FTAM/9000 User's Guide

66 Chapter 4
Special FTAM Files
The FTAM Startup File
Having this line in .ftamrc can simplify using FTAM with the host
named chicago. FTAM uses the login name betty, and the password
sesame to gain access to chicago. The default directory on the remote
host (chicago) depends on the FTAM implementation there.
Each item on the line is separated from its neighbors with “white space”
(tabs or spaces).
Alternative Hostname Forms
The hostname entry is commonly an alias for a remote FTAM responder,
such as chicago in the above example.
The hostname can also be the Presentation Address for the remote
FTAM responder, or its Directory Distinguished Name . Both of these are
more complicated than an alias, and prone to typing errors. All the
examples in this guide use the alias form; see the online man pages for
more information about the other two forms.
Setting Overwrite Mode with .ftamrc
When you copy or move a file, there is always the possibility that a file by
the target name already exists. In this case, FTAM has to decide whether
or not to overwrite the existing file.
You can use your .ftamrc file to set a default overwrite mode. To do this,
insert only one of the following lines in your .ftamrc file:
o y
This line means “overwrite yes”. It directs FTAM to overwrite existing
files that have the same name as the one FTAM is trying to create.
or
o n
This line means “overwrite no.” It prevents FTAM from overwriting
existing files. Instead, it issues an error message and averts potential
data loss.
NOTE FTAM (like HP-UX itself) ordinarily defaults overwrite mode to “yes”.
Therefore, if you do not explicitly set overwrite to “no” in your .ftamrc,
you can accidently overwrite files using FTAM file transfer commands.
Note also that you can have only one “overwrite” entry in your .ftamrc
file.