Error 3 permission denied mobaxterm

Права доступа, WinSCP

В общем проблема началась с того что я методом тыка установил phpmyadmin на linux. После этого я открыл его через браузер и попробовал зайти с чистым логином/паролем(root/») и мне сразу же выдало ошибку.

Я почитал и нашел что нужно указать юзера/пароль для него в конфиг файле config.inc.php. Я задал и решил загрузить файл обратно на сервер с помощью WinSCP и получил ошибку:

Затем я зашел в настройки подключения — sftp и выбрал вариант «sudo su -c /bin/sftp-server» для доступа к правам root(верно же?). И это не дало никакого результата. Что еще нужно что бы пользоваться FTP менеджерами для полного доступа к файлам?

П.С. через консоль все работает, но не закачивать/редактировать же файлы через нее.

Ответы (2 шт):

В FAQ WinSCP есть заметка по этой теме: How do I change user after login (e.g. su root)? Обратите внимание на следующее:

Нужно убедиться, что путь к sftp-server верный (например, на моей машине он выглядит так: /usr/lib/openssh/sftp-server )

Поскольку через WinSCP вы не можете передать пароль команде su , то нужно обеспечить выполнение команды без ввода пароля. Для этого в файл /etc/sudoers добавить строку:

yourusername ALL=NOPASSWD: ALL

либо с ограничением только для SFTP сессий:

yourusername ALL=NOPASSWD: /bin/sftp-server (путь такой же как и в п.1)

Авторы так же предупреждают, что это несет определенные риски, затрагивающие безопасность сервера.

в настройках подключение WinSCP нажимаем на кнопку «Еще» далее SCP/оболочка в «Командная оболочка»: выбираем sudo su-

Источник

Troubleshooting SFTP permission denied

Although SFTP is an easy-to-use and secure file transfer protocol, many people frequently face one of the most infamous SFTP errors, the “SFTP permission denied.”

As the error output reads, this issue is due to the lack of permissions to access a file or directory. Generally, you would still have access to the SFTP server via SSH, but you won’t be able to change a specific file or directory. Another similar error message is the “SFTP permission denied (public key),” where you won’t even be able to access the server via SFTP or SSH.

In this post, we’ll go through the two cases. First, we’ll learn to check and update the user/group file/folder permissions, and second, we’ll figure out why we are getting authentication/access permission denied due to the public key.

To illustrate a clearer picture of the “sftp permission denied” error scenario, we’ll use an AWS EC2, Ubuntu (Focal-20.04-amd64-server). We will use the default user “ubuntu” and add a new sftp01 user. By default, AWS doesn’t grant “root” SSH access to the EC2 instances due to security’s best practices.

1. The “SFTP permission denied” error

Regardless of which SFTP client you use, when you SFTP into a server and try to replace, edit, delete, or overwrite a file or directory, you get “an SFTP permission denied” error message.

Cannot create remote file ‘ver’.

Permission denied.

Error code: 3

Error message from server: Permission denied

In Windows, while using an SFTP client, like WinSCP or FileZilla, the message looks like this:

Generally, you are successfully connecting via SFTP or SSH with the same user, but you can’t modify, change, or overwrite the file via SFTP. But if you cannot even connect via SFTP or SSH, you might be getting a similar error message that reads “SFTP permission denied (public key)”.

The reason for these error messages is generally due to incorrect or lack of permissions. For example, you might have read, write, execute permissions on your local file (or folder), but the remote folder (or file) might not be accepting your actions (read, write, or execute).

File permissions 101

Since this error is most likely related to incorrect permissions, you’ll have to figure out why you don’t have the authorization to edit, change, or upload a file or directory.

• Log in to the SFTP server using SSH and use the command “$ whoami” to see your username.
• Suppose the user logged in to the SFTP server does not have the necessary permissions (such as read command, “ls”) to a specific directory or file. In that case, you’ll get a message like: “ls: cannot open directory ‘/root’: Permission denied”.

For security reasons, some cloud providers like AWS separate root access from other users. In this case, my “ubuntu” user does not have access to the root user’s folder. This is simply because both users belong to different groups with different permissions.

• Use “$ls -l” to get a long detailed list of files, directories, and permissions. This command will help you see whether your user (within a group) has the correct permissions to a file. The below screenshot shows the output of this command.

• The relevant output columns:
  • (1)-Permission level The first character, (l or d), represents a symbolic link or directory, while (-) represents a regular file. The next set of three characters (rwx, where: r=read, w=write, x=execute, and – = no permission) represent user permissions, the next three represent group permissions, and the last three characters are “others” permissions.
  • (2, 3)-User and group The next column (2 and 3) represents the file or directory owner and the group.
  • (4) – Name of the file, directory, or symbolic link.

