ssh: connect to host xxx.xxx.xxx.xx port 22: Connection refused lost connection

This is one of the commonest errors that are thrown when trying to copy files over scp. The major reason for this is, the port being different from the default 22.

 

pradeeban@pradeeban:~$ scp -r /home/pradeeban/patches root@116.12.92.113:/mnt/patches
ssh: connect to host 116.12.92.113 port 22: Connection refused
lost connection

To fix this, use -P flag, and the port number. Notice the upper case. This is to maintain the consistency with the -p usage of cp command.

pradeeban@pradeeban:~$ scp -P 1984 -r /home/pradeeban/patches root@116.12.92.113:/mnt/patches

Find further useful tips at, http://www.linuxtutorialblog.com/post/ssh-and-scp-howto-tips-tricks