FTP User Management in cPanel

Introduction

Managing FTP users in cPanel can feel complex if you’re new, but it’s straightforward once you understand the steps.

This guide will walk you through the directory structure of Pure-FTPd and how to add or delete an FTP user from the command line.

What is an FTP User?

An FTP user is simply an account that allows someone to connect to your server via FTP and access specific directories.

You can create multiple FTP users to give different people access to different folders.

Pure-FTPd Directory Structure

When working with FTP in cPanel, Pure-FTPd is commonly used as the FTP server. Here are the important paths:

• Program: /usr/sbin/pure-ftpd
• Init Script: /etc/rc.d/init.d/pure-ftpd or /scripts/restartsrv_ftpserver
• Configuration File: /etc/pure-ftpd.conf
• Accounts File: /etc/proftpd/$username (stores all FTP users)
• Anonymous FTP Document Root: /etc/pure-ftpd/ip-address

Managing FTP Users via Command Line

You can manage FTP users using the proftpd_passwd command in cPanel. Below are the two most common tasks: adding a new FTP user and deleting an FTP user.

1. Add a New FTP User

Syntax:

/usr/local/cpanel/bin/proftpd_passwd <sys user> -a <vuser>:<passwd>:<uid>:<gid>:<owner>:<home_dir>:<shell>

Example:
Let’s say we have a reseller account DBM and a domain centos.com. We want to add a new FTP user, ftpuser1.

# grep dbm /etc/passwd
dbm:x:1000:1002::/home/dbm:/bin/bash

# /usr/local/cpanel/bin/proftpd_passwd dbm -a ftpuser1:12341qaz:1000:1002:dbm:/home/dbm/public_html/centos.com/ftpuser1:/sbin/nologin

# mkdir /home/dbm/public_html/centos.com/ftpuser1

# chown dbm:dbm /home/dbm/public_html/centos.com/ftpuser1

# /usr/local/cpanel/bin/ftpupdate

Now ftpuser1 is ready to use and has access to the assigned directory.

2. Delete an FTP User

Syntax:

/usr/local/cpanel/bin/proftpd_passwd <sys user> -d <vuser>

Example: To remove ftpuser1:

/usr/local/cpanel/bin/proftpd_passwd dbm -d ftpuser1
/usr/local/cpanel/bin/ftpupdate

Alternative Method:
You can also manually delete the corresponding line in:

• /etc/proftpd/passwd.vhost
• /etc/proftpd/dbm

Then run the update command.

Conclusion

With these simple steps, even beginners can manage FTP users in cPanel easily.
You now know how to:

• Understand the Pure-FTPd directory structure
• Add a new FTP user
• Delete an existing FTP user

This makes file sharing and permissions more secure and flexible on your server.