Ssh – Set up ssh client to disconnect after inactivity

ssh

I'd like to configure my ssh client to disconnect from a particular host after some period of inactivity. I do not have root access to the server. I need to do this from the client, not the server; the user on the server is shared among multiple people.

Ideally I could do this via my ssh config file so that I can source control the file and carry it to my many home directories.

I've tried the following entry in my ssh config file (~/.ssh/config):

Host somehostname
    Hostname somehostname
    User someuser
    ConnectTimeout 60

However after I log in and wait > 60 seconds I am still connected.

I'm using:

$ ssh -v
OpenSSH_5.9p1 Debian-5ubuntu1, OpenSSL 1.0.1 14 Mar 2012

Best Answer

As the man page for ssh_config says, ConnectTimeout

Specifies the timeout (in seconds) used when connecting to the SSH server, instead of using the default system TCP timeout. This value is used only when the target is down or really unreachable, not when it refuses the connection.

It is not the equivalent of e.g. bash's $TMOUT variable, that is, autologout from the shell when the interactive session is idle. I don't think you can do what you want, in the way you want to do it (ie, client-side).

Related Solutions

SSH Authentication – Use Only Password and Ignore SSH Key

Try ssh -o PasswordAuthentication=yes -o PreferredAuthentications=keyboard-interactive,password -o PubkeyAuthentication=no host.example.org

In ssh v2, keyboard-interactive is another way to say "password". The -o PubkeyAuthentication=no option instructs the client not to attempt key pair authentication.

In addition, the PasswordAuthentication=yes option is to override any previously configured ssh options that may have disabled it.

Ssh – How to automate SSH login with password

Don't use a password. Generate a passphrase-less SSH key and push it to your VM.

If you already have an SSH key, you can skip this step… Just hit Enter for the key and both passphrases:

$ ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 2048
Generating public/private rsa key pair.
Enter file in which to save the key (/home/username/.ssh/id_rsa):
Enter passphrase (empty for no passphrase):
Enter same passphrase again:
Your identification has been saved in /home/username/.ssh/id_rsa.
Your public key has been saved in /home/username/.ssh/id_rsa.pub.

Copy your keys to the target server:

$ ssh-copy-id id@server
id@server's password:

Now try logging into the machine, with ssh 'id@server', and check-in:

.ssh/authorized_keys

Note: If you don't have .ssh dir and authorized_keys file, you need to create it first

to make sure we haven’t added extra keys that you weren’t expecting.

Finally, check to log in…

$ ssh id@server

id@server:~$

You may also want to look into using ssh-agent if you want to try keeping your keys protected with a passphrase.

Best Answer

Related Solutions

SSH Authentication – Use Only Password and Ignore SSH Key

Ssh – How to automate SSH login with password

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