Configuring SSH User Equivalency

Before you patch a system, make sure the user equivalency is working. User equivalency exists when the operating system user on each node is considered to be identical. For information on configuring user equivalency, see "Configuring Operating System Users and Groups".

To test SSH user equivalency:

1. On the system where you want to run OPatch, log in as the oracle user.

2. Use the following command to test user equivalency:

   [oracle@docrac1] $ ssh docrac2 date
   

   If the date is returned, then user equivalency between the source and destination node has been configured.

3. If you see output similar to the following, then SSH user equivalency is not enabled:

   Enter passphrase for key '/home/oracle/.ssh/id_rsa': 
   

   Enable SSH user equivalency before continuing with the patching operation.

To enable SSH user equivalency:

1. On the system where you want to run OPatch, open a command window and log in as the oracle user.

2. Start the SSH agent and load the SSH keys into memory using the following commands:

   $ /usr/bin/ssh-agent $SHELL
   $ /usr/bin/ssh-add
   

   These commands start the ssh-agent on the local node, and load the RSA and DSA keys into the current session's memory so that you are not prompted to use pass phrases when issuing SSH commands.

3. At the prompt, enter the pass phrase for each key that you generated when configuring Secure Shell, for example:

   [oracle@docrac1 .ssh]$ exec /usr/bin/ssh-agent $SHELL
   [oracle@docrac1 .ssh]$ /usr/bin/ssh-add
   Enter passphrase for /home/oracle/.ssh/id_rsa
   Identity added: /home/oracle/.ssh/id_rsa (/home/oracle/.ssh/id_rsa)
   Identity added: /home/oracle/.ssh/id_dsa (/home/oracle/.ssh/id_dsa)
   

4. To test if you have configured SSH correctly, run the following command. If you have configured SSH correctly, then you will not be prompted for a password or a pass phrase.

   [oracle@docrac1] $ ssh docrac2 date