The ESXi host Secure Shell (SSH) daemon must set a timeout count on idle sessions.

Severity
Group ID
Group Title
Version
Rule ID
Date
STIG Version
lowV-256394SRG-OS-000480-VMM-002000ESXI-70-000026SV-256394r959010_rule2025-02-111
Description
Setting a timeout ensures that a user login will be terminated as soon as the "ClientAliveCountMax" is reached.
ℹ️ Check
From an ESXi shell, run the following command: # /usr/lib/vmware/openssh/bin/sshd -T|grep clientalivecountmax Expected result: clientalivecountmax 3 If the output does not match the expected result, this is a finding.
✔️ Fix
From an ESXi shell, add or correct the following line in "/etc/ssh/sshd_config": ClientAliveCountMax 3