So, what we can get from the output is that the file (-) “test.txt” belongs to the user/group (ubuntu/ubuntu). As for the permission level, “-rw-rw-r—” the “user” and “group” can both read and write, while all others can only read.

• To troubleshoot the SFTP permission denied, you’ll need to determine if your “other” user belongs to the group with read and write (rw) permissions (for instance, “ubuntu” in this case).
• Use the “$ groups” command to see the group your current user is associated with. So, in this example, the user “ubuntu” does not belong to the “root” group, so it does not have access to /root folder, as initially stated. The “sudo” group is the one granting elevated privileges.

Solutions: How to fix the SFTP permission denied?

So now that we know how to check users, groups, and their file/folder permissions, let’s solve the “SFTP permission denied” error. Bear in mind that the majority of commands here require higher privilege to execute.

The command (ls -l) is handy to let you see the permissions of the target directory or file. If the file or directory belongs to another user, group or it does not allow either writing (for instance, drwxr-xr-x) for the group and other users, you’ll need to grant the right set of permissions.

Solution 1. Assign the user without permission to a group with permissions to the file or directory

Use the (ls- l) command to see the owner and group a file belongs to. If it belongs to a different group your user does not belong to, you’ll need to assign your user to this group.

Use the following command to assign your user to the group permission instead of reading and writing (rw). After doing this, try SFTP again.

• $ sudo usermod -a -G [target group] $USER

Solution 2. Use the (chown) command to change ownership of the single file or directory

Rather than assign a new group to your user, you can change the ownership of a file or directory. For example, let’s say the “sftp01” user gets an SFTP permission denied every time it wants to edit or overwrite the “test01.txt” file. To see who owns this specific file, go to the folder where you are getting the sftp permission denied and do a (ls -l), then use (chown) to change the ownership.

NOTE: If you are working under an admin or root role, be careful not to change the entire ownership of a directory and subdirectory with -R recursive ownership, as this can affect access and authentication to the SFTP server (we’ll get to this later).

Solution 3. Grant the appropriate permission

Use the “chmod” command to change the file or directory permissions. The suggested permission levels when using the chmod are 755 for file and 644 for directory permission.

• chmod 755: Read and execute access for everyone. Read, write, and execute access for the owner of the file. For example, when you do a “$chmod 755 examplefile”, you allow everyone to read and perform the file, while only the owner is entitled to read, write, and execute the file.
• chmod 777: Use the chmod 777 (-rwxrwxrwx) if you want to allow everyone, including the owner, group, and others, to read, write, and execute. Granting this level of “openness” is not a good security practice, but you can use it for testing purposes.
• chmod 644: The user (or owner) can read, write but can’t execute. The group and others can read but can’t write and execute. This command is suggested for directories.

The “$sudo chmod 775 [filename]” command will change the permission structure of the file. As mentioned above, with (-rwxrwxr-x) (775), the file will be readable and executable by everyone (r-x) “others”.

Use Recursive to add permission subdirectories as well

You can use the “sudo chmod -R [mode] [file or directory]”. The [-R] changes files and directories recursively, so use this with care. It allowss the user to read, write, or execute to all sub-directories and files.

Solution 4. Permission denied due to failed authentication

Another variation for the SFTP permission denied is due to authentication. You can’t even access your SFTP server from the SFTP client. If you get the “Permission denied (public key),” you won’t be able to access and authenticate to the server via SSH.

To solve this issue, try the following:

• Check your username You might be using the incorrect username, but correct public key and thus get the permission denied error. Check whether you are using the correct username in your SFTP client. But still, if the username is correct but is not authorized to use the key, you’ll also get permission denied (public key).
• Permissions at the server are incorrect This is because the permission to the files under the home directory changed. Users might be locked out if the “authorized_keys” (under /.ssh/authorized_keys, for Linux Ubuntu) file permission or ownership changed. An admin has to log in with root access or connect via the serial console to adjust the home directory file permissions. As mentioned earlier, applying “chmod -R” incorrectly can affect all home directory subdirectories, including .ssh and authorized_keys files.
• Check the SSH public key (.pub) on the local computer Make sure you are using the correct public key in the authorized_keys file. To add a new public key to an SFTP client with FileZilla. Go to Settings > Connection > SFTP > click on “Add key file…” Browse through your local files and import the right key.

