path: root/lib/ssh/doc/src/ssh_sftp.xml

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="latin1" ?>
<!DOCTYPE erlref SYSTEM "erlref.dtd">

<erlref>
  <header>
    <copyright>
      <year>2005</year><year>2010</year>
      <holder>Ericsson AB. All Rights Reserved.</holder>
    </copyright>
    <legalnotice>
      The contents of this file are subject to the Erlang Public License,
      Version 1.1, (the "License"); you may not use this file except in
      compliance with the License. You should have received a copy of the
      Erlang Public License along with this software. If not, it can be
      retrieved online at http://www.erlang.org/.

      Software distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS"
      basis, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See
      the License for the specific language governing rights and limitations
      under the License.

    </legalnotice>

    <title>ssh_sftp</title>
    <prepared>Jakob Cederlund</prepared>
    <responsible></responsible>
    <docno>1</docno>
    <approved></approved>
    <checked></checked>
    <date>2005-09-22</date>
    <rev>PA1</rev>
    <file>ssh_sftp.sgml</file>
  </header>
  <module>ssh_sftp</module>
  <modulesummary>SFTP client.</modulesummary>
  <description>
    <p>This module implements an SFTP (SSH FTP) client. SFTP is a
      secure, encrypted file transfer service available for
      SSH.</p>
  </description>
  
 <section>
    <title>COMMON DATA TYPES </title>
    <p>Type definitions that are used more than once in this module
    and/or abstractions to indicate the intended use of the data type:
    </p>
    <p><c>ssh_connection_ref() - opaque to the user
    returned by ssh:connect/3</c></p>
    <p><c>timeout() =  infinity | integer() - in milliseconds.</c></p>    
   </section>

 <section>
    <title>TIMEOUTS </title>
    <p>If the request functions for the sftp channel return {error, timeout}
    it does not mean that the request did not reach the server and was
    not performed, it only means that we did not receive an answer from the
    server within the time that was expected.</p>
   </section>

  <funcs>
    <func>
      <name>start_channel(ConnectionRef) -> </name>
      <name>start_channel(ConnectionRef, Options) -> </name>
      <name>start_channel(Host, Options) -></name>
      <name>start_channel(Host, Port, Options) -> {ok, Pid} | {ok, Pid, ConnectionRef} |
      {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Starts a sftp client</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>Host = string()</v>
        <v>ConnectionRef = ssh_connection_ref()</v>
        <v>Port = integer()</v>
        <v>Options = [{Option, Value}]</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
	<p>If not provided, setups a ssh connection in this case a
	connection reference will be returned too. A ssh channel
	process is started to handle the communication with the SFTP
	server, the returned pid for this process should be used as
	input to all other API functions in this module.</p>

	<p>Options are:</p>
	<taglist>
          <tag><c><![CDATA[{timeout, timeout()}]]></c></tag>
	  <item>
	    <p>The timeout is passed to the ssh_channel start function,
	    and defaults to infinity.</p>
	  </item>
	</taglist>
	<p>All other options are  directly passed to
	<seealso marker="ssh">ssh:connect/3</seealso> or ignored if a
	connection is already provided. </p>
      </desc>
    </func>

    <func>
      <name>stop_channel(ChannelPid) -> ok</name>
      <fsummary>Stops the sftp client channel.</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
	<p>Stops a sftp channel. If the ssh connection should be closed
	call <seealso marker="ssh">ssh:close/1</seealso>.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
  
