Secure FTP username/password in AIX 4.3

[heprox]

We use a proprietary piece of software to move files from remote locations to our central server via FTP. The contents of these file does not have to be secure, however I would like to secure the username/password of the accounts that are uploading the files. Does AIX have this capability? We are using the default FTP daemon that comes with AIX. We could add SSH or SSL security to our remote locations if necessary.

 

[aixmurderer]

Instead of using the default FTPD of AIX you could opt using openSSH's SFTP or SCP instead. By using keys instead of passwords you can make it a lot more secure. FTP unfortunately passes username and password details in clear text, so that isn't so good.

Alternatively you could use something like rdist, and by using .rhosts and host.equiv files you don't need to log in with user details. There are of course other security issues with .rhosts and hosts.equiv, so it's not the best option either.

Rdist can also use SSH as transport medium, that's the way we use it. Combined with public key authentication you overcome the above problems.

The only negative of using SSH is a transfer speed tradeoff, we have experienced with SFTP that it takes up to 3 times longer to transfer a file. Not a problem with small files, but when transferring 200 MB+ files it does become an issue.

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