Configuring permissions with alternative SFTP server tools

1. SolarWinds SFTP/SCP Server – FREE TOOL

The Solarwinds SFTP/SCP server is a free tool for reliable and secure file transfers. It is easy to use, light and runs as a Windows service. In addition, SFTP provides advanced SFTP features such as concurrent transfers from multiple devices or limits access by authorizing a specific or range of IPs.

Key Features:

• Offers SFTP, FTP, and TFTP
• Transfer files up to 4 GB in size
• Good for distributing device configurations
• Can be automated
• Receives multiple files simultaneously

This tool pushes OS images, configuration files, updates, backup files, or transfer files up to 4GB. In addition, this SFTP server provides primary authentication access to the server and only allows one folder for all users.

• Completely free SFTP server
• In-depth user authentication options
• Can set limits based on events such as deleting, uploading, and downloading – great for larger teams

• Is designed more for a technical audience, with an abundance of features and customization options

2. SolarWinds Serv-U FTP/MFT Server – FREE TRIAL

The SolarWinds Serv-U FTP/MFT Server is a more advanced SFTP server that lets you handle large and multiple file transfers. It supports up to 250 users, 100 concurrent sessions, up to 3 domains and allows a fine-grained access control over those resources.

Key Features:

• Paid tool for Windows Server
• FTPS, SFTP, and HTTPS
• PCI DSS, HIPAA, FISMA, SOX compliance
• P2P file sharing possible

With Serv-U, you can easily change and update user and folder access and permissions. In addition, it provides a directory access rule-based control that allows you to change permissions on files and directories.

• Supports FTP, FTPS, and SFTP file transfers, making it a more flexible option than some of its competitors
• Robust search features are ideal for large file transfers over long periods of time
• Built with the enterprise in mind
• Supports drag and drop transfers, making it an easy option for end-users
• Built-in schedule works well for EDI and other regular transfers

• Would like to see a longer trial period for testing

Final Words

The “SFTP permission denied” error message occurs when your SFTP server doesn’t allow your user (within a group) to modify or overwrite a file or directory. To solve this, you’ll have to SSH into the SFTP server, find the file/directory and identify its current permission mode and ownership. Then, you’ll have to change the permissions as specified in this post. The second SFTP permission denied (public key) message occurs when you are logging with an incorrect user, public key, or the user doesn’t have the necessary permission to access the key file in the server.

Alternatively, you can use an SFTP server such as SolarWinds Serv-U FTP/MFT Server, which gives you more flexibility when configuring permissions. This tool will help you avoid the “SFTP permission denied” and fix it for all the SFTP users.

SFTP permission denied FAQs

How do I fix SFTP error?

SFTP errors can be caused by a number of different problems. However, the most frequently encountered errors revolve around a failure to connect to the remote device. This failure can be due to four reasons and these need to be checked:

1. Check the destination address has been entered correctly.
2. Check that the correct port is being used.
3. Check that you have an active access account on the remote device.
4. Check that you typed in your credentials correctly.

What is chmod command in SFTP?

In Unix and Unix-like operating systems, including Linux and macOS, chmod changes file permissions. Access permissions to files are levied in three groups – the user, the user’s group, and everyone else. There are three possible access levels for each category of accessor: read, write, and execute. Each position in the chmod command can have one, two, or all three of these rights. Chmod can be expressed by letters or numbers. The letters that the system uses are r (read), w (write), and x (execute). The number-based system is a little more complicated. Each position is represented by a number that is the sum of all permissions for that accessor type. In this scheme 1 = execute, 2 = write, and 4 = read. So, 7 represents read, write, and execute and 5 would signify read and execute.

What port is SFTP?

SFTP uses the security system of SSH for protection. It is an FTP session that runs inside an SSH session. Thus, SFTP uses the same port that is assigned to Secure Shell (SSH), which is TCP port 22.

Источник

Permission denied — Error code 3

Permission denied — Error code 3

Can anyone point me in the right direction to solve my problem?

When I try to transfer a file I get the following error:

Permission denied Request code

I have the same problem as what you are facing and i don’t know what to do.

