Using SSH on the Raspberry Pi

In this guide, we will show you how to enable and use SSH on your Raspberry Pi.

Raspberry Pi SSH

SSH stands for “Secure Shell” and is one of the most useful ways for remotely managing a device such as the Raspberry Pi.

Using SSH, we will be able to interact with the Raspberry Pi’s command line without having to have a keyboard, mouse or screen connected to it. It is very useful for a lot of Raspberry Pi projects that don’t require you to be at the Pi.

The process of using SSH is straightforward and should be easy enough for anyone to pick up.

Unlike other methods for connecting to your Raspberry Pi, such as VNC or RDP, SSH is purely for command line and file access.

Equipment List

Below is a list of the equipment that we used when setting up SSH on our Raspberry Pi.

Recommended

Optional

Video Tutorial

If you would like to watch a video on how to setup SSH on your Raspberry Pi, be sure to check out the video below. Alternatively, you can read our written guide below.

Please note, it has been some time since we have updated this video, so it may not correctly reflect the current operating system. Please refer to the text tutorial if you require further help.

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Enabling SSH on the Raspberry Pi

There are three different ways to set up SSH on your Raspberry Pi that we will be delving into. For all three of these methods, you should be running Raspbian,

These three different methods are:

  1. Using the Raspbian Desktop Interface
  2. Making use of the Raspi-Config command-line tool
  3. Setting up SSH with a headless (No Screen) setup

All three of these methods are relatively easy to follow, so pick the option that best suits your needs.

One of the first things you should do before or after enabling SSH on your Raspberry Pi is to change the default Raspbian password.

Enabling SSH from the Raspbian Desktop

The first method that we are going to be showing you requires you to be running a version of Raspbian that includes a desktop interface.

For this method, you will need to have a screen, keyboard, and mouse.

1. With your Raspberry Pi loaded, click the Raspberry Pi Icon to bring up the start menu.

Raspberry Pi Start Menu

2. Next, hover over the “Preferences” option (1.).

Finally, click the “Raspberry Pi Configuration” option (2.).

Raspberry Pi Configuration Tool

Following these steps will bring up the configuration page where we will be able to enable SSH.

2. Now, to enable SSH on your Raspberry Pi, click the “Interfaces” tab (1.).

Then click the “Enabled” radio box next to the “SSH:” option (2.).

Once you have enabled SSH, click the “OK” button (3.) to confirm the settings change.

Enabling SSH through the Desktop Interface

Enabling SSH from the Command Line

This section will show you how to use the command line to enable SSH on your Raspberry Pi.

For this method to work, you will need access to a keyboard, mouse, and screen.

1. The easiest way to enable SSH without a GUI is to make use of the raspi-config tool.

To open the raspi-config tool, run the following command.

sudo raspi-config

2. Within the tool use the arrow keys on your keyboard to select “5 Interfacing Options“.

Once selected, press the ENTER key.

Raspi-Config Main Menu

3. Now in this next menu, select the “P2 SSH” option.

Raspi-Config Interfacing Options

4. You will see a prompt asking if you want to enable the SSH server on your Raspberry Pi.

Enabling SSH through the Raspi-Config tool

To enable SSH, select the “<Yes>” option and press the ENTER key.

5. SSH should now be successfully enabled.

Select the “<Yes>” option to continue.

SSH Successfully Enabled

5. Now quit out of the tool by selecting the “<Finish> option and pressing ENTER.

Exit out of Raspi-Config

Enabling SSH on a Headless Raspberry Pi

In this final section, we will be showing you how to enable SSH when using a Raspberry Pi in a headless (No screen) environment.

Raspbian is built with a feature so that when it boots up, it will look for a file called ssh within the boot partition.

If the operating system finds this file, it will automatically enable SSH and delete the file.

1. On your Windows, Linux, or macOS device, insert your Raspberry Pi’s SD Card.

This SD card should already have the Raspbian operating system installed to it.

2. With the SD card connected to your device, open up the partition named “boot“.

Windows Boot Partition Example

3. In this partition, create a file called “ssh“.

This file does not need to contain anything. All that matters is that the name is correct.

Create ssh File Example

4. Now, insert the SD Card back into your Raspberry Pi and turn it on.

After your Raspberry Pi has finished booting, you should now be able to SSH  to  your Raspberry Pi.

Connecting to Your Raspberry Pi over SSH

In this section, we will be showing you how to connect to your Raspberry Pi over SSH using Windows, Linux, or macOS.

As you will soon find out, connecting using SSH is a very straightforward and quick process.

Using SSH on Windows

In this section, we will be showing you how to connect to your Raspberry Pi over SSH on Windows.

