iOS FTP

[Richard Gaskin]

sims wrote:

> I found an example of using ftp on iOS and tested it but I keep getting an
> "invalid server" error as the result.
>
> In the simulator I am using the equivalent of the following
>
>          *put* "12345" into url ("ftp://administrator:password@
> ftp://xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx/aaazzz11.txt")
>
> Can I use ftp with the iOS simulator?

As you've found, it's possible.

But keep in mind that FTP sends your login and password credentials in 
plain text, so anyone intercepting your traffic can get full access to 
the files on your server.

A request for SFTP has been submitted to the RQCC many years ago, and 
back when we had voting it was the most popular item there:
<http://quality.runrev.com/show_bug.cgi?id=6405>

No modern tool that supports FTP does not also support SFTP - except 
LiveCode.

IMNSHO this represented a critical security exposure for LiveCode 
developers, since without SFTP some may be tempted to use FTP, which is 
conveniently supported but potentially very dangerous.

For anything requiring security I've had to use HTTPS as a workaround, 
putting a CGI on the server to accept POST data for file uploads, which 
has worked well for the relatively small files I transfer (extra bonus 
points that HTTP is generally faster than FTP).

Still, it would be wonderful if we could have SFTP supported in the 
engine/libURL, as RunRev has already done with HTTPS.

Without it, we flirt with danger.

File transfer may not be as sexy as optimized image tiles or graphic 
gradients, but it's no less valuable than anything added to the engine 
since the request for SFTP was submitted in 2008.

--
  Richard Gaskin
  Fourth World
  LiveCode training and consulting: http://www.fourthworld.com
  Webzine for LiveCode developers: http://www.LiveCodeJournal.com
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