I found the post below and it seemed to have worked for the guy asking the question, it may work for you? I’ve not had any luck with it, please let me know if you crack it.

gate4Win Joined: 2007-09-28 Posts: 2 Location: Gate — Riviere-du-Loup, Quebec (Canada)

Permission denied — Error code 3

Just follow the each step and you will get it fixed:

1) Open WinSCP
2) Bottom-left —> put a check on Advanced options
3) Bottom of white window (Just above Advanced options) —> Left click on Preferences
4) Now move to your right in line 2/3 of the way —> Left click on the Preferences «Radio-type» Button
5) Now in the «Confirmations» box, 4th item from the top, Transfer resuming remove the ‘check-mark’
6) Left-click on the OK Button ——> You’re done ! Enjoy it

gate4Win Joined: 2007-09-28 Posts: 2 Location: Gate — Riviere-du-Loup, Quebec (Canada)

Permission denied — Error code 3

DLAWS: Please forget about the previous reply (Posted: 28 Sep 2007 05:46).

The problem is with permission security of your server. (My server —> FreeBSD 6.2)

The only way I could sign-in and transfer/delete/etc.. files from/to my PC was to give «root» permission to login through SSH login. (Have to set PermitRootLogin yes ) in sshd_config file.

No more «Permission denied — error code 3» .

martin◆
Site Admin Joined: 2002-12-10 Posts: 38,333 Location: Prague, Czechia

Re: Permission denied — Error code 3

Can anyone point me in the right direction to solve my problem?

When I try to transfer a file I get the following error:
.

Error code: 3 -while editing directories in aws

martin◆
Site Admin Joined: 2002-12-10 Posts: 38,333 Location: Prague, Czechia

Re: Error code: 3 -while editing directories in aws

dceddy Joined: 2014-08-29 Posts: 1

Re: Permission denied — Error code 3

I’m having a similar problem to the prior report as shown on this attachment with no Request Code shown on the error message. I try to upload one file with no problem, but have this problem only on a new file as shown. both of these files are the same for permissions settings. I tried several times in case of any file corruption, but had the same issue every time.

Does anybody have any suggestions that we should try when this problem occurs?

martin◆
Site Admin Joined: 2002-12-10 Posts: 38,333 Location: Prague, Czechia

Re: Permission denied — Error code 3

We’re having a similar problem. We can rename, delete and create. But when we overwrite, it seems to upload OK but we get error 3 saying upload «was successful, but error occurred while setting the permissions and/or timestamp»

The suggestion is to «turn off setting permissions or preserving timestamp» or we can «ignore permission errors»

Not sure what the best option is and the impact of each.

Permissions are fine, and the problem still occurs if we CHMOD 777. We can overwrite file just fine using the same user in FlashFXP.

audit.log and secure log are all green, no problems.

Running WinSCP Version 5.5.4. (Build 4433)
Server : Centos release 6.5 (Final)

martin◆
Site Admin Joined: 2002-12-10 Posts: 38,333 Location: Prague, Czechia

We’re having a similar problem. We can rename, delete and create. But when we overwrite, it seems to upload OK but we get error 3 saying upload «was successful, but error occurred while setting the permissions and/or timestamp»

The suggestion is to «turn off setting permissions or preserving timestamp» or we can «ignore permission errors»

Not sure what the best option is and the impact of each.

Permissions are fine, and the problem still occurs if we CHMOD 777. We can overwrite file just fine using the same user in FlashFXP.

Please attach a full log file showing the problem (using the latest version of WinSCP).

Error code 3

I could successfully transfer to HTML Document Root (/var/www/html owned by www-data) but
not to /usr/local/bin owned by root. Error code 3.

I was in www-data’s group, but not in root. Added myself to root’s group with 775 permission.

(DUH. What took me so long? Maybe we’re ALL too busy lol.)

use chmod

Right

Re: Error code: 3 -while editing directories in aws

Hey Can someone help US PLEASE IN NEED BAD

Same issue

Re: Same issue

Re: use chmod

The following worked for me

How the error occurred in my case was during a file transfer. I was wondering if I could transfer a file between two separate ftp sessions inside WinSCP.

How I resolved the file permission Error:

1- I renewed the session, where I got the permission Error, by pressing the button with the two opposing green arrows inside a folder icon (Refresh, Ctrl+R).
(Not sure if it made any difference but that is what I did).

2- Then I clicked on the folder icon where a downward green arrow is (Open directory/bookmark, Ctrl+O), which brought up the file path.

3- I selected the file path where I have my domains.

Suddenly it worked again.

Permission Denied

Please make sure that the folder in AWS Instance has required permissions.

That can be done by following command:
chmod 777 folder_name

Hope this helps.

