-# NAME
+## NAME
rsyncd.conf - configuration file for rsync in daemon mode
-# SYNOPSIS
+## SYNOPSIS
rsyncd.conf
-# DESCRIPTION
+The online version of this manpage (that includes cross-linking of topics)
+is available at <https://download.samba.org/pub/rsync/rsyncd.conf.5>.
+
+## DESCRIPTION
The rsyncd.conf file is the runtime configuration file for rsync when run as an
rsync daemon.
The rsyncd.conf file controls authentication, access, logging and available
modules.
-# FILE FORMAT
+## FILE FORMAT
The file consists of modules and parameters. A module begins with the name of
the module in square brackets and continues until the next module begins.
quotes needed) or a boolean, which may be given as yes/no, 0/1 or true/false.
Case is not significant in boolean values, but is preserved in string values.
-# LAUNCHING THE RSYNC DAEMON
+## LAUNCHING THE RSYNC DAEMON
-The rsync daemon is launched by specifying the `--daemon` option to
-rsync.
+The rsync daemon is launched by specifying the `--daemon` option to rsync.
The daemon must run with root privileges if you wish to use chroot, to bind to
a port numbered under 1024 (as is the default 873), or to set file ownership.
Note that you should **not** send the rsync daemon a HUP signal to force it to
reread the `rsyncd.conf` file. The file is re-read on each client connection.
-# GLOBAL PARAMETERS
+## GLOBAL PARAMETERS
The first parameters in the file (before a [module] header) are the global
parameters. Rsync also allows for the use of a "[global]" module name to
0. `motd file`
- This parameter allows you to specify a "message of the day" to display to
- clients on each connect. This usually contains site information and any
- legal notices. The default is no motd file. This can be overridden by the
+ This parameter allows you to specify a "message of the day" (MOTD) to display
+ to clients on each connect. This usually contains site information and any
+ legal notices. The default is no MOTD file. This can be overridden by the
`--dparam=motdfile=FILE` command-line option when starting the daemon.
0. `pid file`
This parameter can provide endless fun for people who like to tune their
systems to the utmost degree. You can set all sorts of socket options which
- may make transfers faster (or slower!). Read the man page for the
+ may make transfers faster (or slower!). Read the manpage for the
**setsockopt()** system call for details on some of the options you may be
able to set. By default no special socket options are set. These settings
can also be specified via the `--sockopts` command-line option.
You can override the default backlog value when the daemon listens for
connections. It defaults to 5.
-# MODULE PARAMETERS
+## MODULE PARAMETERS
After the global parameters you should define a number of modules, each module
exports a directory tree as a symbolic name. Modules are exported by specifying
0. `use chroot`
- If "use chroot" is true, the rsync daemon will chroot to the "path" before
+ If "use chroot" is true, the rsync daemon will chroot to the "[path](#)" before
starting the file transfer with the client. This has the advantage of
extra protection against possible implementation security holes, but it has
the disadvantages of requiring super-user privileges, of not being able to
below).
As an additional safety feature, you can specify a dot-dir in the module's
- "path" to indicate the point where the chroot should occur. This allows
+ "[path](#)" to indicate the point where the chroot should occur. This allows
rsync to run in a chroot with a non-"/" path for the top of the transfer
hierarchy. Doing this guards against unintended library loading (since
those absolute paths will not be inside the transfer hierarchy unless you
chroot would have used the whole path, and the inside-chroot path would
have been "/".
- When both "use chroot" and "daemon chroot" are false, OR the inside-chroot
+ When both "use chroot" and "[daemon chroot](#)" are false, OR the inside-chroot
path of "use chroot" is not "/", rsync will: (1) munge symlinks by default
- for security reasons (see "munge symlinks" for a way to turn this off, but
+ for security reasons (see "[munge symlinks](#)" for a way to turn this off, but
only if you trust your users), (2) substitute leading slashes in absolute
paths with the module's path (so that options such as `--backup-dir`,
`--compare-dest`, etc. interpret an absolute path as rooted in the module's
- "path" dir), and (3) trim ".." path elements from args if rsync believes
+ "[path](#)" dir), and (3) trim ".." path elements from args if rsync believes
they would escape the module hierarchy. The default for "use chroot" is
true, and is the safer choice (especially if the module is not read-only).
