[SWLUG] openssh-server, I have it but cannot start it

[Stephen]

Dear All (sorry if this post is too long)

I  now have two Mandriva computers, 2007 + 2006, and now I want then to 
see each others files.  Advice from various sources was to use openssh:
  "To access a Computer without Samba is also possible,
   but you need to install "openssh-server" on the Linux
   machines.  Once done, in konqueror you will be able to
   type as url:sftp://Username@IP.OF.THE.MACHINE
   type the user password, and you will be in the other
   user's /home directory."

I set about this solution and achieved half of it.  The 2007 can serve 
and be seen by 2006.  But not the other way round.

The 2006 is not serving.  So far I configured, make and as root "make 
install".  I got some assistance from the openssh user group:
  "It looks like you installed openssh on your Mandriva
   2006 box from source.  This will give you the server
   and client components, but you have to ensure that
   the openssh server is actually started. There are startup
   scripts in the contrib subdirectory of the openssh source,
   but they seem to be specific to SuSE and RedHat (rc.sshd,
   and sshd.init, respectively), so you may have to edit those
   by hand.  Alternatively, you might be able to use the startup
   script from your 2007 machine."

I could not see how I had installed something specific to SuSE or Redhat 
as these options we not available at he ftp site.  However, I appear to 
have the right components as follows:
[stephanos at localhost openssh-4.7p1]$ ls sftp*
sftp-server*   sftp-server.8.out  sftp.0   sftp.c
sftp-client.o  sftp-common.o      sftp.h   sftp-server.0
sftp-server.c  sftp.1             sftp-client.c
sftp-common.c  sftp-glob.c        sftp.o
sftp-server.8  sftp-server.o

I think I should be able to start the server by command line.  But 
getting sftp-server started has proved problematic.  I cannot start it 
directly:
   [stephanos at localhost openssh-4.7p1]$ ./sftp-server
   ^[[B
   [stephanos at localhost openssh-4.7p1]$
It hangs until I press enter a few times.  During the hanging I did try 
to connect from the 2007 computer via Konqueror:
    sftp://stephanos@192.168.1.4
    "Error encountered while talking to ssh"

According to some instruction at the openssh website:
http://www.openbsd.org/cgi-bin/man.cgi?query=sftp-server&sektion=8
  "NAME: sftp-server - SFTP server subsystem
   SYNOPSIS: sftp-server [-f log_facility] [-l log_level]
   DESCRIPTION: sftp-server is a program that speaks the server
   side of SFTP protocol to stdout and expects client requests
   from stdin.  sftp-server is not intended to be called directly,
   but from sshd(8) using the Subsystem option."

sftp-server should be started by sshd(8).  Well I have one of those as 
well.
[stephanos at localhost openssh-4.7p1]$ ls ssh*
sshd*
So I tried as a user
  [stephanos at localhost openssh-4.7p1]$ ./sshd
  sshd re-exec requires execution with an absolute path
  [root at localhost openssh-4.7p1]# ./sshd
  sshd re-exec requires execution with an absolute path
  [root at localhost openssh-4.7p1]#
  [stephanos at localhost openssh-4.7p1]$ /home/stephanos/openssh-4.7p1/sshd
  Privilege separation user sshd does not exist
  [stephanos at localhost openssh-4.7p1]$
and as root:
  [root at localhost openssh-4.7p1]# ./sshd
  sshd re-exec requires execution with an absolute path
  [root at localhost openssh-4.7p1]#
  [root at localhost openssh-4.7p1]# /home/stephanos/openssh-4.7p1/sshd
  Privilege separation user sshd does not exist
  [root at localhost openssh-4.7p1]#

Well I think I am close.  But I still do not know what to do.

Any help appreciated

Stephen