How to increase SSH Connection timeout?

Question

Hi everyone! I have an issue about SSH connection.
Previously I set /etc/ssh/ssh_config as ConnectionTimeout 0 but still closes connection. So Am I missing something? How can I keep alive connection? What can I do anything else client-side? (I use Hyper.js on MacOSX) (Droplet: Ubuntu 16)

Edit: There is no timeout sFTP. While using Atom.

Answer 1

Mohsen47 May 27, 2017

@selcukahmet

/etc/ssh/ssh_config is the client-side configuration file not the server side config file.

To prevent all your clients from timing out, you need to edit /etc/ssh/sshd_config, which is the server-side configuration file, add these two options:

ClientAliveInterval 120
ClientAliveCountMax 720

The first one configures the server to send null packets to clients each 120 seconds and the second one configures the server to close the connection if the client has been inactive for 720 intervals that is 720*120 = 86400 seconds = 24 hours

I hope this helps.

edited by bobbyiliev

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jtittle1 May 27, 2017
@selcukahmet @Mohsen47

As a general note, you may also need to set these configuration options up on your end, as in on your MacBook. You can do this by creating a config file in ./ssh, i.e.:

~/.ssh/config

You can add:

Host * ClientAliveInterval ... ClientAliveCountMax ... ServerAliveInterval ...

Keep in mind, if you’re MacBook goes in to sleep mode, you shut the lid, or a screensaver pops up, you may still end up with a closed connection.
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- stephenwitheywright April 19, 2018
  
  On UBUNTU, these files are in the system wide ssh directory, ie /etc/ssh/, not /etc
  
  Reply Report
- msilvya August 12, 2019
  
  @jtittle1 is this relevant to Windows? Do we just add the …(dot dot dot)?
  
  Reply Report
agil December 4, 2018

Please fix your answer, you need to edit /etc/ssh/sshd_config
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- Mohsen47 December 4, 2018
  
  You are right I need to fix the path but I cannot find any button to edit my answer,
  
  The path should be /etc/ssh/sshd_config
  
  Reply Report
zopfans September 24, 2019

No. It didn’t help at all.
Even I used the 2nd path you told in the comment below (/etc/ssh/sshd_config).

It didn’t succeed, even when I entered the (almost) similar lines to ~/.ssh/config file, as told in the link shared by @larrywachira down here.

Kindly help.
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fabiocaccamo September 4, 2020

Then reload the OpenSSH daemon for the changes to come into effect:

$ sudo systemctl reload sshd
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Answer 2

jtittle1 May 27, 2017
@selcukahmet @Mohsen47

As a general note, you may also need to set these configuration options up on your end, as in on your MacBook. You can do this by creating a config file in ./ssh, i.e.:

~/.ssh/config

You can add:

Host * ClientAliveInterval ... ClientAliveCountMax ... ServerAliveInterval ...

Keep in mind, if you’re MacBook goes in to sleep mode, you shut the lid, or a screensaver pops up, you may still end up with a closed connection.
Reply Report
- stephenwitheywright April 19, 2018
  
  On UBUNTU, these files are in the system wide ssh directory, ie /etc/ssh/, not /etc
  
  Reply Report
- msilvya August 12, 2019
  
  @jtittle1 is this relevant to Windows? Do we just add the …(dot dot dot)?
  
  Reply Report
agil December 4, 2018

Please fix your answer, you need to edit /etc/ssh/sshd_config
Reply Report
- Mohsen47 December 4, 2018
  
  You are right I need to fix the path but I cannot find any button to edit my answer,
  
  The path should be /etc/ssh/sshd_config
  
  Reply Report
zopfans September 24, 2019

No. It didn’t help at all.
Even I used the 2nd path you told in the comment below (/etc/ssh/sshd_config).

It didn’t succeed, even when I entered the (almost) similar lines to ~/.ssh/config file, as told in the link shared by @larrywachira down here.

Kindly help.
Reply Report
fabiocaccamo September 4, 2020

Then reload the OpenSSH daemon for the changes to come into effect:

$ sudo systemctl reload sshd
Reply Report

Answer 3

stephenwitheywright May 1, 2018

I have set up the sshd_config files as shown above, and I still get logged out pretty quickly. The login to the Digital Ocean’s system production system looks much the same as the login to my development system. After being logged out by D.O. the host name in the title bar still reads D.O. The other day I was checking some files I had on my D.O. production system, validating them against my local git archives? I had expected differences as the system wasn’t behaving, but there were NO differences. Only later did I realize that D.O. must have logged me off w/o my realizing it, and I was checking against my own files.
These logoffs are no joke. The virtual terminal provided by D.O. is too slow to use. Hopefully someone can give me a hand. Perhaps the tools provided by Atom will help.

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larrywachira May 17, 2018

@stephenwitheywright I found these helpful links:
https://www.a2hosting.com/kb/getting-started-guide/accessing-your-account/keeping-ssh-connections-alive
https://www.simplified.guide/ssh/disable-timeout

Worked flawlessly for me.
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Answer 4

larrywachira May 17, 2018

@stephenwitheywright I found these helpful links:
https://www.a2hosting.com/kb/getting-started-guide/accessing-your-account/keeping-ssh-connections-alive
https://www.simplified.guide/ssh/disable-timeout

Worked flawlessly for me.
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Answer 5

Usedafakeemaildonttrustyou June 4, 2018

I’m not sure if it’s an option for you, but an SSH connection with an active X11 tunnel will not close. If you run nautilus or gedit or something through an X11 connection you won’t have this problem.

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Answer 6

suhailvs March 12, 2020

Show answer This answer has been marked as resolved by suhailvs.

On local computer add line on file /etc/ssh/ssh_config:

ServerAliveInterval 120

this option will ping the server every 120 seconds and keep you connected indefinitely.

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