Lots has been written about SSH on Linux machines, but all too often it is written in technical jargon that confuses what is actually a very simple and infinitely useful technology. Here is a idiots guide to getting started with SSH in 2 minutes.

What is SSH and why should I know about it?

SSH stands for Secure SHell and gives a robust and secure way to control another computer (including servers) remotely.

You know how you can control your Linux box through the terminal command line? Well, if you have SSH set up, you can also control a remote computer over the network. This is really useful for taking control of things like webservers. If you use a host like Bluehost (Please note this is an affiliate link, but it is the hosting company I use and I recommend them totally) you can get a fixed IP address and SSH access which allows you to take control of the server using the command line.

To successfully have a SSH connection, you need an SSH Client and a SSH Server that speak to each other.

The SSH Client

The SSH Client is the piece of software that you have on the computer you are sitting in front of and typing on. It sends messages to the SSH server which is on the remote computer (such as the webserver). We’ll assume that there is already a valid SSH server up and running that you are trying to connect to.

In Ubuntu, there is a SSH client installed as standard and it is called Open SSH.

To use it, you simply open a terminal and proceed any command with “ssh”.

For example, if you would like to log in to your remote server, just use the command…

ssh [email protected]

However, as this is a blog that likes to keep things simple (and annoy a lot of the die-hard Linux geeks), I’m going to suggest a different tool… PuTTY.

PuTTY is a client program for SSH (among other things) and gives a neat little interface for making SSH connections. It is also in my opinion one of the best pieces of software ever written. It has been around for ever and can also be used on Windows without installation (just runs as a .exe). Learn this little guy and you will never look for another SSH client.

Install PuTTY by typing the following into a terminal…

sudo apt-get install putty

You will then find the PuTTY program among your other internet applications.

(When you start it up, you will be able to enter the ip address or name of the remote computer you wish to contact and click connect. You will then be asked for password etc. If you are going to be using SSH regular, you can save that connection as a profile which makes things easier).

The SSH Server

We’ve assumed up to now that you already have a SSH server to connect to. If this is not the case, then we need to install a SSH server on what will be the remote computer. (If you are using Bluehost, just speak to their support guys and they will do this for you).

If you have access to the computer that will be the remote computer, just open up a terminal and type…

sudo apt-get install openssh-server

That wasn’t too difficult now was it?

A couple of tests and a Security improvement

Let’s test that everything is up and running.

On the remote computer, start up PuTTY as mentioned above. Put int he local IP address of your machine (nearly allways 127.0.0.1 as shown below and click “Open”.

You will get a warning box talking about Keys and Certiicates, but just be like an iPad user and click accept to everything that pop-s up

You now need to log in using your username and then your password for the remote machine.

That should be you logged in over SSH!!!

(You can now go off and see if you can use a different computer to log in to this system , remember that you will then need to use the external IP address of the remote computer when logging in via PuTTY).

A good way to test using your SSH connection is to make a little security update. The default port for SSH is 22 and some bad boys out there try and force their way in via this port. Let’s open the SSH config file and change that port to something else.

Via your PuTTY session, type in…

sudo vi /etc/ssh/sshd_config

This lets you edit the config file directly through the terminal. Use the arrow keys to find the line that shows the “Port 22″, press Shift+i on the keyboard and this lets you edit the file. change the port to whatever port you want, for example 3901. Press Ctrl+x and then to save the file and exit.

You then need to restart the SSH server to change the port. Again in PuTTY type…

sudo /etc/init.d/ssh restart

Next time you log into the SSH, via PuTTY you will need to change the SSH Port to the new one you set (i.e 3901).

There are lots of other security improvements you can make in this config file. If you know one, why not put it in the comments box below? (If you don’t know one, why not Like this article on Facebook and maybe your friends will know one )

Updated your computer to the latest version of Ubuntu, just to find it freezing or running so slowly that it is almost unusable? Well, read on and we’ll have you running back up to speed in a couple of minutes…

The Problem.

