How to configure ssh access by key on F5OS

Hey there!

The reason ssh-copy-id doesn't work is that F5OS doesn't use the traditional ~/.ssh/authorized_keys file path that ssh-copy-id expects. SSH public keys are managed through the F5OS configuration plane instead. Here are your options:

Option 1: F5OS CLI

SSH in with your password first, then enter config mode and add your public key:

syscon-1-active(config)# system aaa authentication users user admin config authorized-keys key my-key

syscon-1-active(config-key-my-key)# key-type ssh-rsa

syscon-1-active(config-key-my-key)# key-data "AAAAB3NzaC1yc2EAAAADAQ..."

syscon-1-active(config-key-my-key)# commit

Replace my-key with any label you want, and paste your full public key string (from ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub) as the key-data value.

Option 2: WebUI

Navigate to: System Settings → User Management → admin → SSH Keys

Add your public key there and save. Straightforward if you prefer GUI.

Verify it worked:

show system aaa authentication users user admin config authorized-keys

One thing to double-check: Make sure SSH access is allowed on the management interface and that you're hitting the correct port (default 22). You can verify under show system mgmt-ip and check system ssh config for any allowed-ips restrictions.

Hope that helps!