Possible to link directories for FTP access?

[dredjohn]

I have setup an FTP server within OSX and created a specific user account to give out to family and friends, where they can ideally download music/movies/and documents I've created.

I prefer to keep the originals in my home directory, and not copy over each file to the other user's folder.

Is there a way to link a folder to the other user's account, and have it appear as an available folder?

I tried ln -s

That created a link, but when I viewed it in Fetch, it only showed up as a document.

When I viewed it in Internet Explorer, it showed up as an Alias -- but if I clicked on it -- it didn't transfer directories (it kinda just spun gears).

Any ideas?

If it matters, I'm using OSX.2.

Thanks in advance,
Eric

 

[gatorparrots]

If you switch ftp daemons from the stock one that comes with Mac OS X 10.2.x (lukemftpd) to a more feature-rich daemon, you can follow symbolic links.

I use pureftpd (www.pureftpd.org) due to its enhanced feature set and ease of administration. It handles symlinks as you desire, along with many other advanced features.

 

[popsock]

That sounds exactly what I'm after, however, I've not a clue how to do such a thing. Do tell!

 

[didde]

Hey popsock..

Head on over to www.afp548.com hand have a look at the latest article which is about installing ProFTPd with MySQL as a usertable. It'll give you all the features you need and then some..

 

[gatorparrots]

How-to install pure-ftpd is onsite in the Darwin forum:
http://www.macosx.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=25129

 

[slur]

I've had no problems with symbolic links using the stock FTP client that comes with Mac OS X, but as a client I use "Transmit" instead of "Fetch." Transmit actually knows how to follow symlinks.

(One thing you want to make sure of is that the user in question is not included in the /etc/ftpchroot file.)

 

[gatorparrots]

ftpchroot is broken in 10.2. See the various threads on this forum for options on how to fix it.

 

[cabbage]

ftpchroot can be fixed my manually editing the config file. And 10.2 comes with wu-ftpd. At least the server version does.

 

[gatorparrots]

The 10.2.x client version uses the lukemftpd daemon. To fix it, you would have to download the source from Apple and recompile the ftpd binary:
http://www.chezludo.com/ftpchroot.html

It cannot be fixed by editing a configuration file. Once it is fixed (using the method described in the link above), the /etc/ftpchroot configuration file may be created and used to implement chroot functionality.