Installing an ftp server – getting FreeBSD into an NT/Linux house. *
This article isn’t finished yet.This article talks about how I installed an ftp server at a site. They didn’t have an ftp server and this was the first FreeBSD box at their site. Previously, then ran only Linux (RedHat I think) and NT.
As you can see, there’s not much written down here yet. That’s because the work doesn’t actually start until next week. But stay tuned. If you have any suggestions, please let me know.
The background
the client in question is a medium-size consultancy which has undergone considerable growth in the past year. Large files are often sent to or from a client site. Sending large files via email is not always practical. Some client site impose a limit on file size (e.g. 2Mb) which make some file transfer impractical. One consultant makes regular trips using a ZIP drive to transport files. An ftp server would reduce the load on the mail server and allow files of a large size to transferred automatically.The requirements
Unfortunately, the requirements are quite hazy at the moment. This topic came up on Friday night over drinks. Several disjointed conversations ensued and I’m not quite sure what they want. I mentioned that the incoming directory would be read only. Anything could be sent to the server via anonymous ftp. I mentioned that employees would be given a login through which they could access the files in the incoming directory.I’m not really sure how we’re going to do that.
Someone mentioned having the ftp server outside the firewall. That’s confusing to me.
One thing is for sure, no telnet access to this server. ssh only. I’m not sure how secure they want the files to be. My guess is they should use ssh for the ftp. Which means giving a logon to each employee that needs access. Security versus ease-of-use. They’ll have to decide which they want.
Things have stalled
6 Nov = It’s stopped. Everthing. Not sure why. I think it’s hardware.11 Nov = Well, I’ve pushed ahead with the creation of a box regardless of the politics. I’ve put together a box with two IDE drives. I installed the following using the articles indicated:
Port
Location
More information apache
/usr/ports/www/apache13
proftpd
/usr/ports/ftp/proftpd
installing an alternative ftp daemon – proftpd bash
/usr/ports/shells/bash2
Changing the shell (bash)
cvsup-bin
/usr/ports/net/cvsup-bin
cgi script
http://www.cgi-resources.com/Programs_and_Scripts/Perl/
Everything is configured and ready to go.
All I need to do is transfer the box, set the hostname, and give it an IP address. And it’ll be ready to go.
This article was never finished…. perhaps it should be removed from the listing?