- When this parameter is enabled *and* the "name converter" parameter is
- *not* set, the "numeric ids" parameter will default to being enabled
+ When this parameter is enabled *and* the "[name converter](#)" parameter is
+ *not* set, the "[numeric ids](#)" parameter will default to being enabled
(disabling name lookups). This means that if you manually setup
name-lookup libraries in your chroot (instead of using a name converter)
that you need to explicitly set `numeric ids = false` for rsync to do name
If you copy library resources into the module's chroot area, you should
protect them through your OS's normal user/group or ACL settings (to
prevent the rsync module's user from being able to change them), and then
- hide them from the user's view via "exclude" (see how in the discussion of
+ hide them from the user's view via "[exclude](#)" (see how in the discussion of
that parameter). However, it's easier and safer to setup a name converter.
0. `daemon chroot`
This parameter specifies a path to which the daemon will chroot before
- beginning communication with clients. Module paths (and any "use chroot"
+ beginning communication with clients. Module paths (and any "[use chroot](#)"
settings) will then be related to this one. This lets you choose if you
want the whole daemon to be chrooted (with this setting), just the
- transfers to be chrooted (with "use chroot"), or both. Keep in mind that
+ transfers to be chrooted (with "[use chroot](#)"), or both. Keep in mind that
the "daemon chroot" area may need various OS/lib/etc files installed to
allow the daemon to function. By default the daemon runs without any
chrooting.
transfer behave as if the client had passed the `--numeric-ids`
command-line option. By default, this parameter is enabled for chroot
modules and disabled for non-chroot modules. Also keep in mind that
- uid/gid preservation requires the module to be running as root (see "uid")
- or for "fake super" to be configured.
+ uid/gid preservation requires the module to be running as root (see "[uid](#)")
+ or for "[fake super](#)" to be configured.
A chroot-enabled module should not have this parameter set to false unless
- you're using a "name converter" program *or* you've taken steps to ensure
+ you're using a "[name converter](#)" program *or* you've taken steps to ensure
that the module has the necessary resources it needs to translate names and
that it is not possible for a user to change those resources.
(non-daemon-affecting) `--munge-links` command-line option (using a method
described below). This should help protect your files from user trickery
when your daemon module is writable. The default is disabled when
- "use chroot" is on with an inside-chroot path of "/", OR if "daemon chroot"
+ "[use chroot](#)" is on with an inside-chroot path of "/", OR if "[daemon chroot](#)"
is on, otherwise it is enabled.
If you disable this parameter on a daemon that is not read-only, there are
tricks that a user can play with uploaded symlinks to access
- daemon-excluded items (if your module has any), and, if "use chroot" is
+ daemon-excluded items (if your module has any), and, if "[use chroot](#)" is
off, rsync can even be tricked into showing or changing data that is
outside the module's path (as access-permissions allow).
the source code named "munge-symlinks" that can be used to add or remove
this prefix from your symlinks.
- When this parameter is disabled on a writable module and "use chroot" is
+ When this parameter is disabled on a writable module and "[use chroot](#)" is
off (or the inside-chroot path is not "/"), incoming symlinks will be
modified to drop a leading slash and to remove ".." path elements that
rsync believes will allow a symlink to escape the module's hierarchy.
conversion in a chroot module without extra files in the chroot area, and
also ensures that name-translation is done in a consistent manner. If the
"charset" parameter is not set, the `--iconv` option is refused, just as if
- "iconv" had been specified via "refuse options".
+ "iconv" had been specified via "[refuse options](#)".
If you wish to force users to always use `--iconv` for a particular module,
- add "no-iconv" to the "refuse options" parameter. Keep in mind that this
+ add "no-iconv" to the "[refuse options](#)" parameter. Keep in mind that this
will restrict access to your module to very new rsync clients.
