By default SSH is not enabled in ESXi. Follow the steps below to enable it

  1. At the ESXi console, press alt+F1
  2. Type: unsupported
  3. Enter the root password
  4. At the prompt type “vi /etc/inetd.conf”
  5. Look for the line that starts with “#ssh”
  6. Remove the “#”
  7. Save “/etc/inetd.conf” by typing “:wq!” or “ZZ“
  8. Restart the management service “/sbin/services.sh restart” or reboot the host