Rumpus is unique in that it allows you to choose from three different methods to provide anonymous FTP access, each of which has its own strengths and weaknesses. These methods are:

• Anonymous Login Only

• Users & Groups Security

• Built-In Security

"Anonymous Login Only" provides...

1. the equivalent of "read-only" access to the entire contents of your server's root directory and sub-directories.

2. no ability to prevent users from poking around your server's subdirectories.

3. no ability to upload files or provide secure access for registered users.

"Anonymous Login Only" provides a very simple way to permit anonymous FTP access to your server. For example, many Webmasters provide FTP file downloads from their Web pages using FTP. If you don't require secure transfers or upload capabilities, then Anonymous Login Only is the fastest, easiest way to go.

However, a purely anonymous site isn't capable of providing users with any other type of access, which is the best way to secure the contents of your server. Another down side to this approach is that even you, the owner of the server will be unable to gain full access the server via FTP.

So, if you need access in addition to providing anonymous FTP access, you'll need to look at the remaining two options.

Users & Groups security provides...

1. the ability to provide authenticated access in addition to anonymous access.

2. the ability to create and secure individual subfolders within the designated FTP server root folder.

3. the ability to have anonymous FTP users "dropped" into such a folder, as well as the ability to prevent anonymous users from navigating up and out of the designated folder.

The most useful aspect of providing FTP access using the Mac OS's Users & Groups capabilities is the ability to set various degrees of access to a folder or subfolder. This is accomplished by expanding upon the Mac OS's limited File Sharing abilities, and applying that security to your FTP server.

For details on configuring user permissions using the File Sharing model of the MacOS, see the documentation that came with your Macintosh. A simple tutorial is also provided in this User's Guide, in the section "Adding Users Via File Sharing". You can also read more about how File Sharing security is applied in the "Security Options" section of this manual.

While the MacOS File Sharing model is very flexible, there are a few downsides to providing anonymous FTP access using Users & Groups. First File Sharing requires a substantial amount of your server's CPU, RAM, and other resources, and has a negative impact on performance. Also, standard File Sharing built into the MacOS is limited to 100 user accounts. Finally, because configuration is performed in several different places, setting up and maintaining user accounts can be cumbersome.

In many (if not most) cases, the security model built into Rumpus is easier to configure and maintain, and considerably faster.

Built-In Security provides...

1. substantial speed improvement over Users & Groups.

2. a single location to configure all users.

3. the ability to identify a specific drop folder for each user, including anonymous.

4. additional access privilege options.

5. the ability to limit hard drive space for selected users.

There are two drawbacks to using this type of anonymous access. First, if you need to provide AppleShare access in addition to FTP access, you'll need to administer two sets of users, one for Rumpus and one for Users & Groups. In addition, the built-in model does not provide a method of protecting individual folders. Access to individual folders by certain users can be achieved using Finder aliases, as described in the section "Using Aliases: A Complex Example". However, there are limitations to this approach.

Ease of configuration and additional privilege options are major benefits of this model, and the performance improvement can sometimes be very substantial, depending on your server and network. In fact, by allowing you to turn File Sharing off on your server, you will most likely notice an improvement not only in the speed of your FTP access, but other services running on the same computer as well.