This guide explains how to securely connect your local terminal to an AWS EC2 Linux server using an SSH private key. It covers finding your EC2 public IP, preparing the PEM key, connecting to Ubuntu or Amazon Linux, verifying the server and creating an SSH shortcut.
Execute each step in order. Copy the commands directly when needed.
Open the AWS Console, go to EC2, open Instances, select your running server and copy either the Public IPv4 address or Public IPv4 DNS.
Replace this example with your actual EC2 Public IPv4 address.
13.234.123.45When the EC2 instance was created, AWS provided a private key file ending in .pem. You need this key to authenticate with the server.
Never share your .pem private key, upload it publicly, or commit it to Git.
Check whether your EC2 PEM key is stored in Downloads.
ls ~/DownloadsSearch your home directory for PEM files.
find ~ -name "*.pem"Your PEM file may be located somewhere similar to this.
/home/your-user/Downloads/my-ec2-key.pemStore your private SSH keys inside the local .ssh directory.
This command safely creates the directory if it does not already exist.
mkdir -p ~/.sshVerify that the directory exists.
ls ~/.sshMove your EC2 private key from Downloads or its current location into the local SSH directory.
Replace my-ec2-key.pem with your actual PEM filename.
mv ~/Downloads/my-ec2-key.pem ~/.ssh/Check that the private key is now inside the SSH directory.
ls ~/.sshAWS SSH keys must have restricted permissions. If the private key is too publicly accessible, SSH will refuse to use it.
Do not change the PEM key permissions to allow public or group access.
Replace my-ec2-key.pem with your actual PEM filename.
chmod 400 ~/.ssh/my-ec2-key.pemCheck the permissions applied to your private key.
ls -l ~/.ssh/my-ec2-key.pemMost Ubuntu EC2 instances use ubuntu as the default SSH username. Replace YOUR_EC2_PUBLIC_IP with your actual EC2 public IP.
Use your PEM key and EC2 public IP address.
ssh -i ~/.ssh/my-ec2-key.pem ubuntu@YOUR_EC2_PUBLIC_IPExample using a sample EC2 public IP address.
ssh -i ~/.ssh/my-ec2-key.pem ubuntu@13.234.123.45The first time you connect to a new EC2 server, SSH may ask you to confirm the server fingerprint.
Type yes when SSH asks whether you want to continue connecting.
yesAmazon Linux instances commonly use ec2-user as the SSH username instead of ubuntu.
Replace YOUR_EC2_PUBLIC_IP with your actual EC2 public IP.
ssh -i ~/.ssh/my-ec2-key.pem ec2-user@YOUR_EC2_PUBLIC_IPssh -i ~/.ssh/my-ec2-key.pem ec2-user@13.234.123.45After a successful connection, your terminal prompt will change to the remote server. Run the following commands to inspect the server.
Verify which Linux user you are logged in as.
whoamiView hostname and operating system information.
hostnamectlDisplay the directory you are currently working in.
pwdDisplay files and directories including hidden files.
ls -laWhen you finish working on the remote server, exit the SSH session to return to your local terminal.
exitInstead of typing the complete SSH command every time, you can create an SSH configuration entry and connect using a short name.
Create or edit your local SSH configuration file.
nano ~/.ssh/configReplace the hostname, username and key filename with your actual values.
Host my-ec2
HostName 13.234.123.45
User ubuntu
IdentityFile ~/.ssh/my-ec2-key.pemRestrict access to your SSH configuration file.
chmod 600 ~/.ssh/configAfter configuring the Host entry, connect with the short name.
ssh my-ec2The following commands show the complete Linux workflow from finding your PEM key to connecting to the EC2 server.
Replace the PEM filename and EC2 public IP with your actual values.
# Find PEM key
find ~ -name "*.pem"
# Create SSH directory
mkdir -p ~/.ssh
# Move key
mv ~/Downloads/my-ec2-key.pem ~/.ssh/
# Secure key
chmod 400 ~/.ssh/my-ec2-key.pem
# Connect to Ubuntu EC2
ssh -i ~/.ssh/my-ec2-key.pem ubuntu@YOUR_EC2_PUBLIC_IPVerify that you are using the correct PEM private key and the correct SSH username. Ubuntu usually uses ubuntu, while Amazon Linux commonly uses ec2-user.
Check that the EC2 instance is running and verify that the EC2 security group allows inbound SSH traffic on port 22 from your current IP address.
Restrict the PEM file permissions with chmod 400 ~/.ssh/your-key.pem and make sure the key is not accessible by other users.
Verify that you copied the EC2 Public IPv4 address or Public DNS correctly and that you did not accidentally include extra characters.
Check the Host, HostName, User and IdentityFile values inside ~/.ssh/config and make sure the PEM key path is correct.