diff --git a/lib/vagrant/commands.rb b/lib/vagrant/commands.rb
index 4274b6d43..6ac7489b8 100644
--- a/lib/vagrant/commands.rb
+++ b/lib/vagrant/commands.rb
@@ -28,27 +28,27 @@ module Vagrant
       # useful information such as whether or not the environment is created
       # and if its running, suspended, etc.
       def status
-        Env.load!
+        env = Environment.load!
 
         wrap_output do
-          if !Env.persisted_vm
+          if !env.vm
             puts <<-msg
 The environment has not yet been created. Run `vagrant up` to create the
 environment.
 msg
           else
             additional_msg = ""
-            if Env.persisted_vm.vm.running?
+            if env.vm.vm.running?
               additional_msg = <<-msg
 To stop this VM, you can run `vagrant halt` to shut it down forcefully,
 or you can run `vagrant suspend` to simply suspend the virtual machine.
 In either case, to restart it again, simply run a `vagrant up`.
 msg
-            elsif Env.persisted_vm.vm.saved?
+            elsif env.vm.vm.saved?
               additional_msg = <<-msg
 To resume this VM, simply run `vagrant up`.
 msg
-            elsif Env.persisted_vm.vm.powered_off?
+            elsif env.vm.vm.powered_off?
               additional_msg = <<-msg
 To restart this VM, simply run `vagrant up`.
 msg
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ msg
 
             puts <<-msg
 The environment has been created. The status of the current environment's
-virtual machine is: "#{Env.persisted_vm.vm.state}."#{additional_msg}
+virtual machine is: "#{env.vm.vm.state}."#{additional_msg}
 msg
           end
         end
diff --git a/lib/vagrant/environment.rb b/lib/vagrant/environment.rb
index d950a315f..abe338ba0 100644
--- a/lib/vagrant/environment.rb
+++ b/lib/vagrant/environment.rb
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ module Vagrant
     attr_reader :config
     attr_reader :box
     attr_reader :vm
+    attr_reader :ssh
 
     #---------------------------------------------------------------
     # Class Methods
@@ -84,6 +85,7 @@ module Vagrant
       load_config!
       self.class.check_virtualbox!
       load_vm!
+      load_ssh!
       self
     end
 
@@ -167,6 +169,11 @@ module Vagrant
       @vm = nil
     end
 
+    # Loads/initializes the SSH object
+    def load_ssh!
+      @ssh = SSH.new(self)
+    end
+
     #---------------------------------------------------------------
     # Methods to manage VM
     #---------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/lib/vagrant/ssh.rb b/lib/vagrant/ssh.rb
index d22376794..0f81772b2 100644
--- a/lib/vagrant/ssh.rb
+++ b/lib/vagrant/ssh.rb
@@ -1,54 +1,77 @@
 module Vagrant
+  # Manages SSH access to a specific environment. Allows an environment to
+  # replace the process with SSH itself, run a specific set of commands,
+  # upload files, or even check if a host is up.
   class SSH
     include Vagrant::Util
 
-    class << self
-      def connect(opts={})
-        options = {}
-        [:host, :username, :private_key_path].each do |param|
-          options[param] = opts[param] || Vagrant.config.ssh.send(param)
-        end
+    # Reference back up to the environment which this SSH object belongs
+    # to
+    attr_accessor :env
 
-        Kernel.exec "ssh -p #{port(opts)} -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -i #{options[:private_key_path]} #{options[:username]}@#{options[:host]}".strip
+    def initialize(environment)
+      @env = environment
+    end
+
+    # Connects to the environment's virtual machine, replacing the ruby
+    # process with an SSH process. This method optionally takes a hash
+    # of options which override the configuration values.
+    def connect(opts={})
+      options = {}
+      [:host, :username, :private_key_path].each do |param|
+        options[param] = opts[param] || env.config.ssh.send(param)
       end
 
-      def execute(opts={})
-        Net::SSH.start(Vagrant.config.ssh.host,
-                       Vagrant.config[:ssh][:username],
-                       opts.merge( :port => port,
-                                   :keys => [Vagrant.config.ssh.private_key_path])) do |ssh|
-          yield ssh
-        end
-      end
+      Kernel.exec "ssh -p #{port(opts)} -o UserKnownHostsFile=/dev/null -o StrictHostKeyChecking=no -i #{options[:private_key_path]} #{options[:username]}@#{options[:host]}".strip
+    end
 
-      def upload!(from, to)
-        execute do |ssh|
-          scp = Net::SCP.new(ssh)
-          scp.upload!(from, to)
-        end
+    # Opens an SSH connection to this environment's virtual machine and yields
+    # a Net::SSH object which can be used to execute remote commands.
+    def execute(opts={})
+      Net::SSH.start(env.config.ssh.host,
+                     env.config[:ssh][:username],
+                     opts.merge( :port => port,
+                                 :keys => [env.config.ssh.private_key_path])) do |ssh|
+        yield ssh
       end
+    end
 
