Changes coming to ftp servers and sending documentation to IBM
Changes are effective August 31, 2022.
There are some important changes coming to IBM ftp servers that are used to upload IBM Z documentation. Effective August 31, 2022, plain unsecured ftp to the testcase and ecurep /toibm/* directory will no longer be allowed. In addition, the use of ID “anonymous” and any password will no longer be accepted for authentication. The details are can be found here: https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/6540304
It is recommended that all IBM Z customers have secure transport protocols in place such as HTTPS, FTPS, or SFTP before August 31, 2022. There are details on how to send data on the “IBM Support – Enhanced Customer Data Repository (ECuRep)” site, including hostnames for your preferred protocol: https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/739401
An IBM Support File Transfer ID and password (token) will also be required to upload or download documentation from the /toibm or /fromibm directories. Anonymous and any password will no longer be accepted. You can obtain an IBM Support File Transfer ID here: https://www.secure.ecurep.ibm.com/transferids/
Please be prepared and update any existing JCL, jobs or tools including Problem Documentation Upload Utility (PDUU) and z/OSMF to use secure protocols and the new IBM Support File Transfer ID and password (token) instead of anonymous.
Frequently Asked Questions about the changes are documented here: https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/faqs-about-gdpr-related-changes-ecurep-and-testcase-ftp-file-uploads
About the author
Dianne Gamarra is a Senior Software Engineer for the IBM z/OS Support Team.