Cloud & Infrastructure Practical By Samson Tanimawo, PhD Published Apr 6, 2026 4 min read

SSM vs SSH: 2026 Default for Server Access

SSH still works but is harder to audit. SSM Session Manager replaces SSH for most use cases.

Why SSM wins

No exposed SSH ports. No bastions. No SSH key management.

Per-session audit log. Recording optional.

Workloads outside AWS or hybrid. SSH is portable; SSM is AWS-specific.

Specific tooling that requires SSH.

Install SSM agent on existing fleet. Most AMIs have it.

Disable SSH access on a sample; verify SSM works; expand.