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What's inside .ssh?

After generating a key, your .ssh folder (usually in C:\Users\<yourname>\.ssh\) might contain:
  • id_ed25519 or id_rsa – your private key (keep this safe!)
  • id_ed25519.pub or id_rsa.pub – your public key (used to connect)
  • known_hosts – tracks servers you’ve connected to before
  • config – optional but handy file to simplify commands

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What does known_hostsdo?

Every time you connect to a new server, its signature is added here. This helps verify the identity of the server next time. If you ever see: 
WARNING: REMOTE HOST IDENTIFICATION HAS CHANGED!
…it means the server key doesn’t match what’s in known_hosts. This can happen if:
  • The instance was terminated and replaced
  • You’re connecting to a different host than expected
Fix it by deleting the old entry: 
ssh-keygen -R <hostname>

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What’s in a config file?

Create a plain text file named config inside .ssh and add: 
Host hivenet     HostName <your-instance-id>.ssh.hivecompute.ai     User ubuntu     IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_ed25519     ProxyCommand ssh [email protected] %h
Now you can connect with: 
ssh hivenet
instead of typing everything out every time.
Create a new Host block for each instance if you use multiple.

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Public key vs. private key

  • The .pub file (public) is safe to share—it’s how servers recognize you
  • The private key must stay private—it proves who you are
Never send someone your private key, and don’t copy it into web forms.