ftpq(1) UNIX ftpq(1)
UNIX Reference Manual UNIX Reference Manual
Jul 2001
NAME
ftpq - queue up ftp transactions for batch processing on dial-up
SYNOPSIS
ftpq add [-c config] -h host [-P port] -u login [-p password] [-a
account] [-d remotedir] [-f remotefile] [-s] localfile [...] ftpq
delete all | jobid [jobid ...] ftpq list ftpq run [-r rate] [-v] ftpq
help
DESCRIPTION
ftpq has four modes of operation: add, delete, list and run. In add
mode, it stores ftp requests in a queue for batch processing. In
delete mode, it allows the user to delete jobs from the queue prior to
processing. In list mode, it prints out jobs currently in the queue.
In run mode, it steps through the jobs in the queue and attempts to
execute them on the specified server. The intention is that ftpq is
run in add/delete/list mode by normal users, and in run mode as the
super-user on successful dial-up connection to the outside world, in
the same way as sendmail(8) is typically configured to run. Jobs will
only be processed if the creator of the job file in the spool
directory matches the owner of the local file. If ftpq encounters
problems in executing a particular job, it will mail the originating
user to inform them of the nature of the problem.
OPTIONS (ADD MODE)
-c config
Read host, port, user, account, password and remote directory
details from the config section of ~/.ftpqrc. Options duplicated
on the command line take precedence.
-h host
Specify the host to which the file is to be uploaded. This must
be provided, either on the command line or in ~/.ftpqrc. host
may take the form of a host name or an IP address.
-P port
Specify the host port for connection. If not provided, the
default FTP port of 21 is used. Note: this is an uppercase P.
-u login
This is the server login ID, and must be provided either on the
command line or in the config file.
-p password
This is the server login password, and is optional. You should
supply whatever combination of password and account you would use
when connecting manually.
-a account
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ftpq(1) UNIX ftpq(1)
UNIX Reference Manual UNIX Reference Manual
Jul 2001
You can specify an optional account name here.
-d remotedir
remotedir is the absolute path on the server to the location
where the file is to be uploaded, referenced from the root of the
server. This is not necessarily the same as the user's home
directory: log in manually and try "cd /". If omitted, the root
directory is assumed.
-r remotefile
The file will be named remotefile on the server. If this is not
specified, the file will be given the same name as localfile.
This may not be specified if multiple local files are specified,
whether explicitly with multiple filenames or implicitly with
wildcards.
-s If -s (snapshot) is specified, ftpq will make a copy of localfile
in the spool directory, and will send that "snapshot" version
when next invoked in run mode.
OPTIONS (DELETE MODE)
In delete mode, a list of one or more job ID numbers may be supplied,
corresponding to the job IDs shown in list mode. ftpq will attempt to
delete each in turn, printing a message reporting success or failure
for each job. Alternatively, the special keyword all may be supplied,
in which case ftpq will attempt to delete all open job files.
OPTIONS (RUN MODE)
-r rate
Bandwidth limiter. Setting this allows ftpq to use less bandwidth
on the connection, improving responsiveness of any open
interactive sessions. rate is specified in bytes per second (min
1000): ftpq will not use (much) more bandwidth than this figure.
Setting this value to 0 turns off limiting.
-v Verbose. FTP and SMTP transmissions are copied to stdout for
debugging purposes.
FILES
/var/spool/ftpq
Spool directory for jobs.
~/.ftpqrc
Configuration file in which the command line parameters for
frequently-used runs may be stored. Format is the section name in
square brackets, followed by the command line switches and their
values on a separate line for each. Any of the options available
on the command line may be specified here. If a switch appears
more than once in a section, the first value is used.
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ftpq(1) UNIX ftpq(1)
UNIX Reference Manual UNIX Reference Manual
Jul 2001
Example config file
An example config file is:
[MyWeb]
-h my.web.server
-u my.login
-p my.password
[WorkFTP]
-h my.work.server
-u work.login
-p work.password
-d /my/work/dir You can then run:
ftpq add -c MyWeb index.html
ftpq add -c MyWeb -d images *.png
ftpq add -c WorkFTP *.dat
Command line options take precedence, irrespective of order. Directory
parameters do NOT combine, so:
ftpq add -c WorkFTP -d data file.dat
is probably not what you want, which is:
ftpq add -c WorkFTP -d /my/work/dir/data file.dat
DIAGNOSTICS
0 (OK)
Program exited normally.
1 (AB_NOFILE)
A required file could not be read or written.
2 (AB_NOPERM)
Permission denied to read or write a file.
3 (AB_FILEERR)
Unspecified file error.
4 (AB_MALLOC)
Unable to allocate memory.
5 (AB_CASEERR)
Internal state machine error (this never happens!).
6 (AB_NOSPOOL)
Cannot access or find spool directory.
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ftpq(1) UNIX ftpq(1)
UNIX Reference Manual UNIX Reference Manual
Jul 2001
7 (AB_ARGERR)
Command line arguments invalid.
BUGS
Probably many. Let me know.
COPYRIGHT
Copyright c 2000 Mark Tranchant ftpq is free software; you can
redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU
General Public License version 2 as published by the Free Software
Foundation. ftpq is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU
General Public License for more details. You should have
received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with ftpq; see
the file COPYING. If not, write to the Free Software Foundation, 59
Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.
SEE ALSO
weex and quftp perform similar functions to ftpq.
http://www.tranchant.freeserve.co.uk/ftpq.html
- ftpq home page.
AUTHOR
Mark Tranchant <mark@tranchant.freeserve.co.uk>
- 4 - Formatted: October 28, 2025
