I have a good friend who is just starting on Linux so I have chosen to write a series of posts for people new to linux to help them find their way around. If you have any requests send me an email.
We will start with ssh. SSH stands for secure shell and is a method for getting a command line console on linux. SSH normally operates on port 22 and is encrypted. Making is a perfect way to provide secure connections. Out of the box it supports two types of authentication password and public key. Public key is a preshared key. SSH can be configured to accept one or both of these methods. The most secure is public key because the length of keys make it nearly impossible to brute force your way into an account.
The easiest way to login via ssh from windows is using putty which is free and tiny you can download it from here http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/download.html
If you need to copy files up to a server using ssh try WinSCP
http://winscp.net/eng/download.php
So once you get the application you put in your server ip or name and your good to go !