Previous «get» was removing file

WinSCP Permission Denied

BrentBR Joined: 2018-07-15 Posts: 3 Location: London, Canada

INTERMITTENT file copy failure (error code 3)

My symptom is *intermittent*. I’m working with my isp but no resolution yet.
*SOMETIMES* WinSCP fails to copy a changed file to the server.
«Synchronize» recognizes the change. Manual file copy also fails. Diagnostic is:
Permission denied; Error code: 3; Error message from server (en-US): Permission denied
However, when a copy fails, I can still delete the file on the server and replace it!

This seems bizarre to me. How is it that with WinSCP if I cannot copy/replace a file, I can still delete/replace it? That is my puzzle. But the problem is intermittent.

My skill set is «kick it and see if it twitches». 🙂 I’ve boiled the issue down to this.
If you wizards can provide any insight I would really appreciate it.

Re: INTERMITTENT file copy failure (error code 3)

BrentBR Joined: 2018-07-15 Posts: 3 Location: London, Canada

Re: INTERMITTENT file copy failure (error code 3)

Martin, thank you.

All files are rw-r—r—. Directory is rwxr-xr—
Directory owner shows 36466 (whatever that means). File ownership shows 14 (also . ).

SOMETIMES file copy/replace works. Sometimes it fails. If it fails and I retry (restart WinSCP) it works often (often enough that I can live with it). But obviously I’d rather figure this out!

My isp wants me to switch over to «SSH» (whatever that is) using port 22. Currently I use port 21. But I’m not convinced that will fix anything, especially if the problem is intermittent and apparently related to permissions.

Any further ideas? Is there anything I can do that might figure out why this happens, but only sometimes? Thank you again.

Re: INTERMITTENT file copy failure (error code 3)

Whatever the problem is, it’s unlike that it’s client-side problem.

Switching to SSH (actually to SFTP) is good idea in any case. So if your ISP suggests that, try it.

BrentBR Joined: 2018-07-15 Posts: 3 Location: London, Canada

Re: INTERMITTENT file copy failure (error code 3)

I still have no resolution. However I’ve observed the following that seems to be consistent.
When I login to the server with WinSCP the login sometimes is very *fast* (almost instantaneous). Other times the login is fairly *slow*. Almost sluggish. «Slow» is often accompanied with initial connection failure, timeout, then connection success.

When login is fast/instant file copying fails! If the login is sluggish, it almost always works! This seems really bizarre to me but it is very consistent!

Something else has occurred to me (though this my be a red herring). Things worked fine on my old laptop but started failing with my new laptop which my son set up with an SSD. I can’t see how this could possibly cause a problem, but might «instant» logins be associated with my SSD somehow? Like some sort of caching happening? (I don’t believe in this association but I throw it out for you to trample.)

I’m still getting by, but occasionally get the urge to beat this dead horse some more. Thank you for putting up with this intermittent and apparently bizarre problem.

Best way is to get your folder copied from local machine to route

Re: Permission denied — Error code 3

Can anyone point me in the right direction to solve my problem?

When I try to transfer a file I get the following error:

Источник

SFTP error #3 permission denied- Quick Resolution!!

Are you stuck with the error ‘SFTP error #3 permission denied’? We can help you in fixing it.

Usually, this error occurs mainly due to permission errors.

At Bobcares, we often receive requests to solve SFTP errors as part of our Server Management Services.

Today, let’s discuss this error in detail and see how our Support Engineers fix it easily.

Why SFTP error #3 permission denied?

We always suggest our customers to transfer files via SFTP due to its security features.

However, we have come across many errors related to SFTP. One among them one is SFTP error #3 permission denied.

We’ve seen this error occurring due to problem with the permissions or due to file transfer resume option.

Among these both, the most common cause is permission error.

How we fix this permission denied error?

Recently, one of our customers approached us with a permission denied error. He was using WinSCP and whenever he tries to replace/overwrite a file, he was getting the following error.

WinSCP or Windows Secure Copy is a free and open-source SFTP or SCP client for Microsoft Windows.

Our Support Engineers checked and found out permission errors. This occurs mainly when the user does not have the create permissions to the folder.

So, WinSCP fails to create a temporary file for the transfer. Let’s check the major two ways we follow to resolve this error.

1. Write permissions

As we have already said, these errors occur mainly due to some permission errors. So, we grant the user or group with write permissions to the folder.

For instance, if Ubuntu is the user, then we need to execute the below command in the folder on the Ubuntu server.

2. Disable transfer to temporary files

WinSCP supports resuming file transfers with SFTP and FTP. It will store the file being transferred to a temporary filename first.

And, renaming it to the target name occurs only once the transfer successfully finishes.

But, disabling this transfer to a temporary file will resolve the permission denied error.

