Trying to SSH to a trusted server

[ndedhia1]

I am trying to SSH to a trusted server, without using a password but I am getting this error:

null
[Ljava.lang.StackTraceElement;@3b1d04


This is the code that I am using:

SshClient ssh = new SshClient();
 
 
ssh.connect("prdgc103b", new ConsoleKnownHostsKeyVerification());
 
 

The known_hosts file is located at
$HOME/.ssh/known_hosts which is the default for the ConsoleKnownHostsKeyVerification() method.

Can someone please tell me what I am doing wrong.

Thanks

[ndedhia1]

I have fixed the above error by putting in the correct path name for the known_hosts file, but now, how do i authenticate?
There is no password that is needed to get onto these servers because it is trusted.

[Oralloy]

@ndedhia1,

You should get back a SSL certificate as part of the authentication process. You'll have to verify that it is derived from a trusted certificate.

With SSL, there are several standard authentication providers, and they let you root your certificate to theirs. These providers are self proclaimed, and only accepted because the community accepts them.

If you want, you can provide your own root authentication server. I've done it in the past to keep managers from crying too much while the real certificates are acquired.

Hopefully that helps some.

Cheers!

[ndedhia1]

hi Oralloy,
thanks for the help!!
Do you have any code examples of the SSL certificates you were talking about?

Right now, I am doing the authenticating like this:

pwd.setUsername(user);
pwd.setPassword(password);
// Authenticate the user
int result = ssh.authenticate(pwd);
if(result==AuthenticationProtocolState.COMPLETED) {
System.out.println("Authentication Completed");
}
 

But the only problem with this is that there is no password. When i dont try to authenticate the password, I get an error saying that password or user cannot be null.

Thanks again!!

[Oralloy]

ndedhia1,

For some reason I thought you were using SSL, not SSH. I gave you a bum post, and I apologize for that.

Still, I'll look around and see what we can do.

As I recall for SSH (not SSL), hosts and clients have optional mutual recognition. Most hosts I've worked with are permissive, though, and don't complain when they don't recognize the client computer. Clients often complain (look at the implementation of PUTTy) about host recognition, because the user is too lazy to update the known_hosts and keys files. But, you likely know this.

BTW, if you don't have a password, try sending a zero length string (""), instead of null, or none at all.

Again, my apologies for the brain fart yesterday.

Luck!
Oralloy

[ndedhia1]

hi Oralloy.
No problem with the mistake. It happens to everyone:)

Here is the output I get from my connect and authentication code:
Also, I tried it with an empty password and that failed also.

          ssh.connect(host, new ConsoleKnownHostsKeyVerification("$HOME/.ssh/known_hosts"));
 
 
           System.out.println("BEFORE AUTHENTICATION");
         //Authenticate
 
           PasswordAuthenticationClient passwordAuthenticationClient = new PasswordAuthenticationClient();
           passwordAuthenticationClient.setUsername(user);
//          passwordAuthenticationClient.setPassword(password);
 

Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.publickey.SshKeyPairF actory <clinit>
INFO: Loading public key algorithms
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.configuration.ConfigurationLoad er initialize
INFO: JAVA version is 1.6.0_11-rev
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.configuration.ConfigurationLoad er initialize
INFO: Extension /usr/local/jdk1.6.0_11/jre/lib/ext/sunjce_provider.jar being added to classpath
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.util.ExtensionClassLoader add
INFO: Adding /usr/local/jdk1.6.0_11/jre/lib/ext/sunjce_provider.jar to the extension classpath
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.configuration.ConfigurationLoad er initialize
INFO: Extension /usr/local/jdk1.6.0_11/jre/lib/ext/sunpkcs11.jar being added to classpath
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.util.ExtensionClassLoader add
INFO: Adding /usr/local/jdk1.6.0_11/jre/lib/ext/sunpkcs11.jar to the extension classpath
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.configuration.ConfigurationLoad er initialize
INFO: Extension /usr/local/jdk1.6.0_11/jre/lib/ext/dnsns.jar being added to classpath
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.util.ExtensionClassLoader add
INFO: Adding /usr/local/jdk1.6.0_11/jre/lib/ext/dnsns.jar to the extension classpath
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.configuration.ConfigurationLoad er initialize
INFO: Extension /usr/local/jdk1.6.0_11/jre/lib/ext/tools.jar being added to classpath
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.util.ExtensionClassLoader add
INFO: Adding /usr/local/jdk1.6.0_11/jre/lib/ext/tools.jar to the extension classpath
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.configuration.ConfigurationLoad er initialize
INFO: Extension /usr/local/jdk1.6.0_11/jre/lib/ext/localedata.jar being added to classpath
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.util.ExtensionClassLoader add
INFO: Adding /usr/local/jdk1.6.0_11/jre/lib/ext/localedata.jar to the extension classpath
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.cipher.SshCipherFacto ry <clinit>
INFO: Loading supported cipher algorithms
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.kex.SshKeyExchangeFac tory <clinit>
INFO: Loading key exchange methods
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.compression.SshCompre ssionFactory <clinit>
INFO: Loading compression methods
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.hmac.SshHmacFactory <clinit>
INFO: Loading message authentication methods
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.TransportProtocolComm on startTransportProtocol
INFO: Starting transport protocol
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.TransportProtocolComm on run
INFO: Registering transport protocol messages with inputstream
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.TransportProtocolComm on negotiateVersion
INFO: Negotiating protocol version
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.TransportProtocolComm on negotiateVersion
INFO: Protocol negotiation complete
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.TransportProtocolComm on beginKeyExchange
INFO: Starting key exchange
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.kex.DhGroup1Sha1 performClientExchange
INFO: Starting client side key exchange.
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.AbstractKnownHostsKey Verification verifyHost
INFO: Verifying prdgc103b,10.170.114.4 host key
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.TransportProtocolClie nt verifyHostKey
INFO: The host key signature is valid
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.TransportProtocolComm on completeKeyExchange
INFO: Completing key exchange
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.cipher.SshCipherFacto ry newInstance
INFO: Creating new blowfish-cbc cipher instance
Sep 21, 2010 10:11:38 AM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.cipher.SshCipherFacto ry newInstance
INFO: Creating new blowfish-cbc cipher instance
BEFORE AUTHENTICATION
YOU FAILED IN THE CONNECT
Error: com.sshtools.j2ssh.authentication.AuthenticationPr otocolException: Username and password cannot be null!

