Windows 11 Optional features does not have Add

Why you don’t see “Add”​

Add OpenSSH via Settings (GUI)​

• Open Settings > Apps > Optional features.
• Click View features (under “Add an optional feature”).
• Search for “OpenSSH” and check:
  • OpenSSH Client (recommended)
  • OpenSSH Server (only if you need to accept incoming SSH connections)
• Click Next > Install, then wait a minute. Verify with: open Windows Terminal and run: ssh -V

If “View features” is missing/greyed out​

• The feature may already be installed: look under Installed features for “OpenSSH Client/Server.”
• Device is managed by policy: you might see “Some settings are managed by your organization.” In that case, use PowerShell below or contact your admin.
• No internet/source: Windows may need Windows Update or a local source to add capabilities.

Add via PowerShell (works on Home/Pro/Enterprise)​

# Client
Add-WindowsCapability -Online -Name OpenSSH.Client~~~~0.0.1.0 # Server (optional)
Add-WindowsCapability -Online -Name OpenSSH.Server~~~~0.0.1.0 # Start and enable SSH server (only if you installed Server)
Start-Service sshd
Set-Service -Name sshd -StartupType Automatic

ChatGPT said:

Why you don’t see “Add”​

That guidance is a bit out of date. In current Windows 11/10, the path is Settings > Apps > Optional features, and the old “Add” button is now labeled “View features.” If OpenSSH Client is already installed, you’ll only see it under Installed features (so no “Add”/“View features” prompt for it).

Add OpenSSH via Settings (GUI)​

• Open Settings > Apps > Optional features.
• Click View features (under “Add an optional feature”).
• Search for “OpenSSH” and check:
  • OpenSSH Client (recommended)
  • OpenSSH Server (only if you need to accept incoming SSH connections)
• Click Next > Install, then wait a minute. Verify with: open Windows Terminal and run: ssh -V

If “View features” is missing/greyed out​

• The feature may already be installed: look under Installed features for “OpenSSH Client/Server.”
• Device is managed by policy: you might see “Some settings are managed by your organization.” In that case, use PowerShell below or contact your admin.
• No internet/source: Windows may need Windows Update or a local source to add capabilities.

Add via PowerShell (works on Home/Pro/Enterprise)​

Run Windows Terminal (Admin) and execute:

Code:

# Client
Add-WindowsCapability -Online -Name OpenSSH.Client~~~~0.0.1.0

# Server (optional)
Add-WindowsCapability -Online -Name OpenSSH.Server~~~~0.0.1.0

# Start and enable SSH server (only if you installed Server)
Start-Service sshd
Set-Service -Name sshd -StartupType Automatic

Then test with:
ssh -V
What version of Windows are you running, and do you see “View features” on Settings > Apps > Optional features? If not, tell me exactly what you see on that page.

Click to expand...

Let’s jump straight to it​

• Press Win+R, paste: ms-settingsptionalfeatures, and press Enter.
• On Windows 10, it may appear as a link inside “Apps & features” (top of the page) labeled “Optional features” or “Manage optional features.”

• Open Windows Terminal (Admin) and run:
  
  Code:

  Add-WindowsCapability -Online -Name OpenSSH.Client~~~~0.0.1.0
  # (Optional server)
  # Add-WindowsCapability -Online -Name OpenSSH.Server~~~~0.0.1.0

  Then verify with:
  ssh -V
  Tip: On most Windows 11 systems the OpenSSH Client is already present at C:\Windows\System32\OpenSSH\ssh.exe.

Do you want the Settings “Optional features” page or an SSH app UI?​

• Open it directly: press Win+R and run: ms-settingsptionalfeatures
• Or go to Settings > Apps > Optional features > Installed features, then find “OpenSSH Client”.
• If “Optional features” still doesn’t appear, check if a policy is hiding Settings pages:
  • Run: reg query HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer /v SettingsPageVisibility
  • If a value exists that hides optionalfeatures/apps, tell me what it shows and I’ll help clear it.

• PuTTY (lightweight), MobaXterm (tabbed SSH + built‑in SFTP), Termius/Tabby (modern UI), or WinSCP for drag‑and‑drop SFTP.
• You can also make a one‑click SSH profile in Windows Terminal:
  • Windows Terminal > Settings (Ctrl+,) > Add new profile > Command line:
    C:\Windows\System32\OpenSSH\ssh.exe user@host -p 22
  • Name it, pick an icon, Save. Now it opens directly into that SSH session.

• Open it directly: press Win+R and run: ms-settingsptionalfeatures worked going to Viw features.
• But OnenSSH Client checkbox is only for removing.

That “remove” option means it’s already installed​

• “Installed features” shows OpenSSH Client with only one action: Uninstall (i.e., remove).
• “View features” (Add an optional feature) only lists items not already installed, so OpenSSH Client won’t appear there once it’s installed.

What do you want to do next?​

• Reinstall the client via GUI:
  1) Settings > Apps > Optional features > Installed features > OpenSSH Client > Uninstall.
  2) Wait a minute, click View features, search “OpenSSH Client,” check it, Next > Install.
• Add the server (if you need inbound SSH):
  1) View features > search “OpenSSH Server” > Install.
  2) Then enable the service: open Services (services.msc) > sshd > Start, and set Startup type to Automatic.
• Use a GUI for SSH sessions (instead of the ssh command): install PuTTY, MobaXterm, or create a profile in Windows Terminal pointing to C:\Windows\System32\OpenSSH\ssh.exe user@host.

• Client-only (just for your sessions): Refuse password from the client so it will only try keys.
  • One time: ssh -o PasswordAuthentication=no user@host
  • Permanent for a host: create %USERPROFILE%.ssh\config with:
    Host myserver
    HostName host.example.com
    User youruser
    PasswordAuthentication no
• Server-side (actually disable password logins for everyone):
  • If the server is THIS Windows PC (OpenSSH Server installed):
    1) Put your public key in C:\Users\YourUser.ssh\authorized_keys (create the .ssh folder if needed).
    Permissions (important):
    PowerShell (Admin):
    icacls "$env:USERPROFILE.ssh" /inheritance:r
    icacls "$env:USERPROFILE.ssh" /grant "$env:USERNAMEF)"
    icacls "$env:USERPROFILE.ssh\authorized_keys" /inheritance:r
    icacls "$env:USERPROFILE.ssh\authorized_keys" /grant "$env:USERNAMEF)"
    2) Edit C:\ProgramData\ssh\sshd_config (run Notepad as admin) and set:
    PubkeyAuthentication yes
    PasswordAuthentication no
    KbdInteractiveAuthentication no
    

    Optional: require keys only​

    AuthenticationMethods publickey
    3) Restart the service:
    Restart-Service sshd
    4) Test from another window before closing your current session:
    ssh -o PasswordAuthentication=no -v youruser@localhost
  • If the server is Linux/Unix: edit /etc/ssh/sshd_config with the same lines (PasswordAuthentication no, PubkeyAuthentication yes, optionally KbdInteractiveAuthentication no / AuthenticationMethods publickey), then sudo systemctl restart sshd and test.