How Do I Change My Vultr Compute Instance’s SSH Port?

Changing the default SSH port (22) enhances security by reducing automated attacks. Follow the steps below to safely change the SSH port on your Vultr Compute instance:

1. SSH into your Vultr instance.

2. Open the SSH daemon config file.

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   $ sudo nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config

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   Locate the following line:

   #Port 22

   Uncomment it and replace 22 with your desired port number (e.g., 2222):

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   Port 2222

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   Use a port between 1024 and 60000 to avoid conflicts.

3. Allow the new port in the firewall.

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   $ sudo ufw allow 2222/tcp

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4. Restart the SSH service to apply the changes.

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   $ sudo systemctl restart sshd

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5. To SSH into your instance now you have to define the port as well.

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   $ ssh username@your_instance_ip -p 2222

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   Once verified, you can optionally remove access to port 22:

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   $ sudo ufw delete allow 22/tcp

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The above steps are demonstrated on an Ubuntu instance. If you're using a different Linux distribution (like CentOS, AlmaLinux, or FreeBSD), refer to your system's specific documentation.