Bug#303452: add -o PidFile option to ssh

[Colin Watson <cjwatson@debian.org>]

tags 303452 fixed-upstream
thanks

On Wed, Apr 06, 2005 at 02:39:37PM -0500, Adam Heath wrote:
> Package: openssh-client
> Version: 3.9p1-3.1
> Tags: experimental patch
> 
> When ssh -f is used, ssh forks into the background.  However, it's then
> difficult to kill that backgrounded ssh automatically, from other scripts.
> Thet attached patch tells ssh to write a pid file.  This happens irregardless
> of whether -f is used, however.
> 
> This makes my ssh -MS wrapper more robust(ssh is buggy when -MNS pipe is used,
> but not -f, and then you later reconnect to that master; the first slave works
> fine, but subsequent slaves deadlock).

The OpenSSH 4.0p1 announcement includes this paragraph:

  * Improved connection multiplexing support in ssh(1). Several bugs 
    have been fixed and a new "command mode" has been added to allow the
    control of a running multiplexing master connection, including 
    checking that it is up, determining its PID and asking it to exit.

So I can now do this:

  $ ssh -M -S ~/.ssh/riva.ctl -f riva xterm
  $ ssh -S ~/.ssh/riva.ctl -O check riva
  Master running (pid=29142)
  $ ssh -S ~/.ssh/riva.ctl -O exit riva
  Exit request sent.

I think that should satisfy this bug report, albeit in a different way.

Cheers,

-- 
Colin Watson                                       [cjwatson@debian.org]