CentOS Stream 10 – Common Problem 112 – Diagnosis and Fix

📖 ~1 min read

Table of contents

1. Symptom & Impact
2. Environment & Reproduction
3. Root Cause Analysis
4. Quick Triage
5. Step-by-Step Diagnosis
6. Solution – Primary Fix
7. Solution – Alternative Approaches
8. Verification & Acceptance Criteria
9. Rollback Plan
10. Prevention & Hardening
11. Related Errors & Cross-Refs
12. References & Further Reading

Symptom & Impact

Key-based SSH login is rejected with permission denied (publickey).

Environment & Reproduction

Frequent after home directory restores, SELinux relabel, or sshd hardening.

Root Cause Analysis

Authorized_keys path, permissions, or SELinux context are incorrect.

Quick Triage

Run sshd -T and ssh -vvv to capture key exchange details.

Step-by-Step Diagnosis

Inspect /var/log/secure and audit logs for AVC or auth events.

Solution – Primary Fix

Set 700/600 perms, restorecon home directory, and verify key fingerprint.

Solution – Alternative Approaches

Use AuthorizedKeysCommand for centralized keys to bypass file issues.

Verification & Acceptance Criteria

Login succeeds with key, and PasswordAuthentication remains disabled.

Rollback Plan

Re-enable password auth temporarily during repair if needed.

Prevention & Hardening

Centralize keys with SSSD or vault-backed providers.

Related Errors & Cross-Refs

Linked to selinux ssh_home_t and pubkey policy issues.

Related tutorial: View the step-by-step tutorial for centos-stream-10.

View all centos-stream-10 tutorials on the Tutorials Hub →

Browse all common problems & solutions on the Tutorials Hub.

References & Further Reading

sshd_config and OpenSSH manual pages.