Re: rssh.el interactions with ange-ftp/efs
>>>> On Mon, 18 Jan 1999 17:13:03 -0700 (MST),
>>>> Richard Stallman <rms(a)gnu.org> said:
ssh-1.2.x is freely distributable and the author has repeatedly
clarified a broad interpretation of "non-commercial" use
Yes, that's true--but that's not enough to be free software.
So we
don't use ssh in the GNU Project, and I would not want to encourage
others to use it.
The GPLed LSH implementation of the ssh protocols does not look
like
it will be ready for non-combatant use for some time.
It may take time, but we have to wait. The purpose of GNU Emacs,
and
the GNU system as a whole, is to give users freedom; it would not do
to get caught up in the details and forget the ultimate purpose.
If you wish LSH would get done sooner, how about volunteering to
help
(those of you not in the US)?
In the interim having efs use the GPLed ftpsshd
I don't think I have heard of ftpsshd before. Can you tell me
what it
does? Can it be used on its own, or does it depend on ssh?
Is it better to cut off the nose to spite the face of ssh-1.x
being
freely distributed and used without the GPL
I would not reject a program merely because its license is not the
GPL. If it is free software using some other license, we can still
recommend it. However, ssh is not free software at all.
Also, as I mentioned in an earlier message of mine (that went to a
smaller recipient list than this one), scp (part of ssh-1) and sftp
(part of ssh-2) don't follow a well-defined protocol, such as defined
in RFC 959. EFS relies almost exclusively on the 3-digit FTP return
codes to determine the state of the server and the success or failure
of commands. Here is an example of what I mean:
sftp> pwd
/home/sandy
as opposed to
ftp> pwd
257 "/home/sandy" is current directory.
Therefore, any EFS-like program that used scp or sftp underneath would
likely be quite unreliable. IMHO, writing scp support into EFS would
be a waste of time. In addition, because scp isn't following any
published protocol, chances are more than likely that you would no
sooner finish your code, than some bright light at SSH would decide to
change the output from scp commands for the sake of aesthetics.
I agree with Richard that a free secure file transfer program is
needed. However, I would add that it should also be based on a
well-defined and established protocol. The FT Protocol defined in RFC
959 is a good starting point; although, a case can be made for expanding
this protocol in some areas.
...Sandy