Transfer files from Alpha to PC with ftp connaction

[Aneta]

Hello, I have an Alpha v6.2-1H3 running OpenVMS. FTP Connection from PC doesn't work. I got massage "Connection closed by remote host"
process ucx$ftpd is enabled
I must get files from Alpha to PC
What can i do?
Thanks.

[Thomas Ritter]

Quick test. On the alpha run ftp to itself and report the results.


$ ftp 'alpha_host_name'

[Aneta]

I had run the test, and it works. but from PC no.

[Robert Gezelter]

Aneta,

These are always difficult to diagnose remotely.

Check the default directory on the Alpha. There should be log files from the FTP operation there. If there are any error messages in them it can be useful.

Other problems can be caused by firewalls. Conventional FTP creates two connections: one from the client to the server; and one reverse. If there is a firewall blocking the connection, that can be a problem.

Another possibility is to use C-KERMIT. I published a column entitled "ftp and sneakernet are Are Not Your Only Options" on the use of C-KERMIT among others (see http://www.openvms.org/stories.php?story=05/07/09/1298233 ). Unlike conventional FTP, which requires two connections, in complementary directions, C-KERMIT transmits data through the telnet (or ssh) connection, which is already established.

- Bob Gezelter, http://www.rlgsc.com

[Steven Schweda]

"PC" is not a useful description of any of
the software on that system. What is the OS?
What are you using as an FTP client program?
Can you get it to work with any other FTP
server?

> I must get files from Alpha to PC

Have you tried a Web browser of Filezilla
(as an FTP client)?

[Aneta]

the log file:
ANONYMOUS job terminated at 12-JUN-2009 08:19:15.28
Accounting information:
Buffered I/O count: 62 Peak working set size: 2048
Direct I/O count: 26 Peak page file size: 41520
Page faults: 359 Mounted volumes: 0
Charged CPU time: 0 00:00:00.10 Elapsed time: 0 00:10:00.70
The OS is win XP on the client and server 2003 on the server.
when I try to connect to alpha with Internet Explore (ftp://ip adress), I see intranet's directories, but I cant open them.
I used to connect all the time with the cmd.

[Jon Pinkley]

Aneta,

What TCP stack (TCPIP Services for VMS or some third party stack) and version is being used on VMS?

When you say "I used to connect all the time with the cmd." doest that mean the command line ftp client? i.e. C:\> ftp

Does that still work?

What's changed since things worked? (IE update, VMS/TCP patches, network changes)

How long does it take before you get the "Connection closed by remote host" message?

The reason I ask that is the elapsed time in the log file shows 10 minutes, and that looks like an inactivity timer expired.

Jon

[Steven Schweda]

> [...] with Internet Explore [...]

MS Internet Explorer does not understand the
file listings produced by a UCX FTP server.

Firefox might do better. Filezilla seems to
work.

[Aneta]

answer to Jon Pinkley:
1. I did'nt understand the question.
but here are details about the ftp service:
Service: FTP
State: Enabled
Port: 21 Protocol: TCP Address: 0.0.0.0
Inactivity: 5 User_name: UCX$FTP Process: UCX$FTPD
Limit: 10 Active: 0 Peak: 3

File: SYS$SYSDEVICE:[UCX$FTP]UCX$FTPD_STARTUP.COM
Flags: None

Socket Opts: Rcheck Scheck
Receive: 0 Send: 0

Log Opts: Acpt Actv Dactv Conn Error Exit Logi Logo Mdfy Rjct TimO Addr
File: SYS$SYSDEVICE:[UCX$FTP]UCX$FTPD_STARTUP.LOG

Security
Reject msg: not defined
Accept host: 0.0.0.0
Accept netw: 0.0.0.0

2. yes
3. no
4. the system administrator :-) but he dont know what is the problem
5. 1 minute.

[Jeroen Hartgers_3]

maybe it is stupit to ask, but has de user witch you use to logon in ftp the right permissions.

the vms user need network full acces

[Camiel Vanderhoeven]

Hi Aneta,

A lot of ftp clients don't understand the regular VMS ftp server very well. This can be a real pain. I use WS-FTP when FTP'ing from/to VMS. You could download a trial version from http://www.ipswitchft.com/ and try if that works.

Cheers,

Camiel

[Jim_McKinney]

>>On the alpha run ftp to itself and report the results.
> I had run the test, and it works. but from PC no.


Any chance that there's an intervening firewall (or router with port filtering of some sort) that is permitting access to the FTP control port but not its data port? Have you attempted a passive mode transfer?

[Robert Gezelter]

Aneta,

A small amplification to Jon's earlier comment.

A firewall blocking a port often presents as a pair of timeouts: one at the server; and one at the client.

Since FTP uses two connections, the symptoms described in the original post are often caused by blocking the reverse (data) channel.

- Bob Gezelter, http://www.rlgsc.com

[Hoff]

Don't use FTP. Everybody eventually discovers the protocol design stinks; among its various problems, the protocol is inherently incompatible with modern firewalls. Use sftp, which works better with firewalls, and avoids disclosing your username and password credentials in cleartext, and which allows you to do a no-password login using certificates.

If you want to use ftp, then either open up your firewalls to the ephemeral port range, or remove the intervening firewall(s) entirely, or get a more expensive firewall that can inspect ftp and open the appropriate ports. Or use sftp.

