Secure Shell Tunneling (SSH) is a port forwarding technique which allows users to access services and share resources and information via a secure network. SSH tunneling involves the use of a secure shell protocol to create an encrypted network within a potentially unsecured connection. Because the network is encrypted, users do not necessarily have to encrypt the information they are sending across the network. SSH tunneling can also be used to access services which may be restricted by firewalls within a network. It is also used to run services and protocols which may not be supported by the network in question. For instance, if a business in Ottawa wanted to run an IPv6 protocol on an IPv4 network, a company offering Ottawa network support could set up an SSH tunnel which would allow them to run the protocol.
There are three main port forwarding techniques utilized by SSH tunneling. One is local port forwarding, where a request is sent from an SSH client to an SSH server and then forwarded to its destination server. It entails the translation of a local port onto the destination server via the SSH client and this allows the user to send and receive data from the destination server. Local port forwarding is important for businesses which require the use of services on the internet privately, as well as those who may have some of their staff working from home. For companies which use online facilities in Ottawa, network security for their network can be boosted by having IT companies in Ottawa set up an SSH tunneling connection to provide local port forwarding.
Remote port forwarding, on the other hand, entails making the resources on your local PC available to others through SSH tunneling. It can also be used when a certain local network has resources which other offices need to access. For instance, if a set of computer services is offered at the offices of a business in Ottawa, SSH tunneling can allow this service to be distributed to other offices by calling an IT company to set up an SSH connection or channel.
Dynamic port forwarding is another way in which an SSH connection can be utilized by a user. It involves accessing information and services from a remote SSH server by creating a proxy server on your computer. By creating the server, users can use a public internet connection to share and receive files privately, much like they would back home. The advantage is that it prevents sniffers in a public internet connection from getting to your data. Businesses located in Ottawa which have remote users can employ dynamic port forwarding to ensure that network security is maintained even while working in a public network.