What does the code after the snippet you've provided look like?

Well, the problem is that the code hangs during the call to $session->cmd. I actually have tried die("Output is $out"); , as well as writing to the Apache logs after the cmd call, but it just doesn't get there. I tried stepping through it with Komodo, but didn't have enough time today...probably try again tomorrow. The exact same sequence and user environment works as long as Mason isn't involved, and the ssh interaction gets almost to the point where the output is returned from the cmd call...
Here is what the end of the sshd debug should look like (done with the CGI::Application test)

debug3: channel 1: will not send data after close
debug1: channel 1: is dead
debug1: channel 1: garbage collecting
debug1: channel_free: channel 1: server-session, nchannels 2
debug3: channel_free: status: The following connections are open:
  #0 server-session (t4 r0 i1/0 o16/0 fd 7/7)
  #1 server-session (t4 r1 i8/0 o128/0 fd 8/8)

debug3: channel_close_fds: channel 1: r 8 w 8 e -1
Connection closed by remote host.
debug1: channel_free: channel 0: server-session, nchannels 1
debug3: channel_free: status: The following connections are open:
  #0 server-session (t4 r0 i1/0 o16/0 fd 7/7)

debug3: channel_close_fds: channel 0: r 7 w 7 e 9
debug1: session_close: session 0 pid 18607
Closing connection to 192.168.200.231
debug1: Received SIGCHLD.
[download]

I was looking thru the "perldoc Net::SSH:Perl" , with your symptoms in mind, and it seemed to be addressed in detail in the section on $ssh->register_handler:

It seems to me, that your stdin,stdout,and stderr are being redirected somehow by Mason.

As a wild shot, maybe you could try setting "use_pty=>1", and see if it helps. </WAGS>

Yeah, I already tried "use_pty=>1" and setting up a register handler to deal with stderr and/or stdout, but unfortunately it still gets stuck in the cmd loop in the same spot. I have tried forcefully emptying the buffer, as well as sending new packets to no avail. For whatever reason, the buffer does not seem to be getting fully emptied towards the end of the command session, because in the debug from a good session I see "obuf empty" right after the "channel 1: close_read". I tried actually forcing the buffer to empty with $sshSession->incoming_data but it didn't seem to change the loop status.

Well, after lots and lots of debugging I narrowed the problem down to the IO::Select module (being called by the Net::SSH::Perl::SSH2 module), which seems to be in a bad state on my system(See the attempted re-install below).
(Code in the SSH2.pm module makes the call)

my($rready, $wready) = $select_class->select($rb, $wb);
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(Here is the select portion of Select.pm)


sub select
{
 shift
   if defined $_[0] && !ref($_[0]);

 my($r,$w,$e,$t) = @_;
 my @result = ();

 my $rb = defined $r ? $r->[VEC_BITS] : undef;
 my $wb = defined $w ? $w->[VEC_BITS] : undef;
 my $eb = defined $e ? $e->[VEC_BITS] : undef;

 if(select($rb,$wb,$eb,$t) > 0)
  {
   my @r = ();
   my @w = ();
   my @e = ();
   my $i = _max(defined $r ? scalar(@$r)-1 : 0,
                defined $w ? scalar(@$w)-1 : 0,
                defined $e ? scalar(@$e)-1 : 0);

   for( ; $i >= FIRST_FD ; $i--)
    {
     my $j = $i - FIRST_FD;
     push(@r, $r->[$i])
        if defined $rb && defined $r->[$i] && vec($rb, $j, 1);
     push(@w, $w->[$i])
        if defined $wb && defined $w->[$i] && vec($wb, $j, 1);
     push(@e, $e->[$i])
        if defined $eb && defined $e->[$i] && vec($eb, $j, 1);
    }

   @result = (\@r, \@w, \@e);
  }
 @result;
}
[download]


Now I just need to figure out, why this would only break in a Mason environment....I think it is actually related to my system environment...because I tried to reinstall it from CPAN and got the following:


  CPAN.pm: Going to build G/GB/GBARR/IO-1.20.tar.gz

Checking for Socket...ok
Checking if your kit is complete...
Looks good
Writing Makefile for IO
cp IO/Dir.pm blib/lib/IO/Dir.pm
cp IO/Handle.pm blib/lib/IO/Handle.pm
cp IO/Socket/INET.pm blib/lib/IO/Socket/INET.pm
cp IO/Poll.pm blib/lib/IO/Poll.pm
cp IO/Pipe.pm blib/lib/IO/Pipe.pm
cp IO/Seekable.pm blib/lib/IO/Seekable.pm
cp IO/Socket.pm blib/lib/IO/Socket.pm
cp IO/Select.pm blib/lib/IO/Select.pm
cp IO/File.pm blib/lib/IO/File.pm
cp IO.pm blib/lib/IO.pm
cp IO/Socket/UNIX.pm blib/lib/IO/Socket/UNIX.pm
/usr/local/bin/perl /usr/local/lib/perl5/5.8.6/ExtUtils/xsubpp  -typem
+ap /usr/local/lib/perl5/5.8.6/ExtUtils/typemap  IO.xs > IO.xsc &&mv I
+O.xsc IO.c
cc -c   -D_REENTRANT -D_GNU_SOURCE -DTHREADS_HAVE_PIDS -fno-strict-ali
+asing -pipe -I/usr/local/include -D_LARGEFILE_SOURCE -D_FILE_OFFSET_B
+ITS=64 -I/usr/include/gdbm -O2   -DVERSION=\"1.20\" -DXS_VERSION=\"1.
+20\" -fpic "-I/usr/local/lib/perl5/5.8.6/i686-linux-thread-multi/CORE
+"  -DI_POLL  IO.c
In file included from /usr/local/lib/perl5/5.8.6/i686-linux-thread-mul
+ti/CORE/perl.h:37,
                 from IO.xs:9:
/usr/local/lib/perl5/5.8.6/i686-linux-thread-multi/CORE/config.h:3017:
+1: warning: "I_POLL" redefined
<command line>:8:1: warning: this is the location of the previous defi
+nition
IO.xs: In function `XS_IO__Seekable_getpos':
IO.xs:201: warning: passing arg 2 of `PerlIO_getpos' from incompatible
+ pointer type
IO.xs:208: error: `sv_undef' undeclared (first use in this function)
IO.xs:208: error: (Each undeclared identifier is reported only once
IO.xs:208: error: for each function it appears in.)
IO.xs: In function `XS_IO__Seekable_setpos':
IO.xs:219: warning: passing arg 2 of `PerlIO_setpos' from incompatible
+ pointer type
IO.xs: In function `XS_IO__File_new_tmpfile':
IO.xs:252: error: `sv_undef' undeclared (first use in this function)
make: *** [IO.o] Error 1
  /usr/bin/make  -- NOT OK
Running make test
  Can't test without successful make
Running make install
  make had returned bad status, install seems impossible
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I had the same problem with Net::SSH::Perl in an Apache::ASP environment, and finally found that STDIN and STDOUT were not set (fileno() returned -1). Adding this workaround to the beginning of the script helped for me:

open(STDIN, '<&=', 0);
open(STDOUT, '>&=', 1);
[download]

Regards, Jo.

Folks, I am facing the same problem, so wondering if you found a solution for this !!! Thanks ~!