luhman.org

1. Start up PuTTYgen.exe. The defaults of SSH-2 RSA and 1024 bit key should be fine.

2. Click Generate to make the key (moving mouse randomly over blank area).

3. Fill in the comment (me at example.com). Enter a passphrase. A passphrase is more secure, but you'll be prompted for it on every access (unless you use keychain or others).

4. Use PuTTYGen's button to save the public key on your PC (ex. c:\putty\keys\me-at-example.txt).

5. Use button to save the private key. You must use .ppk extension (ex. c:\putty\keys\me-at-example.ppk).

Here are some good resources in the area of SSH keys :

Key-based logins with PuTTY - Excellent How-To with pics

• http://www.howtoforge.com/ssh_key_based_logins_putty

Good overview of SSH keys - including optional hardeners

• http://www.eng.cam.ac.uk/help/jpmg/ssh/authorized_keys_howto.html

Good overview of SSH keys, including Keychain to remember passphrases

• http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/linux/library/l-keyc.html
• http://www.gentoo.org/proj/en/keychain/

Note PuTTY's Pageant is a Windows form of Keychain