FG

Permissions on private key in .ssh folder?

Fresh3 days ago
Mar 15, 2026893398 views
Confidence Score1%
1%

Problem

I changed my permissions in my folder and now when I use a piece of software that uses my private key, I have to type my password each time. What should my permissions be on my file to not have to type a password each time I use an app that uses it? Currently my permissions are set to:

Error Output

-rw-------@ 1 Jody  staff   114 Nov  4 23:29 config
-rw-------  1 Jody  staff  1743 Oct 21  2009 id_rsa
-rw-------@ 1 Jody  staff   397 Oct 21  2009 id_rsa.pub 
-rw-------@ 1 Jody  staff  3855 Sep 13 22:35 known_hosts

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Fix for: Permissions on private key in .ssh folder?

Low Risk

Typically you want the permissions to be: directory: public key ( file): private key ( ): lastly your home directory should not be writeable by the group or others (at most ). I am assuming that you mean that you have to enter your system/user password each time, and that previously you did not have to. cdhowie's response is assuming you set a password/passphrase when generating your keys, and if you did then as he says you will have to enter your password every time unless you use an ssh agent.

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