-      def up?
-        check_thread = Thread.new do
-          begin
-            Thread.current[:result] = false
-            execute(:timeout => Vagrant.config.ssh.timeout) do |ssh|
-              Thread.current[:result] = true
-            end
-          rescue Errno::ECONNREFUSED, Net::SSH::Disconnect
-            # False, its defaulted above
+    # Uploads a file from `from` to `to`. `from` is expected to be a filename
+    # or StringIO, and `to` is expected to be a path. This method simply forwards
+    # the arguments to `Net::SCP#upload!` so view that for more information.
+    def upload!(from, to)
+      execute do |ssh|
+        scp = Net::SCP.new(ssh)
+        scp.upload!(from, to)
+      end
+    end
+
+    # Checks if this environment's machine is up (i.e. responding to SSH).
+    #
+    # @return [Boolean]
+    def up?
+      check_thread = Thread.new do
+        begin
+          Thread.current[:result] = false
+          execute(:timeout => env.config.ssh.timeout) do |ssh|
+            Thread.current[:result] = true
           end
+        rescue Errno::ECONNREFUSED, Net::SSH::Disconnect
+          # False, its defaulted above
         end
-
-        check_thread.join(Vagrant.config.ssh.timeout)
-        return check_thread[:result]
-      rescue Net::SSH::AuthenticationFailed
-        error_and_exit(:vm_ssh_auth_failed)
       end
 
-      def port(opts={})
-        opts[:port] || Vagrant.config.vm.forwarded_ports[Vagrant.config.ssh.forwarded_port_key][:hostport]
-      end
+      check_thread.join(env.config.ssh.timeout)
+      return check_thread[:result]
+    rescue Net::SSH::AuthenticationFailed
+      error_and_exit(:vm_ssh_auth_failed)
+    end
+
+    # Returns the port which is either given in the options hash or taken from
+    # the config by finding it in the forwarded ports hash based on the
+    # `config.ssh.forwarded_port_key`
+    def port(opts={})
+      opts[:port] || env.config.vm.forwarded_ports[env.config.ssh.forwarded_port_key][:hostport]
     end
   end
 end
diff --git a/test/vagrant/environment_test.rb b/test/vagrant/environment_test.rb
index f946c975f..ac45a450f 100644
--- a/test/vagrant/environment_test.rb
+++ b/test/vagrant/environment_test.rb
@@ -128,6 +128,7 @@ class EnvironmentTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
         @env.expects(:load_config!).once.in_sequence(call_seq)
         Vagrant::Environment.expects(:check_virtualbox!).once.in_sequence(call_seq)
         @env.expects(:load_vm!).once.in_sequence(call_seq)
+        @env.expects(:load_ssh!).once.in_sequence(call_seq)
         assert_equal @env, @env.load!
       end
     end
@@ -368,6 +369,19 @@ class EnvironmentTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
         assert_nil @env.vm
       end
     end
+
+    context "loading SSH" do
+      setup do
+        @env = mock_environment
+      end
+
+      should "initialize the SSH object with the given environment" do
+        ssh = mock("ssh")
+        Vagrant::SSH.expects(:new).with(@env).returns(ssh)
+        @env.load_ssh!
+        assert_equal ssh, @env.ssh
+      end
+    end
   end
 
   context "requiring properties" do
diff --git a/test/vagrant/ssh_test.rb b/test/vagrant/ssh_test.rb
index fd2b400da..10e1fc0a6 100644
--- a/test/vagrant/ssh_test.rb
+++ b/test/vagrant/ssh_test.rb
@@ -5,24 +5,35 @@ class SshTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
     mock_config
   end
 
-  context "connecting to SSH" do
-    test "should call exec with defaults when no options are supplied" do
-      ssh = Vagrant.config.ssh
-      ssh_exec_expect(Vagrant::SSH.port,
-                      Vagrant.config.ssh.private_key_path,
-                      Vagrant.config.ssh.username,
-                      Vagrant.config.ssh.host)
-      Vagrant::SSH.connect
+  def mock_ssh
+    @env = mock_environment do |config|
+      yield config if block_given?
     end
 
-    test "should call exec with supplied params" do
+    @ssh = Vagrant::SSH.new(@env)
+  end
+
+  context "connecting to external SSH" do
+    setup do
+      mock_ssh
+    end
+
+    should "call exec with defaults when no options are supplied" do
+      ssh_exec_expect(@ssh.port,
+                      @env.config.ssh.private_key_path,
+                      @env.config.ssh.username,
+                      @env.config.ssh.host)
+      @ssh.connect
+    end
+
+    should "call exec with supplied params" do
       args = {:username => 'bar', :private_key_path => 'baz', :host => 'bak', :port => 'bag'}
       ssh_exec_expect(args[:port], args[:private_key_path], args[:username], args[:host])
-      Vagrant::SSH.connect(args)
+      @ssh.connect(args)
     end
 
