Thank you for all your suggestions. You have all been most helpful.
Here is a summary my venture into finding a method of ftping files
automatically:
[ 1 ]
The use of popen to pipe a script into ftp was suggested by
<veum@atria.GSFC.NASA.GOV>. This may work but there are easier
ways of doing things.
[ 2 ]
The following people suggested that I download the program
BFTP from <venera.isi.edu> for doing background ftp:
<dna@fredholm.math.psu.edu>, <kam@titan.tsd.arlut.utexas.edu>,
Janet L. Carson <jcarson@moniz.bcm.tmc.edu>, <davy@itstd.sri.com>
Paul O'Neill <pvo3366@oce.orst.edu>
I have and from looking at the man pages it looks quite impressive
and powerful. I was able to compile things properly, but I'm having
problems using it. I have send an email to Annette and we are in
the process of determining the source of my problems.
[ 3 ]
The following people send me long scripts that does ftp, file checking,
and a bunch other bells and whistles:
Dikran Kassabian <deke@ee.rochester.edu>, <bchivers@smiley.mitre.org>
These were written for specific purposes and may be modified to suite
one's needs. If anyone is interested, they can email me and I'll send
them a copy of these scripts.
[ 4 ]
The following people send me a simplier version of shell scripts for
redirecting a ftp script into ftp:
<selig@xanth.msfc.nasa.gov>, <dupuy@hudson.cs.columbia.edu>,
<me@scubed.scubed.com>, <cfoley@arsenic.cray.com>, <dlc@monsoon.c3.lanl.gov>,
<harry@neuron1.JPL.NASA.GOV>, <lrj@helios.TN.CORNELL.EDU>,
Don Hooper <hoop@khonshu.colorado.edu>, Mitch..Wright <mitch@hq.unspecified>,
<nick%orange@gargoyle.uchicago.edu>, <gcm!amadeus!dal@uunet.UU.NET>,
"alex;923-4483" <alexl%daemon.cna.tek.com@RELAY.CS.NET>,
King Ables <ables@mcc.com>, <lewis@saint.mitre.org>,
Frank G. Fiamingo <frank@tardis.ircc.ohio-state.edu>,
<Dave_Brent@mtsg.ubc.ca>, <iotek!mike@uunet.UU.NET>
I have tried redirecting before but my problem was 'ftp < script'
alone would not work. ftp would stop after reading the password.
The problem was solved either by using the .netrc file (so that
the login name and password need not be entered), or by using
the -n option of ftp (then the first line in the ftp script
should be 'user <login name> <password>'.
[ 5 ]
John, <kelso@seas.gwu.edu>, was a little more helpful where he
suggested using a while loop to keep ftping until the file wanted
exists. That makes more sense since my problem in the first place
was not being able to sign onto sites because of too many anonymous
ftps and connection was not allowed. Therefore, I wanted to make a
script to start at night and keep trying until I get the file.
With a little more help from John (debugging a syntax error in
my script), here is the final version of my script:
========
#!/bin/sh
#
# Script for auto ftp of files
#
# remove old log file
#
if [ ! -r log ]
then rm log
fi
#
# keep trying till 'file' is uploaded
#
while [ ! -r file ]
do ftp -i -n -v host.domain.country << END_FTP > log
user anonymous guest
lcd download
cd pub
binary
get file
bye
END_FTP
if [ ! -r file ]
then sleep 600
fi
done
========
Notice that I've decided against using .netrc and place the login id
and password in my script. Reason being Sun has always adviced against
using .netrc unless it's absolutely necssary, for security reasons.
It was documented in their Security Features Guide. To have a .netrc
file, you must make its access rw only by owner. Well, I can do that
for my ftp scripts as well. And doing it through a script, I can have
everything in one file.
[ 6 ]
During the time I've been testing these ftp scripts, an 'autoftp'
program was posted in comp.sys.ibmpc. I designed for Simtel20 but
it came with source codes, so I changed a few things and it works
fine. It doesn't use mget and it downloads the file one file
(per session) at a time (so no wildcards, filenames must be specified).
But I think I like it this way because it has to somehow verify each
file has been downloaded. Therefore, if you specify each filename,
it can verify each file, whereas it would be quite messy to have
to figure out what file the wildcard expansion contains, and then
check for each of those file. The way I've been doing it is set up
an ftp session for downloading the file listing of directories I want
to look at first. Then while setting up the script second session,
I read in the listing into my second script and delete the files that
I don't want while correcting the syntax of the files I do want.
I means one more ftp session but it's a safer way to go. But you can
edit the source code to include mget if you want to. I can post this
'autoftp' program here if anyone is interested.
Thank you for all those that who replied.
I will also be posting a summary of my nameserver question shortly.
Thomas.
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