highlighted until the progress bar reaches completion.

You can now give your new key a comment to help you remember what the key is for. We suggest entering your name into this field.

To protect your key from unauthorized access should someone obtain access to your computer, enter a passphrase to be used to encrypt your key. You may leave this blank if you do not want to encrypt your key but we highly recommend against doing so.

Save your private key to your hard disk. Remember where you save it as you will need it when configuring Putty or FileZilla

We recommend backing up this file to encrypted media, as losing it means losing access to your server.

The area highlighted in red is your public key, you may share this safely. When asked for your public key, please provide this text.

If at any point you need to obtain the public key again you can simply use the "Load" button to open your private key which will then display your public key.