Opening WinSSHD to the internet
WinSSHD is intended to run with minimal configuration after initial installation. However, when installed in a LAN environment, it will not immediately receive connections from the internet by default.
In order to open WinSSHD to the internet, other network components must first be configured. The most prominent such components are the firewall on the machine where WinSSHD is running, and the router on the LAN to which this machine is attached.
Necessary preparation
Before you open WinSSHD to the internet, perform the following important steps:
- Follow instructions in Connecting for the first time to make sure you are able to connect to WinSSHD from 'localhost'; that is, that you can connect from a client running on the same machine where WinSSHD is installed.
- Follow instructions in Securing WinSSHD to lock down your settings to a degree where you are comfortable with them. After locking down your settings, use a client installed on the same machine to verify that everything is behaving the way you want.
Only when you are satisfied with the security of your settings, and when your settings work when connecting from 'localhost', open WinSSHD to the internet by:
- opening the WinSSHD listening port(s) in your firewall, and
- configuring your router to forward internet connections to the machine where WinSSHD is installed.
WinSSHD 5.06 and later
Since WinSSHD 5.06, you can configure WinSSHD to perform the above tasks automatically.
- Open the section named "Windows Firewall" in WinSSHD Settings. Change the setting for "SSH ports" to "Open port(s) to any computer". This will automatically open your listening ports in your firewall when WinSSHD is running.
- Open the section named "Bindings and UPnP" in WinSSHD Settings. Click Edit for the listening port you want to expose. By default, there will be one entry for the publicly known SSH port, 22. Check the setting "Enable UPnP NAT forwarding". This will automatically configure your router to forward internet connections to WinSSHD when WinSSHD is running.
If you have other software or hardware firewalls in addition to the Windows firewall, you will have to configure those firewalls manually.
In order for UPnP NAT forwarding to work, your router must support the Universal Plug and Play standard. Most recent routers do. If yours does not, you will have to configure it manually, too.
