FTP - How to FTP from batch, dos or vbscript

Not quite sure what was going on with my typing there.... and missed out the user/password, doh!  

Don't like "two files approach". You can modify that (shown with the code of netcmh, mixed with the FTP options of dragon-it):

@echo off
( echo open sourceserver
 echo user {userID}
  echo {password}
 echo cd /home/hyperion/
 echo get filename.txt
 echo bye
) | ftp -n -i

Qlemo's way - I tend to do that way for my own scripts though it can make long scripts less clear.  In this case certainly seems a god plan.

Agreed, not good for long FTP scripts. But allows for dynamic creation of commands :-)

OK... As soon as they give me proper access to the server I can try these.  The username and password needs what access on the sourceserver and destserver or just the sourceserver?  I'm thinking read access to the directory where the file resides?

sam

Back on a proper connection now... sorry for half answers earlier, though you have plenty of others that should work!

The username and password you pass into the ftp script needs to be able to at least read the file and directory you are accessing on the unix box.  The windows side of the script will run as whatever user you either manually or scheduled the script to run as, and will have that user's rights to the destination.

Steve

On the sourceserver, create the ftp user, eg. Tom

# adduser -c 'FTP USER Tom' -m tom
# passwd tom

Now tom can login using our ftp server.

If you're running redhat, make sure the following is set in vsftpd.conf

local_enable=YES

Restart the vftpd:
# service vsftpd restart

It's AIX I believe...

celzo76 I get this when I try that OPEN command


D:\Hyperion\CFM>OPEN my.ftp.com
'OPEN' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.

dragon,

I get same error... Do I have to go into some ftp mode first?

D:\Hyperion\CFM>open bacpmtst1
'open' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.

When I goto command prompt on my laptop and type c:\ftp

I get the >ftp prompt

When I do the same on the Windows box, it just sits there and doesn't give me >ftp prompt.

That seems like a issue to me.  Is ftp automatically included on Win 2003 server?

FTp should be there, though it won't be at c:\ftp, though.  Have you called a batch file ftp.cmd at all perhaps, in which case that will run before any ftp.exe from the path etc.

BTW try Qlemo's post, mine was typed while distracted and plain wrong!

Steve

after you type in ftp at the prompt, adn get the >

you can type in open sourceserver

it'll ask for creds, and then you should be in

If you want to do it with the one file method you either use:

save this lot as ftpscript.txt:

open sourceserver
unixusername
unixpassword
lcd D:\cfm
cd /home/hyperion
asc
get filename.txt
quit

then in a batch file:

@echo off
ftp -i -ss:ftpscript.txt

OR use the -n option and add USER before the username, i.e.

open sourceserver
USER unixusername
unixpassword
lcd D:\cfm
cd /home/hyperion
asc
get filename.txt
quit

then in a batch file:

@echo off
ftp -n -i -ss:ftpscript.txt

or wrap all that into one batch file like Qlemo's.

Steve,

Is the   -ss:    in ftp a typo, meaning   -s:, or something special?

oops, smartarse :-)  

Something special eh... I prefer gigglebiz (google it, you can see what I get to watch on the telly)

Steve

I 'm just asking - I do not know nothing a lot :-D

OK. So when I just type 'ftp' at command prompt it opens up ftp.  Then I type 'open' and it says 'To'. What is that? Do I just modify script to call ftp.exe first?  Little confused on how to get ftp to open via script.

C:\Documents and Settings\admin>ftp
ftp> open
To

The command you run is a batch / command file.  Save the following two lines as "myftp.cmd" using notepad .... don't call it ftp.cmd or it will run itself at line 2 and do nothing ...

@echo off
ftp -n -i -s:ftpscript.txt

or

@echo off
ftp -i -s:ftpscript.txt

pointing at a file ftpscript.txt (or whatever you want to call it) with the commans you want it to run in as described above.

For testing what commands you want it type:

ftp <return>
open ip of unixbox
username
password
ls
quit

will give you a directory of the default dir on the unix box.

The -s:filename  in FTP uses the file as FTP commands. If you say

ftp -n -i -s:somescript.ftp

it should be executed.

elwayisgod - any luck with this, do you need any more help?

Steve

Hi,

I'm working on it today as I didn't have time in last week or so.  I will be on it today until I get it working.  I will update later.  Not sure which solution to try :)

sam

Hi,

Anyway to mask/hide the username and password or just the password?

Thanks,

Sam

No, sorry.

if you mean in the script.... you can run the ftp.exe line with >afile.txt or >nul on the end to mask anything it shows on the screen if you like.

Steve

i.e.

ftp -i -s:ftpscript.txt >NUL 2>&1

would run it as hidden as it can.

... but in the script, credentials remain in clear text ...

(and BTW, FTP itself is sending user and password unencrypted)

Hence my "no, sorry" as first answer there.  Not ideal but best you can do really with ftp.exe.  There may be other ways with gui apps etc. where you can store the password within the app "hidden" or encrypted but for this it is going to be visible -- so best to create (as would always suggest anyway for scripts) a specific account with just the necessary read or write rights only... you wouldn't run it with root or admin user of course in a script so just create a user/password which is of little user to anyone anyway if found.

OK.  So I'm trying to run and it's not taking the username and password.  Here are the steps I'm taking:

1-At command line I type:  ftp -n -i -s:cfm_ftp_script.txt > cfm_extract_log.log
2-'cfm_ftp_script.txt' consists of:

open bbacpmtst11
e33base
Cube_Em#
lcd d:\hyperion\cfm
cd ..
cd ..
cd essbase111
ls -al
asc
get cfm_extract2.txt
bye

3-Erorr as it wont take username and pw which are correct:

ftp> Connected to bbacpmtst11

open bbacpmtst11
220 bbacpmtst11 FTP server (Version 4.2 Wed Oct 1 09:40:05 CDT 2008) ready.
ftp> Invalid command.

ftp> e33base
Invalid command.

ftp> Cube_Em#
Local directory now D:\hyperion\CFM.

ftp> lcd d:\hyperion\cfm
cd ..
530 Please login with USER and PASS.

ftp> cd ..
530 Please login with USER and PASS.

ftp> cd essbase111
530 Please login with USER and PASS.

ftp> ls -al
530 Please login with USER and PASS.

530 Please login with USER and PASS.

ftp> asc
200 Type set to A; form set to N.
ftp> get cfm_extract2.txt
530 Please login with USER and PASS.

ftp> bye
221 Goodbye.

You need to add USER before the username if you use the -n parmeter or remove the -n parameter (whether to auto prompt for logon or not).

There have been lots of posts here but details in post http:#25339787 above.

Steve

Both of you contributed to final code which was very close to what you gave me.  Appreciate it.

Hi,

Was wondering if there is a way to use variables in my text file?  I declare variables in my batch by calling my 'setenv.cmd' file with all the declarations.  Then in the .bat file I have a line:

ftp -i -s:cfm_ftp_script.txt

Then my cfm_ftp_script.txt file looks like below.  I want to use the variables for 'server' 'ftpuser' etc..... Can I do that?  I tried wrapping them with % and also prefix with $ but neither worked...

open server
ftpuser
ftppwd
lcd d:\hyperion\cfm
cd ..
cd ..
cd essbase111
ls -al
asc
get cfm_extract.txt
bye

Have posted in your other Q...