OSF

NAME

tftp − Provides the Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP)

SYNOPSIS

tftp [remote_host]

DESCRIPTION

The tftp command transfers files between hosts using TFTP.  Because TFTP is a minimal file transfer protocol, the tftp command does not provide all of the features described under the ftp command.  For example, tftp does not provide subcommands to list remote files or change directories at the remote host, and limited file access privileges are given to the remote TFTP server.  Note that the tftp command is not available when your host is operating in controlled access (secure) mode. 

The remote host must have a tftpd server started by its inetd server and have an account defined that limits the access of tftpd.  Use the tftpd command to set up the TFTP environment and the nobody account. 

The tftp command has two forms:  interactive form and command line form.  In the interactive form, tftp is issued alone or with a host argument that specifies the default host to use for file transfers during this session.  You can also specify a port for the tftp connection to use.  When you enter the interactive form, the tftp> prompt appears.  In the command line form, you specify command arguments on the command line, and no prompt appears.  The tftp command can overwrite a file, but prompts you before doing so. 

When transferring data to a remote host, the transferred data is placed in the directory specified by the remote_file argument.  remote_file must be a fully specified filename, and the remote file must both exist and have write permission set for others.  The tftp command attempts to write the data to the specified file.  However, if the remote TFTP server does not have the appropriate privileges to write the remote file or if the file does not already exist, the transfer fails. 

SUBCOMMANDS

tftp subcommands can be entered in either their interactive form or in their command line form. 

? [subcommand]

help [subcommand]
Displays help information.  If a subcommand is specified, only information about that subcommand is displayed.

asciiSynonym for the mode ascii subcommand. 

binarySynonym for the mode binary subcommand.  This subcommand is used in the interactive mode.  The image mode is the same as mode binary, but is used on the command line. 

connect host [port]
Sets the remote host, and optionally the port, for file transfers.  Because the TFTP protocol does not maintain connections between transfers, the connect subcommand does not create a connection to host, but stores the settings for transfer operations.  Because the remote host can be specified as part of the get or put subcommands, which overrides any host previously specified, the connect subcommand is not required. 

get remote_file [local_file]

get remote_file [remote_file ...]
Transfers a file or set of files from the remote host to the local host.  Each of the remote_file arguments can be specified in one of the following two ways:

       •As a file that exists on the remote host, if a default host was already specified. 

       •As host:file, where host is the remote host and file is the name of the file to copy to the local system.  If this form of the argument is used, the last host specified becomes the default host for later transfers in this tftp session. 

hashToggles hash marks. 

mode type
Sets the transfer mode to ascii or binary.  A transfer mode of ascii is the default. 

octetSets mode to octet. 

put local_file [remote_file]

put local_file [local_file...] remote_directory
Transfers a file or set of files from the local host onto the remote host.  The remote_directory and remote_file arguments can be specified in one of the following two ways:

       •As a file or directory that exists on the remote host, if a default host was already specified. 

       •As host:remote_file, where host is the remote host and remote_file is the name of the file or directory on the remote system.  If this form of the argument is used, the last host specified becomes the default host for later transfers in this tftp session.  In either of these cases, the remote filename or directory name must be a full pathname, even if the local and remote directories have the same name. If a remote directory is specified, the remote host is assumed to use UNIX pathname syntax.

quitExits tftp.  An End-of-File also exits the program. 

rateDisplays transfer rate information. 

rexmt value
Defines the retransmission time-out for each packet, in seconds.

statusShows the current status of tftp, including the current transfer mode (ascii or binary), connection status, time-out value, and so on. 

timeout value
Sets the total transmission time-out to the number of seconds specified by value. 

traceTurns packet tracing on or off. 

verboseTurns verbose mode, which displays additional information during file transfer, on or off. 

EXAMPLES

To enter tftp, check the current status, connect to host1, and transfer the file update from host1 to the local host, enter:

$ tftp
tftp> status

Not connected.
Mode: netasciiVerbose: offTracing: off
Rexmt_interval: 5 seconds, Max-timeout: 25 seconds

tftp> connect host1
tftp> get /u/alice/update update

The get subcommand transfers the file update from the remote host to your local host.  Note that directory /u/alice on the remote host must have read permission set for others. 

FILES

/etc/hostsDefines the address of the local host, and specifies the names and addresses of remote hosts. 

/etc/servicesDefines the sockets and protocols used for Internet services. 

RELATED INFORMATION

Commands:  ftp(1), ftpd(8), inetd(8), rcp(1), syslogd(8), tftpd(8).