Bug#246273: clues

[Jeff Bowden <jeffb@vulcan.com>]

When I use ssh to connect to an unknown host and I have a valid 
$DISPLAY, it pops up the question in a X dialog box, apparently via 
ssh-askpass.  If I remove ssh-askpass I get a similar ssh -v -v -v 
output except that end now looks like this:

   debug3: check_host_in_hostfile: filename /home/jeffb/.ssh/known_hosts
   debug3: check_host_in_hostfile: filename /etc/ssh/ssh_known_hosts
   debug3: check_host_in_hostfile: filename /home/jeffb/.ssh/known_hosts
   debug3: check_host_in_hostfile: filename /etc/ssh/ssh_known_hosts
   debug2: no key of type 0 for host 10.0.107.35
   debug3: check_host_in_hostfile: filename /home/jeffb/.ssh/known_hosts2
   debug3: check_host_in_hostfile: filename /etc/ssh/ssh_known_hosts2
   debug3: check_host_in_hostfile: filename /home/jeffb/.ssh/known_hosts
   debug3: check_host_in_hostfile: filename /etc/ssh/ssh_known_hosts
   debug2: no key of type 2 for host 10.0.107.35
   ssh_askpass: exec(/usr/bin/ssh-askpass): No such file or directory
   Host key verification failed.

Apparently ssh *really* wants to us ssh-askpass now.  I don't see 
anything in /usr/share/doc/ssh or /etc/ssh to indicate this so I'm 
guessing it somehow got built with a new default?

...

I just tested on another similarly configured machine and the problem 
doesn't exist there.  The only differences in /etc/ssh between the two 
machines are the host keys.  /etc/default/ssh and /etc/pam.d/ssh are 
also identical between the two machines.

I tried creating a new user account 'test' on the afflicted machine and 
even after su - test,  ssh fails from that account in the same way.

I tried purging and reinstalling ssh.  No dice.

Clearly there must be some weird interaction with something else on the 
system.  If I knew what was causing it, I would file a bug against it :-)