PuTTY configuration panel with host name, port, and SSH connection type

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PuTTYgen

PuTTYgen is PuTTY’s dedicated key workshop. It mints public and private SSH material in the native .ppk layout and supports RSA, DSA, ECDSA, and Ed25519 for SSH-2 (RSA also covers legacy SSH-1). You may convert material for OpenSSH and other stacks. On Windows launch PuTTYgen from the Start menu after the MSI; on Linux the puttygen binary typically arrives inside putty-tools. For a full click path, use the Practical how-to here.

What it does

Create fresh key pairs and optionally lock the private half behind a passphrase.
Write public and private files; copy the OpenSSH-ready line for authorized_keys.
Import legacy keys or translate between .ppk and PEM-style formats.

Typical use

Reach for PuTTYgen when Windows users require key authentication to servers, cloud VMs, or Git over SSH. Load the private half into Pageant or aim PuTTY’s session at it directly. For the wider kit (PSCP, PSFTP, Plink, Pageant), visit the PuTTY site home or the installers page.

More help

Install choices, first SSH login, and PSCP/PSFTP primers sit on the Practical how-to. Builds are provided strictly through this site’s Installers & packages flow.

Get PuTTY (includes PuTTYgen on Windows)

Get PuTTY