> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://kb.stablepoint.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Secure Shell (SSH) Overview

SSH is a way of connecting to your web space using the command line. You can manage files and run commands, and for power users this is a really important feature. To use **SSH**, you must use an SSH client to connect to the server. Once connected, you can manually run commands within a terminal application.

* On **macOS** and **Linux** you can use `Terminal`.
* If you are running **Windows**, you can download an SSH client, such as `PuTTY`.

If you have a command prompt, you can type `ssh`, followed by your *shell username (cPanel username)*, an `@` sign, then your *server name*. For example:

```text theme={null}
ssh username@server.stablepoint.com
```

Once you have logged in, you can edit files, move files, run PHP commands and so on. Our system also supports key-based authentication, which is more secure than using a password and saves having to type it every time. Just generate a private key on your computer, then upload the contents of the public key part to a file called .ssh/authorized\_keys. If you need any help with this, please don't hesitate to get in touch.

Now we will go over some basic commands to use after you have logged in.

## Navigation

`pwd` — lists the path you are currently in, so you don't get lost. The output usually looks like */home/user/public\_html/example*, meaning you are in the folder "example".

`ls -lah` — lists the files in the folder you are currently in, along with additional information such as size, last modified time and date, and permissions.

`cd` — used to move to the relevant folder/directory.

## Creating / modifying / viewing

`mkdir [directoryname]` — creates a new directory in your current location.

`touch [filename.ext]` — creates a new file. Note you should put the extension at the end, such as *.txt*.

You can modify files with one of two editors. By default `nano` is used more often by less experienced users:

`nano [filename].txt` — opens the file in nano. You can read full information on how to use it by pressing **F1** or **Ctrl+G**.

You can also use `vim` to edit files. This editor is for more advanced users; press **F1** for help with commands once the file is open:

`vim [filename].php`

You can view a file using `cat` — for example `cat [filename.txt]` will display the contents of filename.txt in text format.

**Tip:** You can use `cat` in combination with `grep` to find text inside a file. The content will be displayed but the requested text will be highlighted in `red` so you can find it more easily:

`cat [filename.txt] | grep "Nov 13 13:07"` — displays the contents of \[filename.txt], then (the `|` is called a pipe, and separates commands) highlights text matching "Nov 13 13:07" exactly.

If you find a command on the web and would like to understand it, we recommend [https://explainshell.com](https://explainshell.com), which breaks down what the command does — it's excellent for learning.