If you use the terrific Timbuktu remote control software from Netopia, you probably know that version 8 has the ability to operate securely over SSH. While this is a great new feature, there's a bug where the 'Timbuktu Host' will occasionally stop functioning. The result is that you cannot connect to the remote machine via Timbuktu, and you get an error message starting with: "SSH Connected, but Timbuktu is not responding."

If you don't have Apple Remote Desktop or VNC running, this can really ruin your day if it happens right in the middle of doing some important remote administration. Luckily, though, because you have the secure shell server (SSH) running, there is a way to re-enable the Timbuktu Host. First, login to the server via ssh, like so:

ssh username@hostname.domain.com

Then enter your password to authenticate when prompted. Once logged in, just run this command:

sudo "/Applications/Timbuktu Pro/Timbuktu Pro.app/Contents/SharedSupport/Timbuktu Host.app/Contents/MacOS/Timbuktu Host" &

Then enter an administrator (or the root) password when prompted, and hit enter. You can check to see if it worked by running:

ps -acx | grep Timbuktu

And the resulting output should contain a line that ends "Timbuktu Host," which should look something like this:

MyServer:~ admin$ ps -acx | grep Timbuktu
 5535  ??  S     0:00.32 Timbuktu Host Menu
 5673  p1  S     0:02.11 Timbuktu Host

If so, you should now be able to Timbuktu into your server again.