0. `max connections`
connections you will allow. Any clients connecting when the maximum has
been reached will receive a message telling them to try later. The default
is 0, which means no limit. A negative value disables the module. See
- also the "lock file" parameter.
+ also the "[lock file](#)" parameter.
0. `log file`
facility name which is defined on your system. Common names are auth,
authpriv, cron, daemon, ftp, kern, lpr, mail, news, security, syslog, user,
uucp, local0, local1, local2, local3, local4, local5, local6 and local7.
- The default is daemon. This setting has no effect if the "log file"
+ The default is daemon. This setting has no effect if the "[log file](#)"
setting is a non-empty string (either set in the per-modules settings, or
inherited from the global settings).
This parameter allows you to specify the syslog tag to use when logging
messages from the rsync daemon. The default is "rsyncd". This setting has
- no effect if the "log file" setting is a non-empty string (either set in
+ no effect if the "[log file](#)" setting is a non-empty string (either set in
the per-modules settings, or inherited from the global settings).
For example, if you wanted each authenticated user's name to be included in
0. `lock file`
- This parameter specifies the file to use to support the "max connections"
+ This parameter specifies the file to use to support the "[max connections](#)"
parameter. The rsync daemon uses record locking on this file to ensure that
the max connections limit is not exceeded for the modules sharing the lock
file. The default is `/var/run/rsyncd.lock`.
"read only" is false then uploads will be possible if file permissions on
the daemon side allow them. The default is for all modules to be read only.
- Note that "auth users" can override this setting on a per-user basis.
+ Note that "[auth users](#)" can override this setting on a per-user basis.
0. `write only`
This parameter determines whether this module is listed when the client
asks for a listing of available modules. In addition, if this is false,
the daemon will pretend the module does not exist when a client denied by
- "hosts allow" or "hosts deny" attempts to access it. Realize that if
- "reverse lookup" is disabled globally but enabled for the module, the
+ "[hosts allow](#)" or "[hosts deny](#)" attempts to access it. Realize that if
+ "[reverse lookup](#)" is disabled globally but enabled for the module, the
resulting reverse lookup to a potentially client-controlled DNS server may
still reveal to the client that it hit an existing module. The default is
for modules to be listable.
This parameter specifies the user name or user ID that file transfers to
and from that module should take place as when the daemon was run as root.
- In combination with the "gid" parameter this determines what file
+ In combination with the "[gid](#)" parameter this determines what file
permissions are available. The default when run by a super-user is to
switch to the system's "nobody" user. The default for a non-super-user is
- to not try to change the user. See also the "gid" parameter.
+ to not try to change the user. See also the "[gid](#)" parameter.
The RSYNC_USER_NAME environment variable may be used to request that rsync
run as the authorizing user. For example, if you want a rsync to run as
accessing the module. The first one will be the default group, and any
extra ones be set as supplemental groups. You may also specify a "`*`" as
the first gid in the list, which will be replaced by all the normal groups
- for the transfer's user (see "uid"). The default when run by a super-user
+ for the transfer's user (see "[uid](#)"). The default when run by a super-user
is to switch to your OS's "nobody" (or perhaps "nogroup") group with no
other supplementary groups. The default for a non-super-user is to not
change any group attributes (and indeed, your OS may not allow a
This parameter specifies a uid under which the daemon will run. The daemon
usually runs as user root, and when this is left unset the user is left
- unchanged. See also the "uid" parameter.
+ unchanged. See also the "[uid](#)" parameter.
0. `daemon gid`
This parameter specifies a gid under which the daemon will run. The daemon
usually runs as group root, and when this is left unset, the group is left
- unchanged. See also the "gid" parameter.
+ unchanged. See also the "[gid](#)" parameter.
0. `fake super`
or tampering with private administrative files, such as files you may add
to support uid/gid name translations.
