ARCHIVED: Use an SFTP program to change file permissions on Webserve

Some SFTP programs with a graphical user interface allow you to change Unix file permissions. Below are instructions for how to do this with the SFTP programs in common use at Indiana University.

• Change file permissions with Cyberduck (for Mac)
• Change file permissions with WinSCP (for Windows)

Change file permissions with Cyberduck (for Mac)

1. Log into your web account using Cyberduck.
2. Once connected, move into the directory where your files reside. For example, if you want to change the file permissions of the index.html file in your www directory, click the triangle next to the www folder. This will open the www folder and display the files and subfolders within it.
   
3. Once you have found the file or folder whose permissions you wish to change, right-click (or, for one-button mouse users, hold down the Ctrl key and click) the file or folder name. This will launch a menu. Select Info.
   
4. If the Permissions section is not displayed, click the triangle next to "Permissions" to view the permission settings. To change the permissions, click the checkboxes. To make a page viewable on the web, make sure the boxes for Owner, Group, and Others all have Read and Execute selected. The Write checkbox should be checked only for the Owner, and not for Group or Others.
   
   Note:

   On Webserve, permissions for files with .php, .php4, .pl, and .cgi extensions should be set so that the checkboxes selected are Read, Write, and Execute only for Owner. Group and Others should have no checkboxes selected. These are special files that require different permissions than standard html/shtml web files.
5. Click Apply. Now check to see whether the page is viewable on the web; you may need to refresh your browser.

Change file permissions with WinSCP (for Windows)

1. Log into your web account using WinSCP.
2. Move into the directory where your files reside by double-clicking the folder in the right pane. For example, if you want to change the file permissions of a file in your www directory, double-click the www folder to open it.
3. To change the permissions, right-click the file name (for example, index.html) or folder whose permissions you wish to set. A pop-up menu window will open. Select Properties.
   
4. The "Properties" window for the selected file will open. To change the permissions, you can either select the "Permissions:" checkboxes or edit the "Octal:" text field. Both the checkboxes and "Octal:" text field are synchronized, and a change in one area will be reflected in the other.
   

   To make the file viewable on the web, in the "Permissions" section of the "Properties" window, for Owner check R (for read), W (for write), and X (for execute). For Group and Others, check R and X. Alternatively, you could type 0755 in the "Octal:" text field.

   Note:

   On Webserve, permissions for files with .php, .php4, .pl, .cgi extensions should be set so that the only checkboxes selected are R, W, X for Owner (Octal = 0700). These are special files that require different permissions than standard html/shtml web files.
5. Click OK. Now check to see whether the page is viewable on the web; you may need to refresh your browser.