Managing users from the command line

You can add, modify or delete users on a host using the user command line utility iftpaddu.exe.

Important: You cannot use this utility to add users to a host that uses an Active Directory database, Microsoft Windows user database or external LDAP database.

To run the Add User Utility:

From the Windows desktop, select Start > Run. The Run dialog appears.
Enter cmd.exe and click OK.
Change the directory to the WS_FTP Server directory. For a default installation, this should be C:\Program Files\Ipswitch\WS_FTP Server\.
For a list of command options, enter iftpaddu /?.

Basic Command Syntax

The basic syntax for adding, modifying and removing a user, as well as the syntax to change permissions for all users on the server at once, are indicated below.

Adding a User	`iftpaddu -u userid -h hostname [-n "full name"] [-p password] [options]`
Modifying a User	`iftpaddu -mod -u userid -h hostname [-n "full name"] [-p password] [options]`
Deleting a User	`iftpaddu -kill -u userid -h hostname`
Modifying All Users on a Host	`iftpaddu -all -h hostname [options]`

Note: All arguments are case-sensitive and must be supplied as lower case.

Note:When using the +/-root and +/-lock command line switches, the command lock switch must precede the root switch, otherwise the the command line will fail.

Arguments	When to use
`-add`	Use when you want to add a new user. If -add, - mod, -kill or -all are not specified, -add is assumed.
`-mod`	Use when you want to modify an existing user.
`-kill`	Use to delete a user. You must also specify a username using `-u userid`.
`-all`	This argument can be used in conjunction with the `active, chgpass`, `sysadm, hostadm`, `lock and g` (group) arguments to modify all users on the server.
`-f filename`	Specifies an external file from which to read additional arguments.
`-u username`	Adds a username, where username the user you want to add. This is the only required argument. Only one username can be added in a single command.
`-h hostname`	Specifies the user's host, where hostname is the name of the file transfer host. The primary FTP host is used if no host is specified.
`-n "full name"`	Specifies the full name of the user. The full name must be enclosed in quotes if it contains any spaces.
`-o /homefolder`	Specifies a home folder for a user.
`-p password`	Specifies the password for a user.
`+g groupname`	Adds the user to the specified group.
`-g groupname`	Removes the user from the specified group.
`-s`	Sets the quota space for the user. (The minimum to enter is 1024. Less than this number will enter a "0" as the quota space.)
`-x`	Sets the file count quota for the user.
`+active`	Enables the user to log on. This is the default setting when adding a new user.
`-active`	Disables the user account, so the user cannot log in.
`+chgpass`	Enables the user to change password from an FTP client.
`-chgpass`	Disables the user's ability to change password from an FTP client.
-e emailaddress	Sets the email address for the specified user.
`+forcechgpass`	Forces the user to change the password on next login from an FTP client. For more information on functionality of this option, see the "User must change password at next logon" option in Creating user accounts.
`-forcechgpass`	Disables the force change password option.
`+hostadm`	Grants the user Host Administrator permissions.
`-hostadm`	Removes Host Administrator permissions from the user.
`-list`	Outputs a list of the commands needed to generate all of the users on a host in a format that can be used with the -f argument. If -u is specified, only the commands needed to generate the specified user are output. Examples: `iftpaddu -u admin -h serverhostname -list` `iftpaddu -h serverhostname -list`
`+lock`	Locks a user to their home folder.
`-lock`	Unlocks a user from their home folder.
`+root`	Displays the user home folder as root (/), effectively hiding the path to the location. To set this option, +lock must also be set for the user.
`-root`	Displays the full path to the user's home folder, for example /users/fredf
`+sysadm`	Grants the user System Administrator permissions.
`-sysadm`	Removes System Administrator permissions from the user.