How to access Windows through ssh

This is going to be a super quick tutorial about how to access a Windows environment through ssh.

Step 1. Install cygwin, and make sure openssh and cygrunsrv packages are installed:

Make sure openssh is selected for installation Make sure cygrunsrv is selected for installation

Step 2. Start cygwin and run ssh-host-config to configure ssh:

Run ssh-host-config to configure ssh

Step 3. Run cygrunsrv -S sshd to start sshd as a Windows service:

Run cygrunsrv -S sshd to start sshd

Step 4. Ssh into Windows using your favorite ssh client

Use putty to ssh into Windows

You can even set this up for your local workstation (if it happens to be Windows). Then you can forget about cmd.exe or PowerShell and use a real shell locally. Until next time.