For that, we follow the below steps:

1. Firstly, select Preferences.
2. Then, navigate to Transfer > Endurance page.
3. After that, under the “Enable transfer resume/transfer to a temporary file name for” section, we choose theDisableoption.

[Still confused with this error?- We’ll help you.]

Conclusion

In short, the SFTP error #3 permission denied occurs due to incorrect permissions of files/folders. Today, we have discussed this error in detail and saw how our Support Engineers easily fix it.

PREVENT YOUR SERVER FROM CRASHING!

Never again lose customers to poor server speed! Let us help you.

Our server experts will monitor & maintain your server 24/7 so that it remains lightning fast and secure.

Thank you very much. I don’t know much about linux commands, this post was very usefull to me. I could not download some files from a Ubuntu server at AWS.

Hello Elidio,
Can you please verify if there are any restrictions at AWS? If you still have errors and need help, we’ll be happy to talk to you on chat (click on the icon at right-bottom).

Источник

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Источник

Are you stuck with the error ‘SFTP error #3 permission denied’? We can help you in fixing it.

Usually, this error occurs mainly due to permission errors.

At Bobcares, we often receive requests to solve SFTP errors as part of our Server Management Services.

Today, let’s discuss this error in detail and see how our Support Engineers fix it easily.

Why SFTP error #3 permission denied?

We always suggest our customers to transfer files via SFTP due to its security features.

However, we have come across many errors related to SFTP. One among them one is SFTP error #3 permission denied.

We’ve seen this error occurring due to problem with the permissions or due to file transfer resume option.

Among these both, the most common cause is permission error.

How we fix this permission denied error?

Recently, one of our customers approached us with a permission denied error. He was using WinSCP and whenever he tries to replace/overwrite a file, he was getting the following error.

Cannot create remote file 'filename'.
Permission denied.
Error code: 3
Error message from server: Permission denied

WinSCP or Windows Secure Copy is a free and open-source SFTP or SCP client for Microsoft Windows.

Our Support Engineers checked and found out permission errors. This occurs mainly when the user does not have the create permissions to the folder.

So, WinSCP fails to create a temporary file for the transfer. Let’s check the major two ways we follow to resolve this error.

1. Write permissions

As we have already said, these errors occur mainly due to some permission errors. So, we grant the user or group with write permissions to the folder.

For instance, if Ubuntu is the user, then we need to execute the below command in the folder on the Ubuntu server.

sudo chown -R ubuntu:ubuntu .

2. Disable transfer to temporary files

WinSCP supports resuming file transfers with SFTP and FTP. It will store the file being transferred to a temporary filename first.

And, renaming it to the target name occurs only once the transfer successfully finishes.

But, disabling this transfer to a temporary file will resolve the permission denied error.

For that, we follow the below steps:

1. Firstly, select Preferences.
2. Then, navigate to Transfer > Endurance page.
3. After that, under the “Enable transfer resume/transfer to a temporary file name for” section, we choose the Disable option.

[Still confused with this error?- We’ll help you.]

Conclusion

In short, the SFTP error #3 permission denied occurs due to incorrect permissions of files/folders. Today, we have discussed this error in detail and saw how our Support Engineers easily fix it.

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Although SFTP is an easy-to-use and secure file transfer protocol, many people frequently face one of the most infamous SFTP errors, the “SFTP permission denied.”

As the error output reads, this issue is due to the lack of permissions to access a file or directory. Generally, you would still have access to the SFTP server via SSH, but you won’t be able to change a specific file or directory. Another similar error message is the “SFTP permission denied (public key),” where you won’t even be able to access the server via SFTP or SSH.

In this post, we’ll go through the two cases. First, we’ll learn to check and update the user/group file/folder permissions, and second, we’ll figure out why we are getting authentication/access permission denied due to the public key.

To illustrate a clearer picture of the “sftp permission denied” error scenario, we’ll use an AWS EC2, Ubuntu (Focal-20.04-amd64-server). We will use the default user “ubuntu” and add a new sftp01 user. By default, AWS doesn’t grant “root” SSH access to the EC2 instances due to security’s best practices.

1. The “SFTP permission denied” error

Regardless of which SFTP client you use, when you SFTP into a server and try to replace, edit, delete, or overwrite a file or directory, you get “an SFTP permission denied” error message.

An example:

Cannot create remote file ‘ver’.

Permission denied.

Error code: 3

Error message from server: Permission denied

In Windows, while using an SFTP client, like WinSCP or FileZilla, the message looks like this:

Generally, you are successfully connecting via SFTP or SSH with the same user, but you can’t modify, change, or overwrite the file via SFTP. But if you cannot even connect via SFTP or SSH, you might be getting a similar error message that reads “SFTP permission denied (public key)”.

