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FTP Services (1)
pg. 8
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a standardized
method of transferring files between computers, regardless of the platform or
operating system each computer is running on. Your Virtual Server provides
different types of FTP service, depending on the type of Virtual Server you
have. FTP services can be accessed through a command prompt, or through an FTP
client program. Your Virtual Server uses ProFTPD, an FTP server written for
UNIX. ProFTPD is similar to design and concept to the Apache Web server. In
addition to standards such as Authenticated and Anonymous FTP, ProFTP offers the
following advanced services:
* Resumable downloads. This feature allows your visitors to pick up where they
left off in the event they get disconnected.
*An FTP configuration file. Located in your ~/usr/local/etc directory, the
proftpd.conf configuration file allows you to configure your FTP service to run
the way you want it to.
This section provides basic information for
configuring your FTP service. It is not meant to replace the documentation for
ProFTP. For more in-depth documentation, please visit the ProFTP website at the
following URL:
http://www.proftpd.net/docs/index.html
Each of your FTP services is further described in
the following sections.
Three Types of FTP Access
There are three different types of FTP access: Administrative, User
Authenticated, and Anonymous. Technically, Administrative FTP access is a type
of user-authenticated FTP for the administrative user, but for simplicity you
can think it as a third type.
Administrative FTP Access
Administrative FTP access allows the administrator of your virtual server to
connect through an FTP client and have complete access to all of the virtual
server’s files and directories. Administrative FTP access is available on all
virtual servers.
User Authenticated FTP Access
User authenticated FTP access allows a user that was created with the vadduser
command to connect to the virtual server using an FTP client. The user would
need to provide the FTP client with the username and password assigned to him by
the Administrator, and would then have complete access over the files in and
below his home directory. The user would have the ability to send new files to
his home directory and the directories located inside it, but would not have any
access to the files located outside of his home directory.
Anonymous FTP Access
Anonymous FTP access allows anyone with an FTP client to view and retrieve files
from a special area of a virtual server Pro by using the username “anonymous” or
“ftp” and their email address as a password. A person connecting to your virtual
server’s anonymous FTP service would only be able to retrieve files from the
~/ftp directory of your virtual server, as well as any subdirectories contained
within it. It is also possible to configure a specific directory within the
~/ftp/pub directory to allow anonymous users to upload files to your virtual
server.
Using Command Line FTP
Your virtual server comes with an onboard FTP client
of its own that can be run from the command prompt. This is useful if you want
to connect to a remote FTP server on the Internet and download files directly to
your virtual server without having to download them to your PC first. Windows
95/98 and Windows NT also have a command line FTP client that you can use from
the DOS prompt to download files from Internet servers to your desktop computer.
To become familiar with command line FTP, you can run the FTP client on your
virtual server to access to the FTP server on your virtual server. Using your
virtual server’s FTP client to connect to its own FTP service in this way is not
very useful, but it will help you understand the basics of FTP. To establish an
FTP connection to your virtual server from your command line, type:
ftp yourdomain.com Enter
The yourdomain.com should be the domain name or IP address of your virtual
server. If you’ve just recently ordered your virtual server, your domain name
may not have had enough time to be processed by the naming authorities yet. If
this is the case, you should use either your IP address or the temporary domain
name provided to you when your order was confirmed.
Once you connect, a login prompt asks you for a username. Type the username for
your virtual server and press Enter. Next, you will see a prompt that asks you
for a password. Type the password for the administrative user and press Enter.
You’ve now connected to your virtual server’s FTP server from your own command
prompt.
There are several commands that you can use in the FTP command line. Some of the
basic ones are:
ls: Lists the files in the current directory of the remote system.
pwd: Displays the current directory on the remote system.
cd: Changes the current directory on the remote system.
lcd: Changes the current directory on the local machine that you are connecting
from.
get: Retrieves a file from the current directory of the remote system, and
places it in the current directory of the local machine that you are connecting
from.
send: Sends a file from the current directory of the local machine that you are
FTP’ing from and places it in the current directory of the remote system.
ascii or as: sets the FTP transfer mode to ASCII. Any text based file should be
transferred in ASCII mode. Transferring text files in binary mode can cause them
to become corrupted.
binary or bi: sets the FTP transfer mode to binary. Any file that is not a text
file should be transferred in binary mode. Transferring binary files in ASCII
mode can cause them to become corrupted.
quit or bye: closes the connection with the remote system and exits the FTP
program.
Try using the cd, lcd, pwd, binary, and ascii commands to see how they work.
It’s probably a good idea not to use the get or send commands at this point
because you have no real need to use them. When you’re finished experimenting
with the FTP program, use the quit command to exit FTP mode.
Using an FTP Client
An FTP client greatly facilitates FTP transfers between your virtual server and
your personal computer. An FTP client is a program that runs on your local
computer and interacts with your virtual server’s FTP service. Most FTP programs
have graphical interfaces that make it easy to transfer and manipulate files.
Once you obtain an FTP client, you should install and configure it according to
its documentation.
Authenticated
FTP with a Client
Try an Authenticated FTP connection by connecting to your own virtual server.
Enter the following information in your FTP client:
Hostname: www.yourdomain.com
Username: your_username
Password: your_password
Once you connect, your client will attempt to log in using the username and
password you provided. If successful, you will be able to administer your file
system through your FTP client. Be aware that you can upload, download, and
delete files on your virtual server through authenticated FTP. Any files you
send to your virtual server will automatically overwrite existing files of the
same name, so be sure to back up important data if you intend to upload
any files.
Changing Your Administrative FTP Password
Your administrative FTP password is the same password that you use for Telnet
and for the administrative email account. If you would like to change your
administrative password, it will be changed for all three of these services.
To change your administrative FTP password, SSH to your virtual server and type
the following at the command prompt:
vpasswd Enter
You’ll then be prompted to enter the old password. After doing so, you’ll be
prompted for a new password, which you will need to enter twice for verification
purposes. The password for all the services associated with your administrative
account (Email, SSH, and administrative FTP) will then be changed.
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