Data connection mode

When your File Transfer Protocol (FTP) server runs behind a firewall or Network Address Translation (NAT) router, your users may sometimes encounter connectivity issues. One of the most common causes of FTP connection issues is the data connection mode being used. This mode can be either active or passive. Certain firewall configurations will only allow FTP connections if the data connection is set to a mode that works with a given configuration.

This blog will explain the differences between active and passive FTP data connection modes, how they impact firewall configurations and what mode we recommend you use going forward. Although active and passive modes are mentioned in RFC 959, the explanations can be too technical. Before we tackle the main discussion, let’s first review how FTP connections are designed.

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Topics: SFTP, FTP, ftp active mode, ftp active vs passive, ftp passive mode, sftp port, passive ftp

Because Microsoft Windows doesn't have a secure file transfer protocol server built in, we've put together a simple and easy-to-follow tutorial on how to install an SFTP server on Windows. 

The SFTP server we'll be using for this tutorial is JSCAPE MFT Server, a managed file transfer server that supports SFTP connections and several other file transfer protocols like FTP, FTPS, HTTP/S, WebDAV, AS2 and OFTP, as well as SSL and TLS. JSCAPE also offers a cloud solution called MFTaaS.

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Topics: JSCAPE MFT, Managed File Transfer, Tutorials, Secure File Transfer, SFTP

Many businesses use Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) to transfer data between business units or to trading partners. With the growing adoption of cloud solutions, it makes sense to leverage the cloud to enhance deep-rooted solutions like SFTP. For instance, you can integrate your SFTP server with Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3) so that files SFTP users and trading partners upload to that server are automatically forwarded to an AWS S3 bucket. 

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Topics: JSCAPE MFT, Managed File Transfer, Business Process Automation, Tutorials, SFTP, AWS, S3

Overview

Let's say you want to install an SSH FTP server (SFTP) on a Linux machine devoid of a GUI. However, after installation, you don't want to configure it (add users, create keys, enable public key authentication, choose algorithms, etc.) locally, moreso via the SFTP client. Instead, you want this SFTP server to be configured remotely through a graphical Web user interface. This is how we recommend you do it.

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Topics: JSCAPE MFT, Managed File Transfer, Tutorials, Secure File Transfer, SFTP

The SSH File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) uses TCP port 22 as its default port number. However, if you or your server administrator wishes to assign a different port number for your SFTP service, the protocol allows it. In this post, we’ll take a closer look at the default SFTP port number and tackle some key considerations when choosing alternate port numbers for your SFTP server.

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Topics: SFTP, ssh, sftp server, sftp port number

In this tutorial, we're going to show you how to monitor directories on a remote SFTP server and then download any new files on a periodic basis.

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Topics: JSCAPE MFT, Managed File Transfer, Videos, Tutorials, SFTP

In one of our previous posts, we talked about the importance of authenticating an SFTP host before logging into it and how to use the host's RSA key fingerprint to carry out the authentication. The same principle applies when you import a user's client key for public key authentication. If you'd like to walk through it with an expert, request a free trial.

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Topics: JSCAPE MFT, Managed File Transfer, Secure File Transfer, SFTP

Three common protocols still used in file transfer today are FTP, FTPS, and SFTP. While the acronyms for these protocols are similar, there are some key differences among them, in particular, how data is exchanged, the level of security provided, and firewall considerations. Learning these key differences can help you choose a secure file transfer protocol or troubleshoot common connection issues.

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Topics: Managed File Transfer, Secure File Transfer, SFTP, FTPS, FTP

When a user uploads files via FTP/S, SFTP, HTTP/S, or any supported file transfer protocol to JSCAPE MFT Server, those files don't have to be stored on the same machine as that server. Instead, you can have those files redirected to a variety of network storage options like a remote SFTP service, Amazon S3, Dropbox and several others. In this post we're going to show you how to store uploaded files to a remote Windows SMB share.

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Topics: JSCAPE MFT, Managed File Transfer, Tutorials, SFTP

Let's say you're trying to connect with a remote SFTP host, perhaps one of your own SFTP servers or one owned by one of your trading partners. While there are tools like nmap and netstat that you can use to test SFTP connectivity, you can also use JSCAPE MFT Monitor.

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Topics: JSCAPE MFT, Videos, Tutorials, SFTP