- The daemon filter chain is built from the "filter", "include from",
- "include", "exclude from", and "exclude" parameters, in that order of
+ The daemon filter chain is built from the "filter", "[include from](#)",
+ "[include](#)", "[exclude from](#)", and "[exclude](#)" parameters, in that order of
priority. Anchored patterns are anchored at the root of the module. To
prevent access to an entire subtree, for example, "`/secret`", you **must**
exclude everything in the subtree; the easiest way to do this is with a
0. `include`
- Use an "include" to override the effects of the "exclude" parameter. Only
- one "include" parameter can apply to a given module. See the "filter"
+ Use an "include" to override the effects of the "[exclude](#)" parameter. Only
+ one "include" parameter can apply to a given module. See the "[filter](#)"
parameter for a description of how excluded files affect the daemon.
0. `exclude from`
This parameter specifies the name of a file on the daemon that contains
daemon exclude patterns, one per line. Only one "exclude from" parameter
can apply to a given module; if you have multiple exclude-from files, you
- can specify them as a merge file in the "filter" parameter. See the
- "filter" parameter for a description of how excluded files affect the
+ can specify them as a merge file in the "[filter](#)" parameter. See the
+ "[filter](#)" parameter for a description of how excluded files affect the
daemon.
0. `include from`
- Analogue of "exclude from" for a file of daemon include patterns. Only one
- "include from" parameter can apply to a given module. See the "filter"
+ Analogue of "[exclude from](#)" for a file of daemon include patterns. Only one
+ "include from" parameter can apply to a given module. See the "[filter](#)"
parameter for a description of how excluded files affect the daemon.
0. `incoming chmod`
to supply a username and password to connect to the module. A challenge
response authentication protocol is used for this exchange. The plain text
usernames and passwords are stored in the file specified by the
- "secrets file" parameter. The default is for all users to be able to
+ "[secrets file](#)" parameter. The default is for all users to be able to
connect without a password (this is called "anonymous rsync").
In addition to username matching, you can specify groupname matching via a
Finally, options may be specified after a colon (:). The options allow you
to "deny" a user or a group, set the access to "ro" (read-only), or set the
access to "rw" (read/write). Setting an auth-rule-specific ro/rw setting
- overrides the module's "read only" setting.
+ overrides the module's "[read only](#)" setting.
Be sure to put the rules in the order you want them to be matched, because
the checking stops at the first matching user or group, and that is the
This parameter specifies the name of a file that contains the
username:password and/or @groupname:password pairs used for authenticating
- this module. This file is only consulted if the "auth users" parameter is
+ this module. This file is only consulted if the "[auth users](#)" parameter is
specified. The file is line-based and contains one name:password pair per
line. Any line has a hash (#) as the very first character on the line is
considered a comment and is skipped. The passwords can contain any
"@groupname:password" line for the group that triggered the authentication.
It is up to you what kind of password entries you want to include, either
- users, groups, or both. The use of group rules in "auth users" does not
+ users, groups, or both. The use of group rules in "[auth users](#)" does not
require that you specify a group password if you do not want to use shared
passwords.
There is no default for the "secrets file" parameter, you must choose a
name (such as `/etc/rsyncd.secrets`). The file must normally not be
- readable by "other"; see "strict modes". If the file is not found or is
- rejected, no logins for a "user auth" module will be possible.
+ readable by "other"; see "[strict modes](#)". If the file is not found or is
+ rejected, no logins for an "[auth users](#)" module will be possible.
0. `strict modes`
addresses which match the masked IP address will be allowed in.
- a hostname pattern using wildcards. If the hostname of the connecting IP
(as determined by a reverse lookup) matches the wildcarded name (using
- the same rules as normal unix filename matching), the client is allowed
- in. This only works if "reverse lookup" is enabled (the default).
+ the same rules as normal Unix filename matching), the client is allowed
+ in. This only works if "[reverse lookup](#)" is enabled (the default).
- a hostname. A plain hostname is matched against the reverse DNS of the
- connecting IP (if "reverse lookup" is enabled), and/or the IP of the
- given hostname is matched against the connecting IP (if "forward lookup"
+ connecting IP (if "[reverse lookup](#)" is enabled), and/or the IP of the
+ given hostname is matched against the connecting IP (if "[forward lookup](#)"
is enabled, as it is by default). Any match will be allowed in.
