Hi, thanks for the response - Ill give the eval a go and post back.
My subtle difference between the two posts though : This one will test ssh using the 'key files' ( ie no password supplied ) whereas the Net:SSH::Perl question ( node_id=531107 ) I am using to check I have valid username / password combinations. ( Scenario : should my key files become regenerated / otherwise break - I need to know I can still use the password to log in an correct it ) I think I can apply your suggestion to both problems however.