I was visiting my parents home over Christmas when my Dad asked me to have a look at the computer which he said he had updated and was now running at a speed he described as “Soul Destroying”. As this was a low end computer just used for emails and internet and had been happily running Ubuntu for the last 4 years, I was expecting him to be over exaggerating the problem.

After trying to start Firefox on the machine and it taking about 5 minutes, I was on the verge of throwing the whole system through the (closed and on the second floor) window…

The Solution.

So what is causing a perfectly good Ubuntu install to grind to a halt after an update to version 11.1? Well, the answer is Unity. This is the new Graphical User Interface (GUI) used in Ubuntu.

There is a lot of (ahem) “controversy” about Unity in the community (that rhymes!) and I’m not going to delve into that here, but when you try it on a low spec piece of hardware it basically kills your computer and makes it unusable. (Does that make it a Graphical Unusable Interface?).

To get back on track, you need to tell Ubuntu that you don’t want to use Unity on this machine.
(The above line seems to have caused a bit of confusion to readers, see comments below, so it should be ignored and instead replaced with the following paragraph).

To get back on track, you need to tell your current operating system on your own private machine to use a different interface while still respecting the fact that some people are having no problems with Unity and that some people have faster computers than you and perhaps recognizing that you should run out immediately and spend several hundred dollars on a new machine.

If you are using a machine which is more than a couple of years old and if you just want to stick to the same user interface that you have became used to (buttons and menus all where you would expect them to be), then I would suggest using XFCE. This is a lightweight interface and will suit the needs of most users, such as my Mum and Dad.

Install it by opening a terminal and typing…

sudo apt-get install xubuntu-desktop

Enter your password and let it install (accept Yes to any questions).

This is Important! Now you need to restart your system. When you reboot, you should see a small gear icon on the login screen. This will allow you to choose which interface you would like to use by default. You choose the XFCE desktop.

Now you are back up and running at the speed of Linux! (and you still have all the non Unity benefits of upgrading). All that remains for you to do is to like this article on Facebook, or add this site to your Twitter feed…

‘Tis the season to be jolly, apparently, so what could be better than gathering the family around and decorating your Linux system with a bit of Christmas cheer!

In this article we’ll take 2 minutes to transform your Ubuntu box to an enchanted winder wonderland (or at the very least, stop it from looking like Scrooge’s desktop).

Linux Christmas Wallpaper

Here’s my favourite Christmas wallpaper for Ubuntu. Little Tux is dressed up as Santa and the presents have Ubuntu themed wrapping. It was drawn by Anne Dupond using Blender and she has made a couple of different versions which can be downloaded here.

A non-geeky (is that a word? think I might start using that a lot…) alternative is this beautiful christmas tree wallpaper by deleket at deviantart.com.

Just follow the links to download one of these to your local hard drive and then installing it couldn’t be easier. Just right click anywhere on your desktop and select “Change Desktop Background.”, browse to your downloaded file, double click it and then sit back and bask in the Yuletide spirit!

Linux Christmas Screen Savers

Now we need something to delight the rest of the world when you’re not actually at your computer. Some Snowy Screen Savers me-thinks!

The easiest one to get up and running is Fuzzy Flakes and I think it is quite nice. It’s bright and cheerful enough. Just go to System -> Preferences -> Screensaver Preferences and choose Fuzzy Flakes.

Not Christmassy enough for Ya!?!

OK, there will be someone reading this who says that having a penguin in a Santa hat and a few snowflakes on their screensaver just isn’t treating Christmas with the respect it deserves. No, these people want to spend a couple of hours bashing away on the Ubuntu terminal to pimp up their Linux Christmas. Well, for those hardy souls I can recommend jumping over to UbuntuGuide.net and having a look at firstly how to enable “Snow” on Compiz Fusion and then customising a wintery wallpaper. Warning: Not for someone who has a life, or for children under the age of 4.

Want to give a Christmas Present?

Have you any favorite wallpapers or ways to make your Linux box more Christmassy? Stick them in the comments box below and share some Christmas love…