1 mailto(rsync-bugs@samba.anu.edu.au)
2 manpage(rsyncd.conf)(5)(13 May 1998)()()
3 manpagename(rsyncd.conf)(configuration file for rsync server)
10 The rsyncd.conf file is the runtime configuration file for rsync when
11 run with the --daemon option. When run in this way rsync becomes a
12 rsync server listening on TCP port 873. Connections from rsync clients
13 are accepted for either anonymous or authenticated rsync sessions.
15 The rsyncd.conf file controls authentication, access, logging and
18 manpagesection(FILE FORMAT)
20 The file consists of modules and parameters. A module begins with the
21 name of the module in square brackets and continues until the next
22 module begins. Modules contain parameters of the form 'name = value'.
24 The file is line-based - that is, each newline-terminated line represents
25 either a comment, a module name or a parameter.
27 Only the first equals sign in a parameter is significant. Whitespace before
28 or after the first equals sign is discarded. Leading, trailing and internal
29 whitespace in module and parameter names is irrelevant. Leading and
30 trailing whitespace in a parameter value is discarded. Internal whitespace
31 within a parameter value is retained verbatim.
33 Any line beginning with a hash (#) is ignored, as are lines containing
36 Any line ending in a \ is "continued" on the next line in the
37 customary UNIX fashion.
39 The values following the equals sign in parameters are all either a string
40 (no quotes needed) or a boolean, which may be given as yes/no, 0/1 or
41 true/false. Case is not significant in boolean values, but is preserved
44 manpagesection(LAUNCHING THE RSYNC DAEMON)
46 The rsync daemon is launched by specifying the --daemon option to
47 rsync. The daemon must run with root privileges.
49 You can launch it either via inetd or as a standalone daemon. If run
50 as a daemon then just run the command "rsync --daemon" from a suitable
53 When run via inetd you should add a line like this to /etc/services:
57 and a single line something like this to /etc/inetd.conf:
59 quote(rsync stream tcp nowait root /usr/bin/rsync rsyncd --daemon)
61 You will then need to send inetd a HUP signal to tell it to reread its
64 Note that you should not send the rsync server a HUP signal to force
65 it to reread the tt(/etc/rsyncd.conf). The file is re-read on each client
68 manpagesection(GLOBAL OPTIONS)
70 The first parameters in the file (before a [module] header) are the
73 You may also include any module parameters in the global part of the
74 config file in which case the supplied value will override the
75 default for that parameter.
78 dit(bf(motd file)) The "motd file" option allows you to specify a
79 "message of the day" to display to clients on each connect. This
80 usually contains site information and any legal notices. The default
83 dit(bf(max connections)) The "max connections" option allows you to
84 specify the maximum number of simultaneous connections you will allow
85 to your rsync server. Any clients connecting when the maximum has
86 been reached will receive a message telling them to try later.
87 The default is 0 which means no limit.
89 dit(bf(lock file)) The "lock file" option specifies the file to use to
90 support the "max connections" option. The rsync server uses record
91 locking on this file to ensure that the max connections limit is not
92 exceeded. The default is tt(/var/run/rsyncd.lock).
94 dit(bf(log file)) The "log file" option tells the rsync daemon to log
95 messages to that file rather than using syslog. This is particularly
96 useful on systems (such as AIX) where syslog() doesn't work for
97 chrooted programs like rsync.
99 dit(bf(syslog facility)) The "syslog facility" option allows you to
100 specify the syslog facility name to use when logging messages from the
101 rsync server. You may use any standard syslog facility name which is
102 defined on your system. Common names are auth, authpriv, cron, daemon,
103 ftp, kern, lpr, mail, news, security, syslog, user, uucp, local0,
104 local1, local2, local3, local4, local5, local6 and local7. The default
107 dit(bf(socket options)) This option can provide endless fun for people
108 who like to tune their systems to the utmost degree. You can set all
109 sorts of socket options which may make transfers faster (or
110 slower!). Read the man page for the setsockopt() system call for
111 details on some of the options you may be able to set. By default no
112 special socket options are set.
