SSH Operations Hub

A powerful Python tool for executing commands on multiple SSH servers concurrently with advanced features for network operations management.

Features

Core Functionality

• Parallel SSH Execution: Execute commands on multiple servers simultaneously with configurable connection limits
• IP Validation & Whitelisting: Security features to restrict access to authorized IP addresses only
• Dual Server Groups: Support for primary and secondary server groups with different user credentials
• Variable Substitution: Dynamic variable replacement ($CLIENT_NUM) in commands and usernames
• Configuration Management: Flexible configuration via files in multiple locations
• IP Range Support: Expand IP ranges (e.g., "1-5", "150-154") automatically
• Enhanced Security: Strict SSH options and secure connection handling
• Signal Handling: Clean shutdown on interruption (Ctrl+C)
• Timeout Management: Both per-connection and global timeout protection
• Error Handling: Comprehensive error reporting and formatted output

Installation Features

• Multiple Installation Modes: System-wide (/usr/local/bin) or user-only (~/.local/bin)
• Update Capability: Version checking and seamless updates
• Uninstall Support: Clean removal with optional configuration preservation
• Backup Protection: Automatic backup of existing installations
• Version Tracking: Proper version management and status reporting

Installation

Quick Install (User Mode)

python3 install.py install --user

System-wide Install (requires sudo)

sudo python3 install.py install --system

Installation Commands

• python3 install.py install [--user|--system] [--force] - Install the tool
• python3 install.py update [--user|--system] - Update existing installation
• python3 install.py uninstall [--user|--system] - Remove installation
• python3 install.py status - Show installation status

Usage

Basic Usage

ssh-operations-hub --ips 1 2 3 --primary-user root --command "uptime"

Advanced Examples

Primary and Secondary Groups

ssh-operations-hub \
  --primary-ips 1 2 3 --primary-user root \
  --secondary-ips 10 11 12 --secondary-user admin \
  --command "systemctl status nginx"

Custom IP Prefix

ssh-operations-hub --ip-prefix 192.168.1 --ips 10 20 30 --primary-user admin --command "df -h"

Variable Substitution

ssh-operations-hub --ips 1 2 3 --primary-user "user\$CLIENT_NUM" --command "echo 'I am client \$CLIENT_NUM'"

Command-Line Options

• --primary-ips, --ips: List of IP suffixes for primary group
• --secondary-ips: List of IP suffixes for secondary group
• --primary-user: Username for primary group (default: root)
• --secondary-user: Username for secondary group (default: admin)
• --command: Command to execute on all clients (required)
• --ip-prefix: Custom IP prefix (e.g., 192.168.1)

Configuration

Configuration Locations (in order of preference)

1. $HOME/.config/ssh-operations-hub/defaults.json (User config)
2. <script_dir>/config/defaults.json (Development)
3. /etc/ssh-operations-hub/defaults.json (System config)

Configuration Format

{
    "ip_prefix": "10.200.142",
    "allowed_ips": ["1", "2", "3", "4", "5", "6", "7", "8", "9", "10", "15", "17", "20", "21", "22", "23", "24", "25", "150-154"]
}

IP Range Format

• Individual IPs: ["1", "2", "3"]
• Ranges: ["1-5"] (expands to 1 2 3 4 5)
• Mixed: ["1", "2", "5-7", "10"] (expands to 1 2 5 6 7 10)

Technical Details

Performance Improvements (vs. Bash version)

• Better Parallel Control: Uses concurrent.futures.ThreadPoolExecutor for optimal thread management
• Efficient IP Validation: Uses Python's built-in data structures for faster lookups
• Improved Error Handling: Exception-based error handling with proper cleanup
• Better Resource Management: Automatic cleanup of connections and threads
• Enhanced Configuration: More robust configuration parsing and validation

Security Features

• IP Whitelisting: Only allowed IP suffixes can be targeted
• SSH Security Options:
  • BatchMode=yes (no interactive prompts)
  • ConnectTimeout=5 (connection timeout)
  • StrictHostKeyChecking=accept-new (accept new host keys)
  • ControlMaster=no (no connection sharing)
• Input Validation: Comprehensive validation of all inputs
• Configuration Protection: Secure file permissions for configuration files

Architecture

• Main Class: SSHOperationsHub - Core functionality
• Installer Class: SSHOperationsHubInstaller - Installation management
• Thread Pool: Configurable parallel execution (default: 10 concurrent connections)
• Signal Handling: Clean shutdown on SIGINT/SIGTERM
• Logging: Structured logging with proper formatting

Migration from Bash Version

The Python version has been modernized with a new, more intuitive interface:

Key Changes

• 🔄 Modern CLI Arguments: Updated from short flags (-ip, -cmd, -suser) to descriptive long options (--ips, --command, --secondary-user)
• 📄 JSON Configuration: Migrated from bash-style config to standard JSON format
• 🗑️ Removed Legacy: Old bash scripts have been removed for cleaner codebase
• 🧹 Enhanced Uninstaller: Automatically removes old bash installations

Migration Steps

1. Update CLI Commands: Replace old arguments:

   • -ip → --ips or --primary-ips
   • -cmd → --command
   • -user/-puser → --primary-user
   • -suser → --secondary-user
   • -primary → --primary-ips
   • -secondary → --secondary-ips

2. Convert Configuration: Update config files from bash format to JSON:

   # Old format (defaults.conf)
   IP_PREFIX="10.200.142"
   ALLOWED_IPS="1 2 3 150-154"

   // New format (defaults.json)
   {
       "ip_prefix": "10.200.142", 
       "allowed_ips": ["1", "2", "3", "150-154"]
   }

3. Uninstall Old Version: The uninstaller will automatically remove old bash files

Core Features Preserved

• ✅ Same IP validation and whitelisting rules
• ✅ Same variable substitution ($CLIENT_NUM)
• ✅ Same dual server group functionality
• ✅ Same parallel execution capabilities
• ✅ Same output formatting and error messages

Testing

Run the test suite:

python3 test_ssh_operations_hub.py
python3 test_installer.py

Requirements

• Python 3.6 or later
• SSH client (ssh command)
• Standard Linux/Unix environment

Version History

v2.0.0 (Python Rewrite)

• Complete rewrite in Python for better performance and maintainability
• Enhanced installer with update/uninstall capabilities
• Improved parallel processing with ThreadPoolExecutor
• Comprehensive test coverage
• Better error handling and logging
• Full backward compatibility with v1.x configuration and CLI

v1.x (Bash Original)

• Original Bash implementation
• Basic installation support
• Parallel SSH execution
• Configuration file support

Support

For complete documentation and support:

• Documentation: https://umd-uroc.github.io/docs/SSH Operations Hub
• Issues: Use the GitHub issue tracker
• Configuration: Check the config file examples in the config/ directory

License

See LICENSE file for details.