The reason for these error messages is generally due to incorrect or lack of permissions. For example, you might have read, write, execute permissions on your local file (or folder), but the remote folder (or file) might not be accepting your actions (read, write, or execute). 

File permissions 101

Since this error is most likely related to incorrect permissions, you’ll have to figure out why you don’t have the authorization to edit, change, or upload a file or directory.

• Log in to the SFTP server using SSH and use the command “$ whoami” to see your username.
• Suppose the user logged in to the SFTP server does not have the necessary permissions (such as read command, “ls”) to a specific directory or file. In that case, you’ll get a message like: “ls: cannot open directory ‘/root’: Permission denied”.

For security reasons, some cloud providers like AWS separate root access from other users. In this case, my “ubuntu” user does not have access to the root user’s folder. This is simply because both users belong to different groups with different permissions. 

• Use “$ls -l” to get a long detailed list of files, directories, and permissions. This command will help you see whether your user (within a group) has the correct permissions to a file. The below screenshot shows the output of this command.

• The relevant output columns:
  • (1)-Permission level The first character, (l or d), represents a symbolic link or directory, while (-) represents a regular file. The next set of three characters (rwx, where: r=read, w=write, x=execute, and – = no permission) represent user permissions, the next three represent group permissions, and the last three characters are “others” permissions.
  • (2, 3)-User and group The next column (2 and 3) represents the file or directory owner and the group.
  • (4) – Name of the file, directory, or symbolic link.

So, what we can get from the output is that the file (-) “test.txt” belongs to the user/group (ubuntu/ubuntu). As for the permission level, “-rw-rw-r—” the “user” and “group” can both read and write, while all others can only read.

• To troubleshoot the SFTP permission denied, you’ll need to determine if your “other” user belongs to the group with read and write (rw) permissions (for instance, “ubuntu” in this case).
• Use the “$ groups” command to see the group your current user is associated with. So, in this example, the user “ubuntu” does not belong to the “root” group, so it does not have access to /root folder, as initially stated. The “sudo” group is the one granting elevated privileges.

Solutions: How to fix the SFTP permission denied?

So now that we know how to check users, groups, and their file/folder permissions, let’s solve the “SFTP permission denied” error. Bear in mind that the majority of commands here require higher privilege to execute.

The command (ls -l) is handy to let you see the permissions of the target directory or file. If the file or directory belongs to another user, group or it does not allow either writing (for instance, drwxr-xr-x) for the group and other users, you’ll need to grant the right set of permissions.

Solution 1. Assign the user without permission to a group with permissions to the file or directory

Use the (ls- l) command to see the owner and group a file belongs to. If it belongs to a different group your user does not belong to, you’ll need to assign your user to this group.

Use the following command to assign your user to the group permission instead of reading and writing (rw). After doing this, try SFTP again.

• $ sudo usermod -a -G [target group] $USER

Solution 2. Use the (chown) command to change ownership of the single file or directory

Rather than assign a new group to your user, you can change the ownership of a file or directory. For example, let’s say the “sftp01” user gets an SFTP permission denied every time it wants to edit or overwrite the “test01.txt” file. To see who owns this specific file, go to the folder where you are getting the sftp permission denied and do a (ls -l), then use (chown) to change the ownership.

• $ sudo chown [user] [file]

NOTE: If you are working under an admin or root role, be careful not to change the entire ownership of a directory and subdirectory with -R recursive ownership, as this can affect access and authentication to the SFTP server (we’ll get to this later). 

Solution 3. Grant the appropriate permission

Use the “chmod” command to change the file or directory permissions. The suggested permission levels when using the chmod are 755 for file and 644 for directory permission. 

• chmod 755: Read and execute access for everyone. Read, write, and execute access for the owner of the file. For example, when you do a “$chmod 755 examplefile”, you allow everyone to read and perform the file, while only the owner is entitled to read, write, and execute the file.
• chmod 777: Use the chmod 777 (-rwxrwxrwx) if you want to allow everyone, including the owner, group, and others, to read, write, and execute. Granting this level of “openness” is not a good security practice, but you can use it for testing purposes.
• chmod 644: The user (or owner) can read, write but can’t execute. The group and others can read but can’t write and execute. This command is suggested for directories.

The “$sudo chmod 775 [filename]” command will change the permission structure of the file. As mentioned above, with (-rwxrwxr-x) (775), the file will be readable and executable by everyone (r-x) “others”.

