SFTP Infrastructure Storage Checklist

Published {$created} by Carsten Blum

You're looking at SFTP as a viable option for infrastructure storage. Great choice – when implemented correctly, it offers robust security and reliable access. This isn’s a comprehensive deployment guide, but it should serve as a practical checklist for engineers evaluating and utilizing SFTP for this purpose. We'll focus on considerations that go beyond simply connecting to a server.

Authentication & Security

• Key-Based Authentication (Required): Ditch passwords. Seriously. Implement SSH key-based authentication using a modern key type like SSH-ED25519. This drastically reduces attack vectors. SSH-RSA is acceptable but less secure. This aligns with best practices for secure remote access. Review our features for details on supported key types.
• Disable Password Authentication: Once key-based authentication is working reliably, disable password logins completely. This eliminates a major vulnerability.
• Firewall Rules: Restrict access to your SFTP server (port 22) to only the IP addresses or ranges that absolutely need it. Use a firewall.
• Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): While FTPGrid doesn’t directly offer 2FA, investigate methods to secure access to the infrastructure hosting your FTPGrid instance.
• Regular Key Rotation: Enforce regular rotation of SSH keys, especially those used for automated tasks.
• Transport Layer Security (TLS): Verify that your SFTP connections are using a strong TLS version (currently, TLS 1.3).

Storage and Account Management

• Define Access Control: Carefully plan out user accounts and permissions. The principle of least privilege dictates that users should only have the minimum necessary access. Consider using group memberships for streamlined management. FTPGrid allows for up to 500 accounts per customer.
• Quota Management: Set realistic storage and bandwidth quotas for each account. This prevents resource exhaustion and unpredictable performance. Check out how we manage quotas here.
• Automate Account Provisioning: Implement a system to automate user account creation and modification to avoid manual errors and ensure consistency.
• Monitoring: Implement real-time monitoring of storage usage and bandwidth consumption. Establish alerts for exceeding quotas or unusual activity. You can monitor storage and bandwidth here.
• Data Isolation: Ensure data is logically and physically isolated between different clients or environments. This prevents accidental or malicious data leakage.
• Backup and Disaster Recovery: Set up a backup strategy for your SFTP data. Consider using external backups to another FTP cloud storage service (e.g., syncing to S3 or Dropbox) to provide redundancy.

Operational Considerations

• Automation: Automate repetitive tasks like file transfers, directory management, and account maintenance. Utilize scripting languages and SFTP command-line tools.
• API Integration: Integrate SFTP access into your existing automation pipelines and applications using the SFTP API. Check out our FTP cloud storage quick start.
• Auditing and Logging: Enable detailed auditing and logging to track all SFTP activity. Implement alerts for suspicious events. All transactions are logged, including IP and geo-location here.
• Content Delivery Network (CDN): Static file downloads are accelerated via a global CDN, ensuring fast delivery to users worldwide.
• Consider Pricing: Evaluate your storage needs and bandwidth usage to select an appropriate pricing tier. You can find our pricing information here.
• Edge Location: When setting up SFTP access, consider using edgeN.ftpgrid.com for optimal performance based on your geographic location.