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From: bzs@world.std.com (Barry Shein)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip
Subject: Anonymous FTP
Message-ID: <8912262048.AA00175@world.std.com>
Date: 26 Dec 89 20:48:56 GMT
References: <5134@blake.acs.washington.edu>
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Organization: The Internet
Lines: 24


There is a good reason to use the anonymous login name (under unix or
other OS's), it lets a sysadmin turn this on and off using familiar
tools (i.e. disable the account or don't set it up and you don't have
anonymous login.) One could invent yet another whistle (they're there
already, play with inetd.conf etc., or is that /etc/inetd.conf?) but
this is intuitively obvious and quick.

Considering the rash of holes found a while back in anonymous FTP's I
assume this was used and useful (adding/deleting a password for the
anon acct is fine on/off mechanism.) I will do this sort of thing just
because I'm rearranging files drastically or want to back-up the disk.

I have nothing against versions which loosen these conditions, but
it's not entirely vestigial and nice to use a known facility to
control something rather than inventing yet another administrative
sub-system.

Anyhow, this is all art, not science.

        -Barry Shein

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