---
title: "How can I test my SSH key?"
date: "2025-05-08T09:19:06+00:00"
summary: "Learn how to test your SSH key for external connections and troubleshoot GitHub access issues with our step-by-step guide."
image:
type: "article"
url: "/acquia-cloud-platform/help/68996-how-can-i-test-my-ssh-key"
id: "aa863bf1-b9a1-4203-8816-39259092b657"
---

If you cannot connect to external resources (such as GitHub) but your GitHub permissions are correct, use the following procedure to test your SSH key:

Note

In the following commands, replace `[/path/to/key]` with the full path to your SSH key.

1.  Determine if the encrypted file in your `acquia-pipelines.yaml` file can access your GitHub repository with the following command:
    
        ssh -i [/path/to/key] -vvv git@github.com                                                                                                                                           
    
    The `-vvv` switch forces verbose output, which can indicate if GitHub accepted your SSH key.
    
2.  Confirm if your SSH key requires a passphrase because the key is encrypted. Although newer encrypted SSH keys are indistinguishable from non-encrypted keys, use the following command to test older SSH keys:
    
        head -n2 /path/to/key
    
    After you execute the command, review its output, which will appear similar to the following:
    
        -----BEGIN RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
        Proc-Type: 4,ENCRYPTED