117 manpagesection(MODULE OPTIONS)
119 After the global options you should define a number of modules, each
120 module exports a directory tree as a symbolic name. Modules are
121 exported by specifying a module name in square brackets [module]
122 followed by the options for that module.
126 dit(bf(comment)) The "comment" option specifies a description string
127 that is displayed next to the module name when clients obtain a list
128 of available modules. The default is no comment.
130 dit(bf(path)) The "path" option specifies the directory in the servers
131 filesystem to make available in this module. The rsync server will
132 chroot to this path before starting the file transfer with the
133 client. You must specify this option for each module in tt(/etc/rsyncd.conf).
135 dit(bf(read only)) The "read only" option determines whether clients
136 will be able to upload files or not. If "read only" is true then any
137 attempted uploads will fail. If "read only" is false then uploads will
138 be possible if file permissions on the server allow them. The default
139 is for all modules to be read only.
141 dit(bf(list)) The "list" option determines if this module should be
142 listed when the client asks for a listing of available modules. By
143 setting this to false you can create hidden modules. The default is
144 for modules to be listable.
146 dit(bf(uid)) The "uid" option specifies the user name or user id that
147 file transfers to and from that module should take place as. In
148 combination with the "gid" option this determines what file
149 permissions are available. The default is the user "nobody".
151 dit(bf(gid)) The "gid" option specifies the group name or group id that
152 file transfers to and from that module should take place as. This
153 complements the "uid" option. The default is the group "nobody".
155 dit(bf(exclude)) The "exclude" option allows you to specify a space
156 separated list of patterns to add to the exclude list. This is
157 equivalent to the client specifying these patterns with the --exclude
158 option. Note that this option is not designed with strong security in
159 mind, it is quite possible that a client may find a way to bypass this
160 exclude list. If you want to absolutely ensure that certain files
161 cannot be accessed then use the uid/gid options in combination with
164 dit(bf(exclude from)) The "exclude from" option specifies a filename
165 on the server that contains exclude patterns, one per line. This is
166 equivalent to the client specifying the --exclude-from option with a
167 equivalent file. See also the note about security for the exclude
170 dit(bf(auth users)) The "auth users" option specifies a comma
171 and space separated list of usernames that will be allowed to connect
172 to this module. The usernames do not need to exist on the local
173 system. If "auth users" is set then the client will be challenged to
174 supply a username and password to connect to the module. A challenge
175 response authentication protocol is used for this exchange. The plain
176 text usernames are passwords are stored in the file specified by the
177 "secrets file" option. The default is for all users to be able to
178 connect without a password (this is called "anonymous rsync").
180 dit(bf(secrets file)) The "secrets file" option specifies the name of
181 a file that contains the username:password pairs used for
182 authenticating this module. This file is only consulted if the "auth
183 users" option is specified. The file is line based and contains
184 username:password pairs separated by a single colon. Any line starting
185 with a hash (#) is considered a comment and is skipped. The passwords
186 can contain any characters but be warned that many operating systems
187 limit the length of passwords that can be typed at the client end, so
188 you may find that passwords longer than 8 characters don't work.
190 bf(You should make sure that the secrets file is not readable by anyone
191 other than the system administrator.) There is no default for the
192 "secrets file" option, you must choose a name (such as
193 tt(/etc/rsyncd.secrets)).
195 dit(bf(hosts allow)) The "hosts allow" option allows you to specify a
196 list of patterns that are matched against a connecting clients
197 hostname and IP address. If none of the patterns match then the
198 connection is rejected.
