Ssh – Execute command over SSH while logging live output

bashsshtee

I'm trying to log the output of a remote ssh command.

I'm current using

ssh USER@IP | tee -a ~/random.log

and then run the command I need to run on the remote server which then logs to random.log.

I need this to be able to run in the background, currently it exits when I quit/close terminal.

I cannot log on the remote server as it is a router with very little free space (>800kb).

Best Answer

You can use screen on the local machine as well, to prevent stopping the exit if you close your terminal window.

screen

and in the screen session,

ssh USER@IP | tee -a ~/random.log

If you accidentally close the window, just use screen -r to reattach. Note that this will not survive a reboot of your local machine.

Related Solutions

SSH – Launch a Screen Session with a Command Over SSH on a Remote Server

Try using the -t option to ssh

ssh -t root@my.machine screen "tail -f /var/log/messages"

From man ssh

-t      Force pseudo-tty allocation.  This can be used to execute arbi-
        trary screen-based programs on a remote machine, which can be
        very useful, e.g., when implementing menu services.  Multiple -t
        options force tty allocation, even if ssh has no local tty.

Linux – Ssh, run a command on login, and then Stay Logged In

Add a ; /bin/bash to the end of your command line on the remote side? That is:

spawn ssh -t root@marlboro "cd /tmp; ls -altr | tail; /bin/bash -i"

Even better, change root's .bashrc to be something like this:

PROMPT_COMMAND="cd /tmp && ls -altr | tail ; unset PROMPT_COMMAND"

Best Answer

Related Solutions

SSH – Launch a Screen Session with a Command Over SSH on a Remote Server

Linux – Ssh, run a command on login, and then Stay Logged In

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