UNIXFILETYPE (FTP client and server) statement

Use the UNIXFILETYPE statement in the FTP server and client to indicate whether to treat z/OS® UNIX file system files as regular files or as UNIX named pipes during file transfer. The site and locsite subcommands are also available to set this value.

Server
This setting applies to files in the server's z/OS UNIX file system when the server is processing the APPE, RETR, and STOR commands.

The server ignores this setting when processing the RNFR, RNTO, and DELE. commands. You can use these commands to rename or delete regular files and named pipes regardless of the UNIXFILETYPE setting.

The server accepts the XFIF (create named pipe) command regardless of the UNIXFILETYPE setting.

When the server is processing LIST and NLST commands to list files in the z/OS UNIX file system, both named pipes and regular files appear regardless of the UNIXFILETYPE setting.

Restrictions:
  • You cannot restart a file transfer to a named pipe in the server z/OS UNIX file system.
  • The server does not support the STOU command when UNIXFILETYPE is set to FIFO.
  • Anonymous users are not allowed to read from or write to named pipes in the server z/OS UNIX file system.
Requirements: When the server file exists before it receives the APPE or STOR command, perform the following actions:
  • Set UNIXFILETYPE to FILE when the file is a regular file.
  • Set UNIXFILETYPE to FIFO when the file is a named pipe.
Client
This setting applies to files in the client's z/OS UNIX file system when the client is processing the following subcommands:
  • APpend
  • Get
  • MGet
  • MPut
  • PUt

Restriction: You cannot restart a file transfer to a named pipe in the client z/OS UNIX file system.

Syntax

Read syntax diagramSkip visual syntax diagramUNIXFILETYPE FILEUNIXFILETYPEFIFOFILE

Parameters

FILE
Treat files in the z/OS UNIX file system as regular files for file storage and retrieval. This is the default value.

Result: When FTP stores a file that does not yet exist in the z/OS UNIX file system, FTP stores the file as a regular file.

Requirement: When FTP stores to a file that already exists in the z/OS UNIX file system, the file must be a regular file.

FIFO
Treat files stored in the z/OS UNIX file system as named pipes for file storage and retrieval.
Result:
  • When storing a file that does not yet exist in the z/OS UNIX file system, FTP stores the file as a named pipe.
  • When storing to a named pipe that already exists in the z/OS UNIX file system, FTP appends the incoming data to the existing data. This is true for both the APPE (append) and STOR (store) commands.

Requirement: When storing to a file that already exists in the z/OS UNIX file system, the file must be a named pipe.

Restrictions:
  • You can append only to existing named pipes.
  • You cannot restart a transfer into a named pipe.
  • The z/OS operating system does not serialize access to named pipes. Multiple processes can read from or write to the same named pipe simultaneously. When a process reads from a named pipe, data is removed from the named pipe. That data is not presented to other processes that read from the same named pipe. When a process writes to a named pipe, the data it writes might appear in the named pipe interleaved with data written by other processes.

Examples

To treat the files in the z/OS UNIX file system as UNIX named pipes for file transfer, use the following code:

UNIXFILETYPE FIFO

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