diff --git a/openstack-ood/variables.pkr.hcl b/openstack-ood/variables.pkr.hcl
index 5a6f608cc01a4134e3d276f4a0960e4d2c530f4c..a97e3277490b758dfc23ea461e702d6f5c690fa9 100644
--- a/openstack-ood/variables.pkr.hcl
+++ b/openstack-ood/variables.pkr.hcl
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 variable "root_ssh_key" {
   type        = string
+  default     = ""
   description = "The root key to use for ssh"
 }
 
@@ -87,4 +88,4 @@ variable "volume_size" {
   type        = number
   default     = 20
   description = "The default volume size for building iamge"
-}
\ No newline at end of file
+}