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Setting up an FTP server with Windows 2000

Jun 25, 2001 | Steven Warren MCSE, MCDBA, Net+ | E-Mail | Archive

Windows 2000 Server now natively includes Internet Information Services (IIS) 5.0. Along with its other functions, IIS 5.0 provides the ability to create a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) server. As you’re probably aware, FTP is very useful for uploading and downloading files between computers. With IIS 5.0, you can host multiple FTP sites, and each FTP site can host more than one domain. This article will discuss how to install, configure, and publish information to a Windows 2000 FTP site running on IIS.

To access IIS, you can click Start | Programs | Administrative Tools | Internet Services Manager (see Figure A).
 

Figure A
The IIS configuration console

Creating your FTP site
You can create an FTP site by using the wizard that IIS provides. Just follow these steps:

  1. Open IIS.
  2. Expand your server name.
  3. Right-click on Default FTP Site and select New Site.
  4. Click Next and enter a description of your FTP site.
  5. Enter the IP address for your FTP site (Figure B).
  6. Enter the path to your home directory where your FTP files will be stored (Figure C).
  7. Select Read, Write, or both permissions to your FTP site.
  8. Click Finish.
Figure B
Designating site IP address and port

 
Figure C
Setting the root directory for FTP files



Testing your FTP site
Believe it or not, that’s all there is to creating up a basic FTP site with Windows 2000. Now it’s time to test the site. First, place a couple of files in the folder you designated as the root directory for FTP. To test your FTP site from a command prompt:

  1. Open a command prompt.
  2. Type ftp localhost.
  3. Type Anonymous for the user.
  4. Type your e-mail address for the password (see Figure D).
 
Figure D
Testing your FTP site from the command prompt

To test your FTP site from a Web browser:

  1. Open up Internet Explorer.
  2. Type ftp://localhost (see Figure E).
Figure E
Testing your FTP site from a Web browser

Configuring your FTP site
Now that you have created and tested your FTP site, you can customize it to meet the needs of your company. You can create a description for your site, edit the IP address, and change the port number, if applicable. You can also limit the number of people who access your site, in addition to creating security parameters.

To create an FTP welcome message:
  1. Open the IIS console.
  2. Expand your FTP site.
  3. Right-click on your FTP site and choose Properties.
  4. Select the Messages tab and type your Welcome and/or Exit message (see Figure F).
Figure F
Setting the messages for your FTP site

The rest of the tabs in the Properties dialog box allow you to customize and change other aspects of your FTP site. You’ll definitely want to think about your security settings. When setting up FTP security, most people use anonymous access. When anonymous access is selected, the IUSR_COMPUTERNAME account is automatically assigned to guests to gain access to the FTP site. To access the site, an e-mail address is the only piece of information that is collected.

If you have sensitive files, as an alternative you can configure FTP to use valid Windows 2000 domain accounts. However, if you do this, one of the pitfalls of FTP authentication is that usernames and passwords are transmitted as clear text. Thus, anyone with a packet sniffer can trap your user information and try to use it to compromise your network.

When configuring your FTP site, you also have the ability to:

  • Log all FTP connections.
  • Configure NTFS permissions on files. (This is useful on an intranet.)
  • Deny or grant users or IP addresses access.

To configure FTP connection limits:

  1. Open Internet Services Manager.
  2. Right-click on your FTP site and choose Properties (see Figure F again).
  3. In the Maximum Number Of Connections text box, enter the number of connections you want to allow.

To view FTP sessions:

  1. Open Internet Services Manager.
  2. Right-click on your FTP site and choose Properties.
  3. Click on the FTP Site tab.
  4. Select Current Sessions (see Figure G).
Figure G
Viewing current users of your FTP server
 
Setting up security
After creating a folder structure in your FTP root directory (also known as Home Directory), you can then assign your permissions to those folders. Right-click on each folder you have created, select Properties, and assign the appropriate NTFS permissions. You can also view the FTP permissions you have chosen by accessing the Home Directory tab of the Properties dialog box of your FTP site in the IIS console (see Figure H). Read access allows users to download files, and Write access allows users to upload files.
 
Figure H
Settings on the Home Directory tab

Conclusion
Depending on your organization’s requirements, there are many ways to configure your FTP site. This article provided you with an understanding of what an FTP site does and explained how to create and configure a basic FTP site with Windows 2000.