    <func>
      <name>read_file(ChannelPid, File) -> </name>
      <name>read_file(ChannelPid, File, Timeout) -> {ok, Data} | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Read a file</fsummary>
      <type>
	<v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
	<v>File = string()</v>
        <v>Data = binary()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
	<v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Reads a file from the server, and returns the data in a binary,
          like <c><![CDATA[file:read_file/1]]></c>.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>write_file(ChannelPid, File, Iolist) -> </name>
      <name>write_file(ChannelPid, File, Iolist, Timeout) -> ok | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Write a file</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>File = string()</v>
        <v>Iolist = iolist()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Writes a file to the server, like <c><![CDATA[file:write_file/2]]></c>.
          The file is created if it's not there.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>list_dir(ChannelPid, Path) -> </name>
      <name>list_dir(ChannelPid, Path, Timeout) -> {ok, Filenames} | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>List directory</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Path = string()</v>
        <v>Filenames = [Filename]</v>
        <v>Filename = string()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
	<v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Lists the given directory on the server, returning the
          filenames as a list of strings.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>open(ChannelPid, File, Mode) -> </name>
      <name>open(ChannelPid, File, Mode, Timeout) -> {ok, Handle} | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Open a file and return a handle</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>File = string()</v>
        <v>Mode = [Modeflag]</v>
        <v>Modeflag = read | write | creat | trunc | append | binary</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
	<v>Handle = term()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Opens a file on the server, and returns a handle that
          is used for reading or writing.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>opendir(ChannelPid, Path) -> </name>
      <name>opendir(ChannelPid, Path, Timeout) -> {ok, Handle} | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Open a directory and return a handle</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Path = string()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Opens a handle to a directory on the server, the handle
          is used for reading directory contents.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>close(ChannelPid, Handle) -> </name>
      <name>close(ChannelPid, Handle, Timeout) -> ok | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Close an open handle</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Handle = term()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Closes a handle to an open file or directory on the server.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>read(ChannelPid, Handle, Len) -> </name>
      <name>read(ChannelPid, Handle, Len, Timeout) -> {ok, Data} | eof | {error, Error}</name>
      <name>pread(ChannelPid, Handle, Position, Len) -> </name>
      <name>pread(ChannelPid, Handle, Position, Len, Timeout) -> {ok, Data} | eof | {error, Error}</name>
      <fsummary>Read from an open file</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Handle = term()</v>
        <v>Position = integer()</v>
        <v>Len = integer()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Data = string() | binary()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Reads <c><![CDATA[Len]]></c> bytes from the file referenced by
          <c><![CDATA[Handle]]></c>. Returns <c><![CDATA[{ok, Data}]]></c>, or <c><![CDATA[eof]]></c>, or
          <c><![CDATA[{error, Reason}]]></c>. If the file is opened with <c><![CDATA[binary]]></c>,
          <c><![CDATA[Data]]></c> is a binary, otherwise it is a string.</p>
        <p>If the file is read past eof, only the remaining bytes
          will be read and returned. If no bytes are read, <c><![CDATA[eof]]></c>
          is returned.</p>
        <p>The <c><![CDATA[pread]]></c> function reads from a specified position,
          combining the <c><![CDATA[position]]></c> and <c><![CDATA[read]]></c> functions.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>aread(ChannelPid, Handle, Len) -> {async, N} | {error, Error}</name>
      <name>apread(ChannelPid, Handle, Position, Len) -> {async, N} | {error, Error}</name>
      <fsummary>Read asynchronously from an open file</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Handle = term()</v>
        <v>Position = integer()</v>
        <v>Len = integer()</v>
        <v>N = term()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Reads from an open file, without waiting for the result. If the
