Local system administator environment variables.

[dannce]

Git can't handle the SSH system environment variables well when it is run as the local system administrator. For example when using PStools ( PsExec.exe -i -s cmd.exe ) and try to run git ls-remote ssh:// I get a message: could not create directory '/home/system/.ssh'. This is because the variable 'home' does not exist. Of course I could set the system envirionment variable of 'home', but then the ssh directory will not point to the default ssh directory, which is: C:\Windows\System32\config\systemprofile.ssh.

[dscho]

For the future: you might want to consider making it as easy as possible for others to recreate the problem on their side. I assume you are talking about https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb897553.aspx, i.e. Microsoft SysInternals' PsExec 2.11. Of course, this is an assumption, and I would have preferred to find the exact information in the bug report.

Now to the problem: There must be more going on here, as not only the HOME environment variable is looked at, but also HOMEDRIVE\HOMEPATH, and if that does not exist, USERPROFILE. If all of those fail to point at your current user's home directory, you are expected to be an administrator who knows what they are doing, i.e. set the HOME directory to the appropriate directory yourself: SSH requires a home directory to work.

[dscho]

I assume that this ticket was addressed by my explanation why HOME must be set manually if MSys2 cannot figure out the current user's home directory.

[dannce]

I'm sorry about my limited bug report, it is unclear. I'll expand on it.

How to recreate:

1. Download and extract PsTools from http://download.sysinternals.com/Files/PsTools.zip
2. Open a normal cmd shell (as adminstrator) and run: c:\>PsTools/PsExec.exe -i -s cmd.exe
3. Run: git ls-remote ssh://<your fav git repo>

Note: the problem isn't that git can't login, the problem is that git can't update the known_hosts file in the ssh-directory.

I do disagree with closing the issue, because:

1. my environment variables are set. Especially USERPROFILE is set to C:\Windows\System32\config\systemprofile.ssh
2. git 1.9.5 for windows uses these variables correctly
3. I get the error: Could not create directory '/home/SYSTEM/.ssh'. The path /home/SYSTEM/.ssh is totally unexpected in Windows.

[dscho]

When you start Git Bash, in which directory does it start? (pwd -W is your friend).

[dannce]

If I run Git bash or cmd.exe as the local system administrator it starts at directory C:\Windows\system32.

Even if the cmd would start at C:\Windows\System32\config\systemprofile, which is both HOME and USERPROFILE of the system administrator, I still don't understand why Git would try to access the folder /home/SYSTEM/.ssh since the .ssh directory is /HOME/.ssh.