How to properly set-up an SSH tunnel on FreeBSD for automatic backups

[Alex Zbyslaw]

Olaf Greve wrote:

> Hi,
>
> I'm trying to set-up an SSH tunnel between two FreeBSD machines, over 
> a direct cross-wire connection between the two, and I'm having issues 
> in doing so. The question(s) I have is/are probably not FreeBSD 
> specific, but still I hope someone can answer it/them...

I don't see any specific problem with what you are trying but ssh 
connections are prone to so many kinds of error...

The first thing you should do is to try your ssh with much verbosity 
"ssh -v -v -v" and see what it is doing.  Does it try to use your key?  
If it does, does the remote server reject it?  Once you have more 
details it may be easier to help you fix the problem, or you might find 
the answer yourself.

Common mistakes include: wrong permissions on the key file or .ssh 
directories and mis/copy-pasting the public key (make sure you didn't 
get any newlines in it); some mistake in a config file.  I say common, 
because these are the ones I regularly make :-)  ssh -v is your friend.

--Alex