The Secure Shell Client (ssh) program, which is intended to replace the telnet and rlogin utilities, is now available on RCS.
In the most general terms, ssh provides secure communications over an insecure network; what this means in practical terms is that RCS users can use ssh in place of telnet, when remotely accessing an RCS server from any RCS UNIX workstation, to prevent their userids and passwords from being sent "in the clear" (un-encrypted) across the network.
Using the ssh program is very similar to using the telnet program; simply enter the ssh command, and the name of the host to which you wish to remotely login, from a UNIX prompt, as shown below:
ssh hostname
If you want to login to the remote machine under a different userid than the one under which you are currently logged in, follow the same procedure as above, but add the -l option and the username under which you would like to login, as shown below:
ssh -l username hostname
In either case, the system will prompt you to enter your RCS password. Once the server has verified and accepted your identity, it logs into the machine and gives you a normal shell on the remote machine. The machine automatically encrypts all communication with the remote command or shell.
Users who are familiar with telnet and who run X sessions will appreciate the fact that ssh automatically forwards their connection to the remote machine through the secured channel. This means that users will *not* have to set their DISPLAY variable as they would for a telnet session.
For additional help in using ssh, refer to the man page on RCS by entering the command man ssh at a UNIX prompt. You may also find further useful information on-line at the URL http://www.cs.hut.fi/ssh.
If you have any further questions about using ssh, please contact the consultants at the ACS Help Desk, or direct electronic mail to consult@rpi.edu.