Connecting to containers and VMs

Modified: 21 Oct 2024 22:57 UTC

SSH, docker exec, and Microsoft Remote Desktop are all supported connection methods to "log in" to instances in Triton.

Detailed instructions

SSH is the primary means of connecting and authenticating for commmand line access to all container types with the exception of Docker and Windows instances.

SSH key management

The propagation of SSH keys is handled differently depending on container type. The following table provides an overview of the differences.

Container Type Authentication Type Notes
SmartOS Uses SmartLogin Authenticates against current list of keys in the account of the container owner.
Container Native Linux Uses authorized_keys file Keys in the account of the container owner are copied at provision time. Changes to the keys in the account are not reflected. Can force an update to the authorized_keys file via a metadata item.
Hardware Virtualized Linux Uses authorized_keys file Keys in the account of the container owner are copied at provision time. Changes to the keys in the account are not reflected. Can force an update to the authorized_keys file via a metadata item.
Hardware Virtualized Windows Uses generated administrator password Uses password generated for a given account via the *generate_passwords" option in the image configuration json.
Docker Containers Communication is via TLS secured HTTP; no sshd by default Uses client certificate.

Notes: