ssh: connect to host myremotehost.com port 22: Connection refused

So I am trying to get ssh working on my server. I can connect on my local network with the local ip address of the server perfectly fine. When I try to connect remotely (through a domain name that I set-up for the server, which I know works) I get this connection refused error:

ssh: connect to host bahhudson.mine.nu port 22: Connection refused

From the research I have done into the problem it looks like something is going wrong with my router. I have configured port-forwarding, but that's the only think I can think is causing the "Connection Refused" error... My router is a WRT120N and I have configured it for port-forwarding based on Portforward.com, which seems somewhat outdated since some of those images are not exactly like what my router settings look like, but I have tried multiple ways for setting the portforwarding up, and I know that forwarding for port 80 works because my server has HTTP access which is working...

Also VPN access was getting blocked in what I believe to be a similar way, so the solution to the SSH port 22 being blocked might also be similar to that of the VPN being blocked as well.

Any ideas?

Thanks!


Just to share. (might be with different configuration)

In my case, I found that that error can happen because I have not install openssh-server in the other machine.

After I install openssh-server in the other machine, the problem:

ssh: connect to host 192.168.XXX.XXX port 22: Connection refused

is solved.


  1. First check openssh-server installed in that system.

  2. check the status of ssh service, make ssh service start.

     sudo service ssh status    
     sudo service ssh start
    
  3. Check whether port 22 in that system is blocked by iptables. Just allow port in iptables and then check.

     sudo iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport ssh -j ACCEPT
    
  4. Else change port number of ssh from 22 to 2222 by editing

     vi /etc/ssh/sshd_config         
     /etc/init.d/ssh restart.
    

Your ISP may block connections to port 22 (nothing you or your router can do about it). Just set SSHd to run on a different port, e.g. 2222.

In /etc/ssh/sshd_config, change Port 22 to Port 2222 and then sudo service ssh restart. Port forward 2222 (or whatever), and try again.


I solved this problem by reinstalling openssh-server as follows:

sudo apt-get purge openssh-server 
sudo apt-get install openssh-server

Check the SSH service status and start the SSH service if it is stopped:

sudo service ssh status

In my case SSH was stopped, but after starting the service:

sudo service ssh start

I can be able to remote login to Linux.