Subject: adding users that teh ftp server recognizes

From: [email-masked]
Date: 11 Jul 1996 20:54:58 CST

[email-masked] wrote....

WU>I've been trying to add users to my server that can only access an ftp
WU>account, not a shell account. I tried adding a user to the /etc/passwd file
WU>with the shell listed as /bin/false, but then the ftp server refused access
WU>by that user. I then tried listing the shell as /bin/noshell and then
WU>/etc/noshell. But the ftp server refused a connection by the users then too.
WU>And then, by someone else's recommendation, i tried setting up the user with
WU>his home directory as /dev/null, wich allowed the user to login via ftp, but
WU>since /dev/null was set as teh home directory, instead of /home/ftp it
WU>didn't bring the user to teh ftp server.

If you're using wu-ftp, you MUST have a valid shell.  Create a
/bin/ftponly script to echo a "can't log on" message and add it to
/etc/shell.  Than change the passwd file to use your new /bin/ftponly
script as the shell.

There is an example of this on p494 of "Practical UNIX & Internet
Security" by Simson Garfield & Gene Spafford.  (2nd edition, O'Reilly &
Associates)

Paul Scivetti
[email-masked]