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SSH Key Management Made Simple

April 2026 · 3 min read

Passwords are slow and insecure. SSH keys are the standard for server authentication — but generating, storing, and managing them is still a pain on Windows. NexTerm fixes that.

Generate keys in seconds

Open NexTerm, press Ctrl+K, type "Generate SSH Key". Choose Ed25519 (recommended) or RSA 4096. Add an optional passphrase. Click Generate. Done.

Your public and private keys are displayed instantly. Copy the public key to your server's ~/.ssh/authorized_keys, and you're set.

Ed25519 vs RSA — which one?

Ed25519 — shorter keys, faster, more secure. Use this unless your server is ancient.

RSA 4096 — universal compatibility. Works on everything, including legacy systems.

NexTerm generates both. When in doubt, use Ed25519.

Store keys securely

NexTerm's encrypted vault stores your private keys using AES-256-GCM, protected by your operating system's keychain. Keys never touch the disk in plaintext.

When you connect to a server, NexTerm decrypts the key in memory, authenticates, and forgets it. No key file sitting in your Downloads folder.

Connect without passwords

Once your public key is on the server, NexTerm uses it automatically. No password prompt, no typing, no copy-pasting. Just double-click the connection and you're in.

Browse keys from your system

Already have keys in ~/.ssh/? NexTerm auto-detects them. When editing a connection, click "Browse" or select from the detected keys list. No manual path entry needed.

Best practices

1. Use one key pair per device, not per server.

2. Always add a passphrase to your private key.

3. Never share your private key. Only distribute the public key.

4. Rotate keys periodically — generate a new pair and update authorized_keys.

5. Use Ed25519 for new setups. RSA for legacy compatibility.