Here's how ftp works, and why it causes problems with its use of ephemeral ports:

http://labs.hoffmanlabs.com/node/530

[Steven Schweda]

> Since FTP uses two connections, [...]

> Have you attempted a passive mode transfer?

As suggested, many FTP clients and servers
offer a "passive" mode to work around this
problem.

Before getting too far off the track, I'd
like to see a transcript of the failing
session (from the Windows client). Perhaps
I'm not paying attention, but I have no idea
where in the FTP session the failure occurs.
"FTP Connection from PC doesn't work" does
not tell me what the user did or what
happened when he did it. If the user can't
get connected at all, then it's pointless to
drag "passive mode" into the discussion.

> Can you get it to work with any other FTP
> server?

Still wondering.

> These are always difficult to diagnose
> remotely.

They are, with no useful information.

> when I try to connect to alpha with
> Internet Explore (ftp://ip adress), I see
> intranet's directories, but I cant open
> them.

Ok, MSIE doesn't understand what it sees, but
it _does_ see something. It appears that it
got connected, and that it returned a file
listing of some kind. Right?

> I used to connect all the time with the
> cmd.

Perhaps something has changed.

It might be helpful to see exactly what you
do "with the cmd", so that we might know what
works and what fails.

Do you have another PC?

[Andy Bustamante]

Aneta,

Another version of the comments above: What ftp client are you using on the Windows system? If it's the native client, change to something that supports passive ftp. WS-FTP or SmartTerm for example.

Another option may be to use Pathworks Lan Manager Server to create a network share on the Alphaserver. That's another can of worms, but once configured is very reliable.


Andy Bustamante

[Steven Schweda]

> [...] or SmartTerm for example.

SmartFTP? I used that, years ago. (It
worked. Better, after they fixed a bug I
reported.)

[Hoff]

Filezilla is my usual suggestion for folks still on Windows.

[Andy Bustamante]

Steven,

SmartFTP also supports sftp and works very well in either command mode or graphic view.

If they had an option to disable the option to store user id/password with a connection I'd be much happier since my other hat has "Security Compliance" on the front.

Andy

[Steven Schweda]

Deviating a little from the main topic, ...

> SmartFTP [...] works very well [...]

One of the big challenges for an FTP client
when dealing with a UCX (TCPIP) FTP server is
that server's mystifying behavior with ODS5
extended file names. I can't remember if the
SmartFTP folks ever put in code to handle
what may be the only FTP server on the planet
which doesn't understand as input the file
names it provides in its own listings.

Luckily, at VMS V6.2-1H3, we don't need to
worry about those newfangled (1999?) features
like ODS5.

Of course, many Web browsers can't even
handle what it does for long ODS2 names. For
example, try a simple command-line FTP client
and HP's latest Mozilla/SeaMonkey SWB on:
ftp://antinode.info/moz_test/
It's sad.

[Steven Schweda]

%TCPIP-I-FTP_NODE, client host name: XXX.223.189.238
%TCPIP-I-FTP_USER, user name: anonymous
%TCPIP-I-FTP_OBJ, object: /moz_test/
%TCPIP-I-FTP_CHINFO, TCPIP$FTPC00073: Failed to set default directory
%SYSTEM-W-BADIRECTORY, bad directory file format

It doesn't like a trailing "/" on a directory
name, either. This has the disadvantage of
defeating many clients, but it has the
(unexpected silver-lining) advantage of
defeating many FTP attack scripts all by
itself. For example:

%TCPIP-I-FTP_OBJ, object: /_vti_pvt/
%TCPIP-I-FTP_CHINFO, TCPIP$FTPC00054: Failed to set default directory
%SYSTEM-W-BADIRECTORY, bad directory file format

%TCPIP-I-FTP_OBJ, object: /pub/incoming/
%TCPIP-I-FTP_CHINFO, TCPIP$FTPC00054: Failed to set default directory
%SYSTEM-W-BADIRECTORY, bad directory file format

and so on.

But I digress. Complaints about this FTP
server could keep a whole forum of its own
busy for a long time.

[Aneta]

Thanks all of you,
Is there another way to get files from VMS to PC? I don't have to work with ftp, i just must transfer files form Alphe-VMS to PC.

[Steven Schweda]

> Is there another way to get files from VMS
> to PC? I don't have to work with ftp, i
> just must transfer files form Alphe-VMS to
> PC.

There are several, but FTP is one of the
easiest. Some have already been suggested
here.

> It might be helpful to see exactly what you
> do "with the cmd", so that we might know what
> works and what fails.
>
> Do you have another PC?

Do you ever answer questions, or do you only
ask more?

[Robert Gezelter]

Aneta,

Yes, there is another way.

Use C-KERMIT (as I noted in an earlier post, with a reference to a more extensive article on OpenVMS.org on the subject).

C-KERMIT works in band on a terminal connection (TELNET or SSH), and can be scripted to be totally batch operated (on both the OpenVMS and Windows sides of the connection).

Since it works "in-band" it does not neet arrangements with any other network devices (such as firewalls) in the data path.

- Bob Gezelter, http://www.rlgsc.com

[Aneta]

I try to connect with cmd this way:
c:\ftp ip_adress
and i used to be asked to enter username in the Alpha.
but now I got message "connection closed by remote host" after 1 minute.

I had tried to connect from another PC, and it is not working.