Problems building host keys on some SPARCs

[Ishikawa]

MSCS Technician wrote:

> Thanks for your response.  Here's some new info.
>
> >> root at sylow:/source/USR_LOCAL/OFFICIAL/OPENSSH/ssh_client# ssh-keygen -b 1024 -f /etc/ssh/ssh_host_key -N ''
> >> ksh: ssh-keygen: cannot execute
> > I suspect the above error could result from
> > the use of "ssh-keygen" as opposed to "./ssh-keygen".
> > Root should not have "." in its PATH setting. Looks that some of your hosts
> > do have "." in root PATH and others don't.
>
> This appears to have been the result of the same problem others were
> having with scp.  --with-default-path was needed to get that working
> properly.
>

Ok, I missed the possibility.

>
> >> root at sylow:/source/USR_LOCAL/OFFICIAL/OPENSSH/ssh_client# sh build_host_key
> >> /usr/local/bin/ssh-keygen: syntax error at line 1: `(' unexpected
> > The next error message looks like one when I try to run
> > binaries meant for a different OS.
> > In your case, it is possible that you may have tried to run
> > binary, meant for Solaris 2.x (  SunOS 5.x ) on Ultra, on
> > SunOS 4.1.4 (or older?).
>
> The only problem with this hypothesis is that both machines, the working
> and the broken, run Solaris 7.
>
> I am trying to use a single set of executables NFS mounted.  Recompiling
> it on the broken machines didn't help.
>

I am surprised at this. I mean, in most of the cases I encountred it was possible to
run open-source programs by
 - recompiling the program on the target architecture, and
- making sure that the command searched is the right one
    (compiled for right-architecture, that is).

Hmm... Something else might be to blame.
Have you re-compiled the libraries, too?
(Zlib and openssh comes to mind for starters.)

>
> They do have different kernel architectures: the ultras and enterprise
> servers that work are sun4u, the sparcstations that aren't working are sun4m.
> This wasn't a problem with the commercial ssh-1.2.27 though.
>
> As strange as it seems, is it possible there's something going on with
> sun4m only?
>

I know that sun4m and sun4u are very different architecture, but
usually it is only noticeable at the OS kernel-level and
such architecture difference is more or less hidden behind system calls
(except for the fact that some instructions are missing in sun4m and
have to be emulated in software, and that the sun4m is sparc
V8 architecuture and sun4u is v9.)

I am at a loss to figure out the situation.

I wonder what the output of the following command is.

file /usr/local/bin/ssh-keygen

Also, you might want to try

sh -vx build_host_key

in order to trace where the error occurs.