Compared to Linux and Mac, Windows is the slightly more complicated one. The reason for this is that unlike those operating systems, Windows does not have an SSH client built-in.

To resolve this, we will be making use of a popular tool called Putty.

1. To start, you need to download and install Putty to your Windows device.

You will find the downloads you are after under the MSI (‘Windows Installer’) header.

2. Upon launching Putty, you will be greeted by the following screen.

There is a couple of boxes that need filling out on this screen.

First, you need to specify the IP address of the device you want to connect to. (1.)

Next, make sure that the port is set to 22 (2.). This is the default port number for SSH.

Once you have set the IP address and port, click the “Open” button (3.).

Putty Connecting to Raspberry Pi over SSH

If you don’t know your Pi’s IP address, then you can follow our guide on finding it’s IP.

3. As this is the first time connecting to your Raspberry Pi, you will be warned that the SSH key is not known.

You need to click the “Yes” button to continue with the connection.

SSH Security Key Warning

Upon the initial connection, you will be asked to enter the username that you are trying to connect using and also the password for that user.

If you are still using the default user and password, these will be pi and raspberry.

4. You should now have successfully connected to your Raspberry Pi over SSH from Windows.

Putty Successfull SSH Connection

Using SSH on Mac & Linux

Both macOS and Linux come with SSH tools installed out of the box. Having these tools built-in makes it incredibly simple to connect to your Raspberry Pi over SSH.

1. On your chosen operating system, begin by opening up the terminal app.

2. Now in the terminal, run the following command.

When running this command, make sure that you replace “192.168.0.115” with your Raspberry Pi’s own IP address.

ssh pi@192.168.0.115

If you would like to SSH into your Raspberry Pi using a different user, all you need to do is replace pi with your chosen username.

3. You will receive a warning about being unable to verify the authenticity of the host.

To continue, type Yes into the command line and press the ENTER key to confirm it.

4. You should now be prompted to enter the password for your pi user.

If you are still using the default password, type in raspberry and press the ENTER key.

5. You should now be successfully connected to your Raspberry Pi over SSH from your macOS or Linux device.

Raspberry Pi Linux and Mac SSH Connection

Troubleshooting SSH

If you have run into any issues with connecting using SSH, you can try using the following tips.

“I am getting a connection error”

Most connection issues with SSH or caused by one or two things.

First, make sure that your Raspberry Pi is connected to the same network as the device you are connecting from.

Secondly, make sure that you are using the correct IP address for your Raspberry Pi. If you are unsure of how to find this, we have a guide on retrieving the Pi’s IP address.

If you intend to connect to your device from outside your home network, make sure that you port forward port 22 and that you are using a password or SSH keys.

“I am getting access denied”

Access denied errors are typically caused by using an incorrect username or password.

Make sure that the user you are trying to connect with exists and that the password that you are typing in is correct.

If you are still using the default login, then the username should be pi and the password raspberry.

Hopefully, at this point in the guide, you will now have a good understanding of how to enable and connect using SSH on your Raspberry Pi.

If you have run into any issues with this guide, feel free to drop a comment below.

25 Comments

  1. Avatar for Jonas
    Jonas on

    Very good guide.
    I ran into and error “Network error: Permission denied”. The problem was NordVPNs setting “Invisible to LAN”.

    Thanks for the guide.

  2. Avatar for Keagan
    Keagan on

    Is there a way to set up ssh headless?

    1. Avatar for Emmet
      Emmet on
      Editor

      Hi Keagan,

      If you create a file called “ssh” on the root of the SD card the Raspbian operating system will detect it and automatically setup SSH.

      Cheers

  3. Avatar for Ted Davis
    Ted Davis on

    In all this HowTo’s, why don’t you have at least rpi to rpi install walk throughs if not command line linux?

    1. Avatar for Emmet
      Emmet on
      Editor

      Hi Ted,

      Connecting between two linux systems is a rather simple process, in fact the “mac” method that is currently mentioned in the tutorial is relevant for the Linux as well.

      We plan on updating this guide to better reflect this in the near future.

      Cheers,
      Emmet

    2. Avatar for Rick
      Rick on

      If you add -X option to the ssh command you list under Mac, X authority will be carried across. This works with Linux, Cygwin & likely Mac.

      Copy & paste works between local and remote windows.

      GUI programs can be invoked from the command line. Though some programs, like firefox, will give a local instance if it is already running.

  4. Avatar for Sean
    Sean on

    Just something to note, I was able to work on my Pi by hooking onto ethernet and then accessing my router to find the Pi’s IP before ssh; beforehand while setting up the SD card I made sure to make an empty “ssh” file before I ejected it. So with that I could theoretically set up headlessly through and through.

