Remote Command Execution with PuTTY

Checksum Commands

Your rsync.net filesystem allows you to run a rich set of Unix commands remotely, over SSH. For instance, you could run an md5 checksum of a particular file:

or perhaps delete a particular file:

However, if you do not have access to a unix shell OR if you do not have a copy of cygwin ssh.exe available in your environment, it can be difficult to run commands over SSH.

Running Remote SSH Commands With PuTTY

PuTTY is a free, open source SSH client for Windows that can be downloaded here.

No installation is necessary - simply copy the putty.exe file into your c:\windows directory (or place it somewhere else, preferably in your PATH).

Start PuTTY by clicking the Start Menu, choosing "Run" and entering the single word "putty" in the Run Dialog Box (then click OK).

When the program opens, enter your rsync.net file server hostname (from your welcome email) into the "Host Name" box.

Port should be left at "22" and Connection Type should be left at "SSH".

Now, at the bottom of that screen, under the setting "Close window on exit" select the "Never" radio button.

Then in the left-hand side of the putty configuration screen, click once on the SSH choice (near the bottom). At the very top of that config screen (labeled "Options controlling SSH connections") enter a command (like passwd or quota) into the "Remote Command" textbox. Then just click the "Open" button on the bottom. The command you have chosen will be executed on the remote end.

If this is the first time you have connected to our system via SSH, putty may warn you of that, and ask you to store our SSH key for future connections. We recommend this.