[Oralloy]

Hey, have you tried looking at:

http://www.sshtools.com/en/kb/idx.ph...-Maverick.html

[ndedhia1]

Hey Oralloy,
Before I try you suggested way, I found a way to authenticate using key, which is the way that I am connecting to the server. Now the problem that i am getting is that I am getting this error when running the below program:

ISCONNECTED: true
I got past the authenticate the public key
Sep 21, 2010 12:31:43 PM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.publickey.SshPrivateK eyFile parse
INFO: Parsing private key file
Sep 21, 2010 12:31:43 PM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.publickey.SshPrivateK eyFile parse
INFO: Private key is not in the default format, attempting parse with other supported formats
YOU FAILED IN THE CONNECT
Error: com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.publickey.InvalidSshK eyException: The key format is not a supported format


I found an example of this code that I thought would help but the parse method did allow 2 arguments:

do you have any thoughts on how i can format the key to the supported format.

I found this information in the Java SSH API User's Guide.

Thanks for all the help so far!!

THIS IS THE EXAMPLE I FOUND ON HOW TO FORMAT THE KEY BUT THE PARSE DIDNT ALLOW IT:

// Open up the private key file
SshPrivateKeyFile file =
  SshPrivateKeyFile.parse(new File(filename),
              new SshtoolsPrivateKeyFormat());
 
 

Once your server is configured you can connect using your newly generated key with the following code: 
 
 
import com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.publickey.SshPrivateKey;
import com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.publickey.SshPrivateKeyFile;
import com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.publickey.SshtoolsPrivateKeyFormat;
import com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.publickey.SshPrivateKey;
 
/**
* Authenticate using a public key
*/
PublicKeyAuthenticationClient pk = new PublicKeyAuthenticationClient();
pk.setUsername(user);         
 
// Open up the private key file
SshPrivateKeyFile file =
  SshPrivateKeyFile.parse(new File("$HOME/.ssh/known_hosts"));
 
// Get the key
SshPrivateKey key = file.toPrivateKey(password);
 
// Set the key and authenticate
pk.setKey(key);
int result = session.authenticate(pk);
 

[ndedhia1]

Hey Oralloy,
I got it to work. The reason that it was giving me this error:

INFO: Private key is not in the default format, attempting parse with other supported formats
YOU FAILED IN THE CONNECT
Error: com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.publickey.InvalidSshK eyException: The key format is not a supported format

was because I had it pointing to the know_hosts file and not to the private key file.

THANKS FOR ALL YOUR HELP!!

[Oralloy]

ndedhia1,

I can't say I did much besides cheer you on.

Still, I'm glad you've got it working.

Cheers!
Oralloy

[ndedhia1]

Hey Oralloy,
I have another question regarding blowfish-cbc cipher instance.
Before I give you the code, I was wondering if you have come across this issue.
My program will be running fine for hours or even days without this occurring, but every once in a while, it will get stuck on this part:

INFO: Creating new blowfish-cbc cipher instance.
Jan 31, 2014 3:11:09 PM com.sshtools.j2ssh.transport.cipher.SshCipherFactory new Instance
INFO: Creating new blowfish-cbc cipher instance
 

My application will just sit there doing nothing till I shut it down and restart it.

Do you by any chance know the reason for this?

THanks!!