          handle is valid, the function returns <c><![CDATA[{async, N}]]></c>, where N
          is a term guaranteed to be unique between calls of <c><![CDATA[aread]]></c>. 
          The actual data is sent as a message to the calling process. This
          message has the form <c><![CDATA[{async_reply, N, Result}]]></c>, where
          <c><![CDATA[Result]]></c> is the result from the read, either <c><![CDATA[{ok, Data}]]></c>,
          or <c><![CDATA[eof]]></c>, or <c><![CDATA[{error, Error}]]></c>.</p>
        <p>The <c><![CDATA[apread]]></c> function reads from a specified position,
          combining the <c><![CDATA[position]]></c> and <c><![CDATA[aread]]></c> functions.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>write(ChannelPid, Handle, Data) -></name>
      <name>write(ChannelPid, Handle, Data, Timeout) -> ok | {error, Error}</name>
      <name>pwrite(ChannelPid, Handle, Position, Data) -> ok </name>
      <name>pwrite(ChannelPid, Handle, Position, Data, Timeout) -> ok | {error, Error}</name>
      <fsummary>Write to an open file</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Handle = term()</v>
        <v>Position = integer()</v>
        <v>Data = iolist()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Write <c><![CDATA[data]]></c> to the file referenced by <c><![CDATA[Handle]]></c>.
          The file should be opened with <c><![CDATA[write]]></c> or <c><![CDATA[append]]></c>
          flag. Returns <c><![CDATA[ok]]></c> if successful and <c><![CDATA[{error, Reason}]]></c>
          otherwise.</p>
        <p>Typical error reasons are:</p>
        <taglist>
          <tag><c><![CDATA[ebadf]]></c></tag>
          <item>
            <p>The file is not opened for writing.</p>
          </item>
          <tag><c><![CDATA[enospc]]></c></tag>
          <item>
            <p>There is a no space left on the device.</p>
          </item>
        </taglist>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>awrite(ChannelPid, Handle, Data) -> ok | {error, Reason} </name>
      <name>apwrite(ChannelPid, Handle, Position, Data) -> ok | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Write asynchronously to an open file</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Handle = term()</v>
        <v>Position = integer()</v>
        <v>Len = integer()</v>
        <v>Data = binary()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Writes to an open file, without waiting for the result. If the
          handle is valid, the function returns <c><![CDATA[{async, N}]]></c>, where N
          is a term guaranteed to be unique between calls of
          <c><![CDATA[awrite]]></c>. The result of the <c><![CDATA[write]]></c> operation is sent
          as a message to the calling process. This message has the form
          <c><![CDATA[{async_reply, N, Result}]]></c>, where <c><![CDATA[Result]]></c> is the result
          from the write, either <c><![CDATA[ok]]></c>, or <c><![CDATA[{error, Error}]]></c>.</p>
        <p>The <c><![CDATA[apwrite]]></c> writes on a specified position, combining
          the <c><![CDATA[position]]></c> and <c><![CDATA[awrite]]></c> operations.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>position(ChannelPid, Handle, Location) -> </name>
      <name>position(ChannelPid, Handle, Location, Timeout) -> {ok, NewPosition | {error, Error}</name>
      <fsummary>Seek position in open file</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Handle = term()</v>
        <v>Location = Offset | {bof, Offset} | {cur, Offset} | {eof, Offset} | bof | cur | eof</v>
        <v>Offset = int()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>NewPosition = integer()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Sets the file position of the file referenced by <c><![CDATA[Handle]]></c>.
          Returns <c><![CDATA[{ok, NewPosition]]></c> (as an absolute offset) if
          successful, otherwise <c><![CDATA[{error, Reason}]]></c>. <c><![CDATA[Location]]></c> is
          one of the following:</p>
        <taglist>
          <tag><c><![CDATA[Offset]]></c></tag>
          <item>
            <p>The same as <c><![CDATA[{bof, Offset}]]></c>.</p>
          </item>
          <tag><c><![CDATA[{bof, Offset}]]></c></tag>
          <item>
            <p>Absolute offset.</p>
          </item>
          <tag><c><![CDATA[{cur, Offset}]]></c></tag>
          <item>
            <p>Offset from the current position.</p>
          </item>
          <tag><c><![CDATA[{eof, Offset}]]></c></tag>
          <item>
            <p>Offset from the end of file.</p>
          </item>
          <tag><c><![CDATA[bof | cur | eof]]></c></tag>
          <item>
            <p>The same as above with <c><![CDATA[Offset]]></c> 0.</p>
          </item>
        </taglist>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>read_file_info(ChannelPid, Name) -> </name>
