PATH variable getting reset after closing and reopening SSH session

Question

I have used SSH (via putty) to connect to a VPC and then added a folder to my path using:

export PATH=$PATH:/my/directory

This works whilst the session is open, however when I close putty then reestablish the SSH connection the changes to PATH are no longer there.

Any help understanding why this happens would be very much appreciated.

score 5 · Accepted Answer · edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:36

5

The PATH variable that you set did not persist because, well, setting an environment variable is not a persistent operation; it only applies to the shell you made it in (and possibly its descendant processes). The shell you get after reconnecting is not the same one you had before, it's a brand-new one.

To keep a value of PATH that will be set in each new shell you start, you could add the export PATH=... line to one of your shell's init files; for example ~/.bash_profile if using bash.

The following question has more detailed answers: How do I set a user environment variable? (permanently, not session)

edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:36

Community

1

answered Feb 10 '17 at 14:47

dhag

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That worked, do you want me to delete this question? – Tim M Feb 10 '17 at 15:08
Well, I don't know if I would call your question a complete duplicate (you were asking _why_ the setting was not persistent, not how to make it persistent, although it seems natural that you wanted the second). Do as you see fit :) – dhag Feb 10 '17 at 15:22

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Feb 10 '17 at 14:46

0

You can add it in PATH variable in your .bash_profile file (hidden) which can be found in your home folder.

[username@hostname ~]# vi .bash_profile

answered Feb 10 '17 at 14:46

Iggy B

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PATH variable getting reset after closing and reopening SSH session

2 Answers2