/
Correct SSH Directory Permissions

Correct SSH Directory Permissions

Students, faculty and staff can correct SSH directory permissions on Red Hat Enterprise Linux. 

Understanding the Error

Users trying to set up Public-Key Authentication may see the following error in the logs:

Authentication refused: bad ownership or modes for directory

This issue is related to permissions and/or ownership. The following commands on the user account you are trying to set up should fix the problem:

  • chmod go-w ~/

  • chmod 700 ~/.ssh

  • chmod 600 ~/.ssh/authorized_keys

If the commands above do not work, try to run the commands listed below:

  • denyhosts

  • pam system-auth config 

  • your sshd_config

Related Articles