      <name>read_file_info(ChannelPid, Name, Timeout) -> {ok, FileInfo} | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Get information about a file</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Name = string()</v>
        <v>Handle = term()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>FileInfo = record()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Returns a <c><![CDATA[file_info]]></c> record from the file specified by
          <c><![CDATA[Name]]></c> or <c><![CDATA[Handle]]></c>, like <c><![CDATA[file:read_file_info/2]]></c>.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>read_link_info(ChannelPid, Name) -> {ok, FileInfo} | {error, Reason}</name>
      <name>read_link_info(ChannelPid, Name, Timeout) -> {ok, FileInfo} | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Get information about a symbolic link</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Name = string()</v>
        <v>Handle = term()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>FileInfo = record()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Returns a <c><![CDATA[file_info]]></c> record from the symbolic
          link specified by <c><![CDATA[Name]]></c> or <c><![CDATA[Handle]]></c>, like
          <c><![CDATA[file:read_link_info/2]]></c>.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>write_file_info(ChannelPid, Name, Info) -> </name>
      <name>write_file_info(ChannelPid, Name, Info, Timeout) -> ok | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Write information for a file</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Name = string()</v>
        <v>Info = record()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Writes file information from a <c><![CDATA[file_info]]></c> record to the
          file specified by <c><![CDATA[Name]]></c>, like <c><![CDATA[file:write_file_info]]></c>.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>read_link(ChannelPid, Name) -> </name>
      <name>read_link(ChannelPid, Name, Timeout) -> {ok, Target} | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Read symbolic link</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Name = string()</v>
        <v>Target = string()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Read the link target from the symbolic link specified
          by <c><![CDATA[name]]></c>, like <c><![CDATA[file:read_link/1]]></c>.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>make_symlink(ChannelPid, Name, Target) -> </name>
      <name>make_symlink(ChannelPid, Name, Target, Timeout) -> ok | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Create symbolic link</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Name = string()</v>
        <v>Target = string()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Creates a symbolic link pointing to <c><![CDATA[Target]]></c> with the
          name <c><![CDATA[Name]]></c>, like <c><![CDATA[file:make_symlink/2]]></c>.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>rename(ChannelPid, OldName, NewName) ->  </name>
      <name>rename(ChannelPid, OldName, NewName, Timeout) -> ok | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Rename a file</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>OldName = string()</v>
        <v>NewName = string()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Renames a file named <c><![CDATA[OldName]]></c>, and gives it the name
          <c><![CDATA[NewName]]></c>, like <c><![CDATA[file:rename/2]]></c></p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>delete(ChannelPid, Name) -> </name>
      <name>delete(ChannelPid, Name, Timeout) -> ok | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Delete a file</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Name = string()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Deletes the file specified by <c><![CDATA[Name]]></c>, like
          <c><![CDATA[file:delete/1]]></c></p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>make_dir(ChannelPid, Name) -> </name>
      <name>make_dir(ChannelPid, Name, Timeout) -> ok | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Create a directory</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Name = string()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Creates a directory specified by <c><![CDATA[Name]]></c>. <c><![CDATA[Name]]></c> should
          be a full path to a new directory. The directory can only be
          created in an existing directory.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
    <func>
      <name>del_dir(ChannelPid, Name) -> </name>
      <name>del_dir(ChannelPid, Name, Timeout) -> ok | {error, Reason}</name>
      <fsummary>Delete an empty directory</fsummary>
      <type>
        <v>ChannelPid = pid()</v>
        <v>Name = string()</v>
	<v>Timeout = timeout()</v>
        <v>Reason = term()</v>
      </type>
      <desc>
        <p>Deletes a directory specified by <c><![CDATA[Name]]></c>. The directory
          should be empty.</p>
      </desc>
    </func>
  
  </funcs>
   
</erlref>