DD-WRT SSH Broken

The other day I wanted to update a startup script in my DD-WRT configuration to send a wake-on-lan magic packet to my server. I have my server scheduled to power down at night when no clients are connected. I have the server configured to power on by itself using the real-time clock (RTC). Any client computer when powered on will send a magic packet. Sometimes I power down the router and switches. This router modification would be nice addition for those occasions when I power on the router.

I keep a master copy of the startup script on the server. I made the change and attempted to enable SSH on the router to scp the file. I could not connect. The message:

Unable to negotiate with X.X.X.X: no matching key exchange method found.

I knew SSH was working because recently I had added a second VLAN port only a few weeks prior. The file date stamp on the nvram backups affirmed my memory. I backup the nvram when I make changes.

A few moments checking the web bubbled out the explanation. OpenSSH had been patched since my last access to the router, which affected all of my workstations.

I have no hope for DD-WRT being updated. The firmware for my WRT54GL router has not been updated since 2009. Fortunately the work-around solution is explained in the same web page.

Something always breaks.

Posted: February 25, 2016 Category: Usability Tagged: DD-WRT

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