Command Line Options

You can configure client and server connections using command-line options in addition to, or instead of, using configuration files. Command line options override configuration file settings. Any option that can be configured in a configuration file, can also be set on the command line using the -o option. Syntax alternatives are shown below. Use quotation marks to contain expressions that include spaces.

-o key1=value

-o key1="sample value"

-o "key1 value"

To configure multiple options, use multiple -o switches.

-o key1=value -o key2=value

The following command lines show two equivalent ways to specify an identification file.

ssh -i testfile myname@myserver

ssh -o IdentificationFile=testfile myname@myserver