  5. Avatar for Morten
    Morten on

    Hello Gus.

    Thanks for all the guides, i’m trying to access my PI on my mobile (not from the local network). i forwarded port 80 to the PI and then tried to connect from the external IP address but i get this error:

    “Connecting to xx.xx.xx.xx port 80, please wait….
    Failed to connect to xx.xx.xx.xx: Connection refused.”

    i got my PI as an always on torrent box + NAS and it works perfectly, also the access from another computer etc.

    Regards
    Morten

    1. Avatar for Jonathan
      Jonathan on

      Did you enable ssh of the rpi

  6. Avatar for Sav
    Sav on

    What is generally range of raspberry pi IP address ???
    Any idea ?

    Thanks

    1. Avatar for Gus
      Gus on
      Editor

      Whatever your router/DHCP server can assign to it, if you’re trying to find out the actual IP address of the Pi then the command hostname -I will return it.

  7. Avatar for Simon
    Simon on

    And another option with Windows 10 now is to use the “Bash on Ubuntu on Windows” if you have that installed (enable in Windows Features | Windows Subsytem for Linux (Beta))

  8. Avatar for Simon
    Simon on

    Just a quick comment regarding recent updates to Raspbian (inc. Jessie) where SSH is disabled by default.
    When you first setup a Pi from an image file, if you, like me, don’t have the peripherals (keyboard/mouse/monitor) around, putting a file (even an empty one) called ssh in /boot will enable SSH on boot up meaning you can do everything “headless”.
    I haven’t explained any further because if what’s above doesn’t make sense to you, you should probably be setting your Pi up with the peripherals rather than “headless” and blind (I do not intend any disrespect to anyone by that comment)
    Cheers
    Simon

  9. Avatar for Nix
    Nix on

    I am new to raspberry Pi, using raspberry pi 2 model b, after installing raspbian-jessie, and entering login:pi and password:raspberry , getting error accces denied on putty.

  10. Avatar for Mike G.
    Mike G. on

    Your instructions on where to find the option to enable SSH is wrong. Instead of being under “Advanced Options”, the setting is found under “Interfacing Options”.

    1. Avatar for Gus
      Gus on
      Editor

      They were correct, Raspbian has updated recently and changed the location. I will update the tutorial so it’s up to date with the latest version.

  11. Avatar for joe reid
    joe reid on

    i am a huge fan of your guides , but with all due respect this thread should be entitled ” how to connect to your pi remotely ” not ” how to control your pi remotely ” , i have connected no probs but i haven’t a clue how to access the browser or open files or play videos or in fact do anything with pi when using command box ?

  12. Avatar for Brendan Brooks
    Brendan Brooks on

    I’m getting an access denied error message. I tried changing the password on the pi using sudo passwd, but I’m still receiving the error. Any ideas?

  13. Avatar for RLPendergast
    RLPendergast on

    Thanks.

  14. Avatar for RLPendergast
    RLPendergast on

    Hi, Your presentations are excellent both in content and clarity.

    However, I need to know, how do I reboot or shutdown the RPi from the remote terminal? the screen say I am not authorized and use (pi) or root, but I am not sure what that means and using these two choices with reboot or shutdown -h now did not work.

    Thanks
    rlp

    1. Avatar for Gus
      Gus on
      Editor

      The command sudo reboot should reboot your Pi from the remote terminal.

      Let me know if that helps!

  15. Avatar for Mike
    Mike on

    Any advice when getting “Network Error: connection timed out.”? I’m new to all this and have found that port 22 may be blocked but not too sure how to change that on my pi. Could this me correct? Also, what else could be the problem? Any ideas/advice would be appreciated.

    1. Avatar for Gus
      Gus on
      Editor

      If your connection is timing out then either the port 22 is blocked, you’re connecting to the wrong IP or you have SSH disabled on the Pi.

      To enable it on the Pi you need to do the following:

      In the command line: sudo raspi-config

      This will open up settings. Go to Advanced Options and then SSH.
      Enable SSH then exit and reboot the Pi.

  16. Avatar for Will
    Will on

    We were able to get the surveillance camera to work on the local network but am unable to access it outside the network. Any tutorials on this?
    Thanks.
    Will

    1. Avatar for Gus
      Gus on
      Editor

      Hi Will,

      If you follow my port forwarding tutorial this will help you with allowing outside access to it. You can find the full tutorial here: http://pimylifeup.com/raspberry-pi-port-forwarding/

      I recommend using a random port for the external port but the internal port will need to 80.

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