200 Each pattern can be in one of five forms:
203 it() a dotted decimal IP address. In this case the incoming machines
204 IP address must match exactly.
206 it() a address/mask in the form a.b.c.d/n were n is the number of
207 one bits in in the netmask. All IP addresses which match the masked
208 IP address will be allowed in.
210 it() a address/mask in the form a.b.c.d/e.f.g.h where e.f.g.h is a
211 netmask in dotted decimal notation. All IP addresses which match the masked
212 IP address will be allowed in.
214 it() a hostname. The hostname as determined by a reverse lookup will
215 be matched (case insensitive) against the pattern. Only an exact
218 it() a hostname pattern using wildcards. These are matched using the
219 same rules as normal unix filename matching. If the pattern matches
220 then the client is allowed in.
223 You can also combine "hosts allow" with a separate "hosts deny"
224 option. If both options are specified then the "hosts allow" option s
225 checked first and a match results in the client being able to
226 connect. The "hosts deny" option is then checked and a match means
227 that the host is rejected. If the host does not match either the
228 "hosts allow" or the "hosts deny" patterns then it is allowed to
231 The default is no "hosts allow" option, which means all hosts can connect.
233 dit(bf(hosts deny)) The "hosts deny" option allows you to specify a
234 list of patterns that are matched against a connecting clients
235 hostname and IP address. If the pattern matches then the connection is
236 rejected. See the "hosts allow" option for more information.
238 The default is no "hosts deny" option, which means all hosts can connect.
242 manpagesection(AUTHENTICATION STRENGTH)
244 The authentication protocol used in rsync is a 128 bit MD4 based
245 challenge response system. Although I believe that no one has ever
246 demonstrated a brute-force break of this sort of system you should
247 realise that this is not a "military strength" authentication system.
248 It should be good enough for most purposes but if you want really top
249 quality security then I recommend that you run rsync over ssh.
251 Also note that the rsync server protocol does not currently provide any
252 encryption of the data that is transferred over the link. Only
253 authentication is provided. Use ssh as the transport if you want
256 Future versions of rsync may support SSL for better authentication and
257 encryption, but that is still being investigated.
259 manpagesection(EXAMPLES)
261 A simple rsyncd.conf file that allow anonymous rsync to a ftp area at
262 tt(/home/ftp) would be:
267 comment = ftp export area
271 A more sophisticated example would be:
275 max connections = 4 nl()
276 syslog facility = local5 nl()
280 comment = whole ftp area (approx 6.1 GB)
283 path = /var/ftp/pub/samba
284 comment = Samba ftp area (approx 300 MB)
287 path = /var/ftp/pub/rsync
288 comment = rsync ftp area (approx 6 MB)
291 path = /public_html/samba
292 comment = Samba WWW pages (approx 240 MB)
296 comment = CVS repository (requires authentication)
297 auth users = tridge, susan
298 secrets file = /etc/rsyncd.secrets
301 The /etc/rsyncd.secrets file would look something like this:
318 The rsync server does not send all types of error messages to the
319 client. this means a client may be mystified as to why a transfer
320 failed. The error will have been logged by syslog on the server.
322 Please report bugs! The rsync bug tracking system is online at
323 url(http://samba.anu.edu.au/rsync/)(http://samba.anu.edu.au/rsync/)
325 manpagesection(VERSION)
326 This man page is current for version 2.0 of rsync
328 manpagesection(CREDITS)
330 rsync is distributed under the GNU public license. See the file
333 The primary ftp site for rsync is
334 url(ftp://samba.anu.edu.au/pub/rsync)(ftp://samba.anu.edu.au/pub/rsync).
336 A WEB site is available at
337 url(http://samba.anu.edu.au/rsync/)(http://samba.anu.edu.au/rsync/)
339 We would be delighted to hear from you if you like this program.
341 This program uses the zlib compression library written by Jean-loup
342 Gailly and Mark Adler.
344 manpagesection(THANKS)
346 Thanks to Warren Stanley for his original idea and patch for the rsync
347 server. Thanks to Karsten Thygesen for his many suggestions and
352 rsync was written by Andrew Tridgell and Paul Mackerras. They may be
353 contacted via email at tridge@samba.anu.edu.au and
354 Paul.Mackerras@cs.anu.edu.au