     def ssh_exec_expect(port, key_path, uname, host)
-    Kernel.expects(:exec).with() do |arg|
+      Kernel.expects(:exec).with() do |arg|
         assert arg =~ /^ssh/
         assert arg =~ /-p #{port}/
         assert arg =~ /-i #{key_path}/
@@ -34,91 +45,103 @@ class SshTest < Test::Unit::TestCase
   end
 
   context "executing ssh commands" do
+    setup do
+      mock_ssh
+    end
+
     should "call net::ssh.start with the proper names" do
       Net::SSH.expects(:start).once.with() do |host, username, opts|
-        assert_equal Vagrant.config.ssh.host, host
-        assert_equal Vagrant.config.ssh.username, username
-        assert_equal Vagrant::SSH.port, opts[:port]
-        assert_equal [Vagrant.config.ssh.private_key_path], opts[:keys]
+        assert_equal @env.config.ssh.host, host
+        assert_equal @env.config.ssh.username, username
+        assert_equal @ssh.port, opts[:port]
+        assert_equal [@env.config.ssh.private_key_path], opts[:keys]
         true
       end
-      Vagrant::SSH.execute
+      @ssh.execute
     end
 
     should "use custom host if set" do
-      Vagrant.config.ssh.host = "foo"
-      Net::SSH.expects(:start).with(Vagrant.config.ssh.host, Vagrant.config.ssh.username, anything).once
-      Vagrant::SSH.execute
+      @env.config.ssh.host = "foo"
+      Net::SSH.expects(:start).with(@env.config.ssh.host, @env.config.ssh.username, anything).once
+      @ssh.execute
     end
   end
 
   context "SCPing files to the remote host" do
+    setup do
+      mock_ssh
+    end
+
     should "use Vagrant::SSH execute to setup an SCP connection and upload" do
       scp = mock("scp")
       ssh = mock("ssh")
       scp.expects(:upload!).with("foo", "bar").once
       Net::SCP.expects(:new).with(ssh).returns(scp).once
-      Vagrant::SSH.expects(:execute).yields(ssh).once
-      Vagrant::SSH.upload!("foo", "bar")
+      @ssh.expects(:execute).yields(ssh).once
+      @ssh.upload!("foo", "bar")
     end
   end
 
   context "checking if host is up" do
     setup do
-      mock_config
+      mock_ssh
     end
 
     should "return true if SSH connection works" do
       Net::SSH.expects(:start).yields("success")
-      assert Vagrant::SSH.up?
+      assert @ssh.up?
     end
 
     should "return false if SSH connection times out" do
       Net::SSH.expects(:start)
-      assert !Vagrant::SSH.up?
+      assert !@ssh.up?
     end
 
     should "allow the thread the configured timeout time" do
       @thread = mock("thread")
       @thread.stubs(:[])
       Thread.expects(:new).returns(@thread)
-      @thread.expects(:join).with(Vagrant.config.ssh.timeout).once
-      Vagrant::SSH.up?
+      @thread.expects(:join).with(@env.config.ssh.timeout).once
+      @ssh.up?
     end
 
     should "return false if the connection is refused" do
       Net::SSH.expects(:start).raises(Errno::ECONNREFUSED)
       assert_nothing_raised {
-        assert !Vagrant::SSH.up?
+        assert !@ssh.up?
       }
     end
 
     should "return false if the connection is dropped" do
       Net::SSH.expects(:start).raises(Net::SSH::Disconnect)
       assert_nothing_raised {
-        assert !Vagrant::SSH.up?
+        assert !@ssh.up?
       }
     end
 
     should "specifity the timeout as an option to execute" do
-      Vagrant::SSH.expects(:execute).with(:timeout => Vagrant.config.ssh.timeout).yields(true)
-      assert Vagrant::SSH.up?
+      @ssh.expects(:execute).with(:timeout => @env.config.ssh.timeout).yields(true)
+      assert @ssh.up?
     end
 
     should "error and exit if a Net::SSH::AuthenticationFailed is raised" do
-      Vagrant::SSH.expects(:execute).raises(Net::SSH::AuthenticationFailed)
-      Vagrant::SSH.expects(:error_and_exit).with(:vm_ssh_auth_failed).once
-      Vagrant::SSH.up?
+      @ssh.expects(:execute).raises(Net::SSH::AuthenticationFailed)
+      @ssh.expects(:error_and_exit).with(:vm_ssh_auth_failed).once
+      @ssh.up?
     end
   end
 
   context "getting the ssh port" do
+    setup do
+      mock_ssh
+    end
+
     should "return the configured port by default" do
-      assert_equal Vagrant.config.vm.forwarded_ports[Vagrant.config.ssh.forwarded_port_key][:hostport], Vagrant::SSH.port
+      assert_equal @env.config.vm.forwarded_ports[@env.config.ssh.forwarded_port_key][:hostport], @ssh.port
     end
 
     should "return the port given in options if it exists" do
-      assert_equal "47", Vagrant::SSH.port({ :port => "47" })
+      assert_equal "47", @ssh.port({ :port => "47" })
     end
   end
 end