Using SFTP and FTP

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Using SFTP and FTP

Overview

Your Virtual Server allows connections using both the SFTP and FTP protocols. These protocols allow you to transfer files to and from your VS, and to also manipulate the properties of the files, such as the owner and group.

It is important to understand that despite the similar sounding names, SFTP (SSH File Transfer Protocol or Secure File Transfer Protocol) and FTP (File Transfer Protocol) are not the same thing. They belong to completely different protocol suites. SFTP is not FTP run over SSH, nor is it Simple File Transfer Protocol. SFTP was designed from the ground up to be part of the SSH2 protocol.

In general, eApps would prefer that you use SFTP instead of FTP. SFTP is part of the SSH protocol suite, and sends all information - especially login and password information - over an encrypted connection.

FTP, on the other hand, sends all information, including all login and password information, in plain text. If someone were monitoring your connection (if you were at a public Wi-Fi hotspot, for example), they could easily retrieve your FTP login and password and be able to access your VS as that user.

Using SFTP
    Installing SFTP
    SFTP clients

Using FTP
    Installing FTP
    FTP Clients
    Stopping, Starting, or Restarting the FTP Server

Using SFTP

Installing SFTP

SFTP is available on your Virtual Server by default, because SSH is installed. No additional software needs to be installed for SFTP. However, be aware that for a user to be able to access the VS using SFTP, they will need to have Shell access enabled in their User Permissions.

SFTP clients

There are dozens of SFTP clients available. Some are free and open-source, others are available to purchase. Generally, most FTP clients can be used as SFTP clients (and vice versa). Check the documentation of your client if you are not sure.

A list of SFTP clients can be found here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_FTP_client_software#Protocol_support. Look at the column for SFTP to find which clients will work.

One of the more popular SFTP clients is FileZilla - http://filezilla-project.org/. FileZilla is both an SFTP and an FTP client, and is available for Windows, Mac OS X (10.5 or later) and most Linux distros. FileZilla is both free and open-source. The FileZilla Wiki has instructions on how to download and configure the application - http://wiki.filezilla-project.org/Main_Page

Using FTP

FTP is used to connect to the home directory of a web site as the Admin user of that site. Use FTP to manage the files in the DocumentRoot of a site or the home directory of the Admin user for a site.

You cannot use FTP to connect as the root user, and you cannot use FTP to connect to any part of the VS outside of the basic home directories for the users of the sites. If you need to upload WAR or EAR files or any other files to the Tomcat, JBoss or GlassFish directories, you will need to use SFTP.

Also, remember that when you use FTP, all information - including logins and passwords - is sent via plain text.

Installing FTP

  • ISPmanager 5 - the ProFTPD FTP server is installed by default. You will need to make sure the user is configured for FTP, which is done when the user is created, or can be added as FTP users. More information can be found in the official ISPmanager documentation - Adding Users.

  • ISPmanager 4 - you will need to install FTP on ISPmanager 4. To install an FTP server, go to ISPmanager > Server Settings > Applications.

    Click on the application you want to install to highlight it, and then click on Install in the upper right corner of the screen. You will be given a choice of either proftpd or vsftpd. Choose the one you prefer or are most familiar with. If you have no preference, eApps recommends the proftpd server. Once the application is installed, it will be listed in the Installed version column.

FTP Clients

See the section on SFTP Clients for more information about FTP clients. As with SFTP, the FileZilla client is a good choice for a free, cross-platform FTP client.

Stopping, Starting, or Restarting the FTP Server

FTP can be stopped/started/restarted from the Control Panel or from the command line of the Virtual Server.

Stopping and starting FTP using a Control Panel

Using the ISPmanager Control Panel

The way to start, stop, and restart FTP from ISPmanager will depend on which version of ISPmanager you are using.

  • For ISPmanager 4, go to Management Tools > Services, and highlight the FTP service. Then click on Stop, Start, or Restart in the upper right corner. More information about managing service in ISPmanager 4 is available here - Managing Services

  • For ISPmanager 5, go to System > Services, and highlight the proftpd service. Then click on Start, Stop, or Restart in the upper left corner. More information about managing services in ISPmanager 5 is available here - Managing Services

Stopping and starting FTP using the command line

For ISPmanager 4, you could have either the proftpd or vsftpd service running. Look in Server Settings > Applications to verify. For ISPmanager 5, you will have proftpd.

To stop, start, or restart the FTP service, use these commands.

Stopping FTP

For ProFTPD:

  • For CentOS 6, use the service proftpd stop command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# service proftpd stop

  • For CentOS 7, use the systemctl stop proftpd command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# systemctl stop proftpd

For vsftpd:

  • For CentOS 6, use the service vsftpd stop command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# service vsftpd stop

  • For CentOS 7, use the systemctl stop vsftpd command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# systemctl stop vsftpd

Starting FTP

For ProFTPD:

  • For CentOS 6, use the service proftpd start command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# service proftpd start

  • For CentOS 7, use the systemctl start proftpd command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# systemctl start proftpd

For vsftpd:

  • For CentOS 6, use the service vsftpd start command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# service vsftpd start

  • For CentOS 7, use the systemctl start vsftp` command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# service vsftpd start

Restarting FTP

For ProFTPD:

  • For CentOS 6, use the service proftpd restart command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# service proftpd restart

  • For CentOS 7, use the systemctl restart proftpd command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# systemctl restart proftpd

For vsftpd:

  • For CentOS 6, use the service vsftpd restart command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# service vsftpd restart

  • For CentOS 7, use the systemctl restart vsftpd command:

    [root@eapps-example ~]# systemctl restart vsftpd

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