Configuring Secure Shell (SSH)

Configuring the Switch for SSH Operation

Option B: Configuring the Switch for Client Public-Key SSH

Authentication. If configured with this option, the switch uses its public key to authenticate itself to a client, but the client must also provide a client public-key for the switch to authenticate. This option requires the additional step of copying a client public-key file from a TFTP server into the switch. This means that before you can use this option, you must:

1.Create a key pair on an SSH client.

2.Copy the client’s public key into a public-key file (which can contain up to ten client public-keys).

3.Copy the public-key file into a TFTP server accessible to the switch and download the file to the switch.

(For more on these topics, refer to “Further Information on SSH Client Public- Key Authentication” on page 6-24.)

With steps 1 - 3, above, completed and SSH properly configured on the switch, if an SSH client contacts the switch, login authentication automatically occurs first, using the switch and client public-keys. After the client gains login access, the switch controls client access to the manager level by requiring the passwords configured earlier by the aaa authentication ssh enable command.

Syntax: copy tftp pub-key-file < ip-address> < filename >

Copies a public key file into the switch.

aaa authentication ssh login public-key

Configures the switch to authenticate a client public-key at the login level with an optional secondary password method (default: none).

6-21