- an '@' followed by a netgroup name, which will match if the reverse DNS
of the connecting IP is in the specified netgroup.
> fe80::%link1/64
> fe80::%link1/ffff:ffff:ffff:ffff::
- You can also combine "hosts allow" with "hosts deny" as a way to add
+ You can also combine "hosts allow" with "[hosts deny](#)" as a way to add
exceptions to your deny list. When both parameters are specified, the
"hosts allow" parameter is checked first and a match results in the client
being able to connect. A non-allowed host is then matched against the
- "hosts deny" list to see if it should be rejected. A host that does not
+ "[hosts deny](#)" list to see if it should be rejected. A host that does not
match either list is allowed to connect.
The default is no "hosts allow" parameter, which means all hosts can
This parameter allows you to specify a list of comma- and/or
whitespace-separated patterns that are matched against a connecting clients
hostname and IP address. If the pattern matches then the connection is
- rejected. See the "hosts allow" parameter for more information.
+ rejected. See the "[hosts allow](#)" parameter for more information.
The default is no "hosts deny" parameter, which means all hosts can
connect.
0. `reverse lookup`
Controls whether the daemon performs a reverse lookup on the client's IP
- address to determine its hostname, which is used for "hosts allow" &
- "hosts deny" checks and the "%h" log escape. This is enabled by default,
+ address to determine its hostname, which is used for "[hosts allow](#)" &
+ "[hosts deny](#)" checks and the "%h" log escape. This is enabled by default,
but you may wish to disable it to save time if you know the lookup will not
return a useful result, in which case the daemon will use the name
"UNDETERMINED" instead.
logs the transfer at the end, so if a transfer is aborted, no mention will
be made in the log file.
- If you want to customize the log lines, see the "log format" parameter.
+ If you want to customize the log lines, see the "[log format](#)" parameter.
0. `log format`
(e.g. "`%''l %'b %f`").
The default log format is "`%o %h [%a] %m (%u) %f %l`", and a "`%t [%p] `"
- is always prefixed when using the "log file" parameter. (A perl script
+ is always prefixed when using the "[log file](#)" parameter. (A perl script
that will summarize this default log format is included in the rsync source
code distribution in the "support" subdirectory: rsyncstats.)
> refuse options = * !a !delete* delete-after
- A note on refusing "compress": it may be better to set the "dont compress"
+ A note on refusing "compress": it may be better to set the "[dont compress](#)"
daemon parameter to "`*`" and ensure that `RSYNC_COMPRESS_LIST=zlib` is set
in the environment of the daemon in order to disable compression silently
instead of returning an error that forces the client to remove the `-z`
If you are un-refusing the compress option, you may want to match
"`!compress*`" if you also want to allow the `--compress-level` option.
- Note that the "write-devices" option is refused by default, but can be
- explicitly accepted with "`!write-devices`". The options "log-file" and
- "log-file-format" are forcibly refused and cannot be accepted.
+ Note that the "copy-devices" & "write-devices" options are refused by
+ default, but they can be explicitly accepted with "`!copy-devices`" and/or
+ "`!write-devices`". The options "log-file" and "log-file-format" are
+ forcibly refused and cannot be accepted.
Here are all the options that are not matched by wild-cards:
receiver. While rsync passes the older alias `--log-format` for
compatibility reasons, this options should not be confused with
`--log-file-format`.
- - `--sender`: Use "write only" parameter instead of refusing this.
+ - `--sender`: Use "[write only](#)" parameter instead of refusing this.
- `--dry-run`, `-n`: Who would want to disable this?
- `--protect-args`, `-s`: This actually makes transfers safer.
- `--from0`, `-0`: Makes it easier to accept/refuse `--files-from` without
affecting this helpful modifier.
- - `--iconv`: This is auto-disabled based on "charset" parameter.
+ - `--iconv`: This is auto-disabled based on "[charset](#)" parameter.
- `--no-iconv`: Most transfers use this option.