Use Recursive to add permission subdirectories as well

You can use the “sudo chmod -R [mode] [file or directory]”. The [-R] changes files and directories recursively, so use this with care.  It allowss the user to read, write, or execute to all sub-directories and files.

Solution 4. Permission denied due to failed authentication

Another variation for the SFTP permission denied is due to authentication. You can’t even access your SFTP server from the SFTP client. If you get the “Permission denied (public key),” you won’t be able to access and authenticate to the server via SSH.

To solve this issue, try the following:

• Check your username You might be using the incorrect username, but correct public key and thus get the permission denied error. Check whether you are using the correct username in your SFTP client. But still, if the username is correct but is not authorized to use the key, you’ll also get permission denied (public key).
• Permissions at the server are incorrect This is because the permission to the files under the home directory changed. Users might be locked out if the “authorized_keys” (under /.ssh/authorized_keys, for Linux Ubuntu) file permission or ownership changed. An admin has to log in with root access or connect via the serial console to adjust the home directory file permissions. As mentioned earlier, applying “chmod -R” incorrectly can affect all home directory subdirectories, including .ssh and authorized_keys files.
• Check the SSH public key (.pub) on the local computer Make sure you are using the correct public key in the authorized_keys file. To add a new public key to an SFTP client with FileZilla. Go to Settings > Connection > SFTP > click on “Add key file…” Browse through your local files and import the right key.

Configuring permissions with alternative SFTP server tools

Our methodology for selecting SFTP tools and software

We reviewed the network monitoring tools and software market and analyzed the options based on the following criteria:

• An autodiscovery system to log all network devices
• A network topology mapper
• The ability to collect live network devices statuses by using SNMP
• A facility to analyze network performance over time
• Access and file control
• A free trial period, a demo, or a money-back guarantee for no-risk assessment
• A good price that reflects value for money when compared to the features offered

1. SolarWinds SFTP/SCP Server – FREE TOOL

The Solarwinds SFTP/SCP server is a free tool for reliable and secure file transfers. It is easy to use, light and runs as a Windows service. In addition, SFTP provides advanced SFTP features such as concurrent transfers from multiple devices or limits access by authorizing a specific or range of IPs.

Key Features:

• Offers SFTP, FTP, and TFTP
• Transfer files up to 4 GB in size
• Good for distributing device configurations
• Can be automated
• Receives multiple files simultaneously

This tool pushes OS images, configuration files, updates, backup files, or transfer files up to 4GB. In addition, this SFTP server provides primary authentication access to the server and only allows one folder for all users.

Website Link: https://www.solarwinds.com/free-tools/free-sftp-server

Free Download!

2. SolarWinds Serv-U FTP/MFT Server – FREE TRIAL

The SolarWinds Serv-U FTP/MFT Server is a more advanced SFTP server that lets you handle large and multiple file transfers. It supports up to 250 users, 100 concurrent sessions, up to 3 domains and allows a fine-grained access control over those resources.

Key Features:

• Paid tool for Windows Server
• FTPS, SFTP, and HTTPS
• PCI DSS, HIPAA, FISMA, SOX compliance
• P2P file sharing possible

With Serv-U, you can easily change and update user and folder access and permissions. In addition, it provides a directory access rule-based control that allows you to change permissions on files and directories.

Website Link: https://www.solarwinds.com/serv-u-managed-file-transfer-server

Download 14-day Free Trial!

Final Words

The “SFTP permission denied” error message occurs when your SFTP server doesn’t allow your user (within a group) to modify or overwrite a file or directory. To solve this, you’ll have to SSH into the SFTP server, find the file/directory and identify its current permission mode and ownership. Then, you’ll have to change the permissions as specified in this post. The second SFTP permission denied (public key) message occurs when you are logging with an incorrect user, public key, or the user doesn’t have the necessary permission to access the key file in the server.

Alternatively, you can use an SFTP server such as SolarWinds Serv-U FTP/MFT Server, which gives you more flexibility when configuring permissions. This tool will help you avoid the “SFTP permission denied” and fix it for all the SFTP users.

SFTP permission denied FAQs

How do I fix SFTP error?

SFTP errors can be caused by a number of different problems. However, the most frequently encountered errors revolve around a failure to connect to the remote device. This failure can be due to four reasons and these need to be checked:

1. Check the destination address has been entered correctly.
2. Check that the correct port is being used.
3. Check that you have an active access account on the remote device.
4. Check that you typed in your credentials correctly.