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# Disabling SSH logins for the root account

> Learn how to enhance security by disabling root SSH logins on your new VPS or dedicated server.

This article describes how to disable SSH logins for the root account. For security reasons, you should create a normal user account, and then disable SSH logins for the root account as soon as possible.

<Warning>
  **Important**

  The following procedures only apply to unmanaged accounts or accounts with root access. Shared and reseller hosting accounts do not have root access to the server.

  📘 Note

  Information in this article about unmanaged dedicated servers is only for customers who purchased those plans before May 27, 2024. As of that date, unmanaged dedicated servers are no longer available.
</Warning>

## Step 1: Create a normal user account

Before you disable SSH logins for the root account, you must create a normal user account. (Otherwise, you will be unable to access your server when you disable the root account for SSH logins.)

### AlmaLinux and Fedora

To create a user and grant it administrative privileges on a server running AlmaLinux or Fedora, follow these steps:

1. Log in to the server using SSH.

2. At the command prompt, type the following command. Replace ***username*** with the name of the user that you want to add:

```bash theme={null}
useradd username
```

3. Type the following command, replacing ***username*** with the name of the user that you created in step 2:

```bash theme={null}
passwd username
```

4. To grant administrative privileges to the user, type the following command:

```bash theme={null}
visudo
```

This command opens the *sudoers* file for editing.

5. Add the following line to the file. Replace *username* with the name of the user that you created in step 2:

```
username ALL=(ALL) ALL
```

Now the user can run commands as the root user by prefixing the command with **sudo**. For example, the user can view the root home directory by typing the command **sudo ls /root**.

<Warning>
  **Important**

  The user can now run any command as the root user. For security reasons, however, you may want to restrict which commands the user can run as root. Alternatively, you can use the **su** command to change to the root user account from any account (assuming you know the root password).
</Warning>

### Debian and Ubuntu

To create a user and grant it administrative privileges on a server running Debian or Ubuntu, follow these steps:

1. Log in to the server using SSH.

2. At the command prompt, type the following command. Replace ***username*** with the name of the user that you want to add:

```bash theme={null}
adduser username
```

3. Install the sudo package. To do this, type the following command:

```bash theme={null}
apt-get install sudo
```

4. To add the user to the sudo group, type the following command. Replace ***username*** with the name of the user that you created in step 2.

```bash theme={null}
usermod -a -G sudo username
```

Now the user can run commands as the root user by prefixing the command with **sudo**. For example, the user can view the root home directory by typing the command **sudo ls /root**.

<Warning>
  **Important**

  By default, the user can now run any command as the root user. For security reasons, however, you may want to restrict which commands the user can run as root by using the **visudo** command. Alternatively, you can use the **su** command to change to the root user account from any account (assuming you know the root password).
</Warning>

## Step 2: Disable SSH logins for root

After you create a normal user, you can disable SSH logins for the root account. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Log in to the server as root using SSH.

2. Open the */etc/ssh/sshd\_config* file in your preferred text editor (nano, vi, etc.).

3. Locate the following line:

```
PermitRootLogin yes
```

4. Modify the line as follows:

```
PermitRootLogin no
```

5. Add the following line. Replace ***username*** with the name of the user you created in the previous procedure:

```
AllowUsers username
```

<Warning>
  **️ Warning**

  This step is crucial. If you do not add the user to the list of allowed SSH users, you will be unable to log in to your server!
</Warning>

6. Save the changes to the */etc/ssh/sshd\_config* file, and then exit the text editor.

7. Restart the SSH service using the appropriate command for your Linux distribution:

* For AlmaLinux and Fedora, type:

```bash theme={null}
service sshd restart
```

* For Debian and Ubuntu, type:

```bash theme={null}
service ssh restart
```

8. While still logged in as root, try to log in as the new user using SSH in a new terminal window. You should be able to log in. If the login fails, check your settings. Do not exit your open root session until you are able to log in as the normal user in another window.

## Related articles

* [Using SSH (Secure Shell)](/docs/using-ssh-secure-shell)

* [Using SSH keys](/docs/using-ssh-keys)