- `--checksum-seed`: Is a fairly rare, safe option.
- `--write-devices`: Is non-wild but also auto-disabled.
**system()** call's default shell), and use RSYNC_NO_XFER_EXEC to disable
both options completely.
-# CONFIG DIRECTIVES
+## CONFIG DIRECTIVES
There are currently two config directives available that allow a config file to
incorporate the contents of other files: `&include` and `&merge`. Both allow
stay in effect), and then include any `/etc/rsyncd.d/*.conf` files (defining
modules without any global-value cross-talk).
-# AUTHENTICATION STRENGTH
+## AUTHENTICATION STRENGTH
The authentication protocol used in rsync is a 128 bit MD4 based challenge
response system. This is fairly weak protection, though (with at least one
You can also make use of SSL/TLS encryption if you put rsync behind an
SSL proxy.
-# SSL/TLS Daemon Setup
+## SSL/TLS Daemon Setup
When setting up an rsync daemon for access via SSL/TLS, you will need to
-configure a proxy (such as haproxy or nginx) as the front-end that handles the
-encryption.
+configure a TCP proxy (such as haproxy or nginx) as the front-end that handles
+the encryption.
- You should limit the access to the backend-rsyncd port to only allow the
proxy to connect. If it is on the same host as the proxy, then configuring
it to only listen on localhost is a good idea.
-- You should consider turning on the `proxy protocol` parameter if your proxy
- supports sending that information. The examples below assume that this is
- enabled.
+- You should consider turning on the `proxy protocol` rsync-daemon parameter if
+ your proxy supports sending that information. The examples below assume that
+ this is enabled.
An example haproxy setup is as follows:
> ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/example.com/privkey.pem;
>
> proxy_pass localhost:873;
-> proxy_protocol on; # Requires "proxy protocol = true"
+> proxy_protocol on; # Requires rsyncd.conf "proxy protocol = true"
> proxy_timeout 1m;
> proxy_connect_timeout 5s;
> }
> }
> ```
-# EXAMPLES
+## DAEMON CONFIG EXAMPLES
A simple rsyncd.conf file that allow anonymous rsync to a ftp area at
`/home/ftp` would be:
> tridge:mypass
> susan:herpass
-# FILES
+## FILES
/etc/rsyncd.conf or rsyncd.conf
-# SEE ALSO
+## SEE ALSO
-**rsync**(1), **rsync-ssl**(1)
+[**rsync**(1)](rsync.1), [**rsync-ssl**(1)](rsync-ssl.1)
-# BUGS
+## BUGS
Please report bugs! The rsync bug tracking system is online at
<https://rsync.samba.org/>.
-# VERSION
-
-This man page is current for version @VERSION@ of rsync.
-
-# CREDITS
-
-rsync is distributed under the GNU General Public License. See the file
-COPYING for details.
+## VERSION
-The primary ftp site for rsync is <ftp://rsync.samba.org/pub/rsync>
+This manpage is current for version @VERSION@ of rsync.
-A web site is available at <https://rsync.samba.org/>.
+## CREDITS
-We would be delighted to hear from you if you like this program.
+Rsync is distributed under the GNU General Public License. See the file
+[COPYING](COPYING) for details.
-This program uses the zlib compression library written by Jean-loup Gailly and
-Mark Adler.
+An rsync web site is available at <https://rsync.samba.org/> and its github
+project is <https://github.com/WayneD/rsync>.
-# THANKS
+## THANKS
Thanks to Warren Stanley for his original idea and patch for the rsync daemon.
Thanks to Karsten Thygesen for his many suggestions and documentation!
-# AUTHOR
+## AUTHOR
-rsync was written by Andrew Tridgell and Paul Mackerras. Many people have
-later contributed to it.
+Rsync was originally written by Andrew Tridgell and Paul Mackerras. Many
+people have later contributed to it. It is currently maintained by Wayne
+Davison.
Mailing lists for support and development are available at
<https://lists.samba.org/>.
git.samba.org / rsync.git / blobdiff