SOCKS FTP Support

This section explains the SOCKS FTP features available for the Batch Adapter.

SOCKS

SOCKS is an Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) -approved standard (RFC 1928) generic, proxy protocol for TCP/IP-based network applications. This simple protocol supports a flexible framework for developing secure communications. SOCKS accomplish this by easily integrating other security technologies.

The adapter only supports SOCKS protocols that conform to this IETF standard.

There are two versions of the SOCKS protocol.

• SOCKSv4 (version 4), that provides the following functions:

  • requests connections

  • Setup proxy clients

  • transmits application data

• SOCKSv5 (version 5) that includes all the functionality of version 4 and also provides authentication

Both the SOCKSv4 and SOCKSv5 protocols are supported by the Batch Adapter. To enable support, the following properties must be specified in the Batch Adapter Properties Sheet:

• SOCKS server name

• SOCKS server port number

• User name

• Encrypted password

Details of these configuration parameters are provided under SOCKS Configuration Properties.

In the Collaboration Rules, make sure you set the SOCKS version number to 4, 5, or- 1 (unknown). Do not set this value to any other number.

SOCKS: Overview

SOCKS embodies two components, the SOCKS Server (implemented at the application layer), and the SOCKS Client (implemented between the application and transport layers).

In essence, the purpose of the SOCKS protocol is to allow a host on one side of a SOCKS Server to interact with a host on the other side of the Server, subject to authentication, without passing IP packets directly between the two.

SOCKS Proxy Server

The SOCKS proxy server connects to the application server on behalf of the application client and relays data between the client and an application server. From the application server’s perspective, the SOCKS proxy is the client.

SOCKS and the Batch Adapter

Negotiation Methods

The BatchFTP Adapter supports the following methods used to define the negotiation phase of authentication between the Socks Client and Server:

• No-authentication (no authentication required)

• User/password (user name and password)

SOCKS Configuration Properties

The Batch Adapter contains a number of properties used to configure SOCKS with the BatchFTP Adapter. These properties are configured using the BatchFTP Properties Sheet accessed from the Connectivity Map and the Environment Explorer.

• Socks Enabled: Specifies whether the FTP command connection goes through a SOCKS server. A value of No indicates that the adapter is not connecting to a SOCKS server. In this case, all other parameters under the SOCKS section are ignored.

• Socks Host Name: Specifies the SOCKS host name. When you are communicating with a SOCKS server, enter the SOCKS server name in this parameter.

• Socks Server Port: Specifies the port number of the SOCKS server.

• Socks Version: Specifies the SOCKS server version. A value of 4 or 5 for SOCKSv4 or SOCKSv5 provides the best performance, but the default value Unknown can if the version is in question.

• Socks User Name: Specifies the user name that matches the associated password used for authentication with a SOCKS5 server. This parameter is applied when user/password negotiation method is used.

• Socks Password: Specifies the password to use along with the user name for authentication with a SOCKS5 server. This parameter is applied when user/password negotiation method is used.

For information on the BatchFTP configuration properties, see BatchFTP Adapter Connectivity Map Properties, and BatchFTP Adapter Environment Properties.