Are you having trouble with the “FTP 550 No such file or directory” error?

As part of our Outsourced Technical Support Services, we regularly fix these type of FTP errors for our customers.

Today, we’ll see the causes for the error “FTP 550 no such file or directory” and how our Support Engineers fix them.

What is FTP 550 error?

Firstly, let’s get a quick idea of the FTP 550 error.

The 5xx error falls under the permanent negative completion reply status of the FTP server. And, it means that the FTP server did not accept the command and the requested action did not take place. Furthermore, x5x error denotes File system errors in the FTP server.
Overall, the 550 error means the file was not found or there are access restrictions for the file.

Causes for “FTP 550 no such file or directory”

Recently, one of our customers reported trouble with FTP upload. The logs of his FTP session looked as shown below.

STATUS:> Transferring file "/mydir/home.html"...
COMMAND:> SIZE home.html
550 home.html: No such file.
STATUS:> Requested action not taken (e.g., file or directory not found, no access).
COMMAND:> CWD /mydir/home.html
550 /mydir/home.html: No such file or directory.

Here, the customer was trying to PUT the file home.html via FTP. And that resulted in the error.

Now, let’s see the top causes for the error.

1. Incorrect path

Usually, “FTP 550 no such file or directory” error happens when the customers try to upload files from the wrong directory.

For example, when the file is present in the folder /home/user/abc.html, an attempt to upload from the path /home will cause this error.

This error also happens when customer uses the relative path in FTP.

2. Permission problems

Similarly, wrong permission on the files or folders can also cause this 550 error. When the user do not have privileges on the file they are trying to access, it will report the 550 error.

Additionally, a typo in the file name will also lead to this error.

3. Wrong Mount points

Again, we often see FTP 550 errors when users trying to access files in the mounted file systems.

For instance, recently a customer complained about the problems accessing files via FTP. In his server, he had a mounted file system. But, this mount failed after a server reboot. And, when he tried to access a file in this mounted directory, it resulted in the error:

550 <filename>: No such file or directory

How to fix FTP 550 error?

Verify the File Path

1. First, connect to the server via SSH.
2. Navigate to the directory where the file is supposed to be located using the cd command.
3. List the contents of the directory using the ls command to confirm the presence of the file.
4. If the file is found, double-check the path used in the FTP command. Make sure to use the absolute path instead of a relative path to avoid confusion.
5. If the file is not found, determine the correct location of the file and update the FTP command accordingly.

Check File Permissions

1. First, connect to the server via SSH.
2. Then, go to the directory containing the file using the cd command.
3. List the file permissions using the ls -l command. This will display the permissions for each file and directory.
4. Ensure that the user attempting to access the file has the necessary permissions (read, write, or execute) based on the file’s permissions.
5. If the permissions are incorrect, they need to be modified using the chmod command.

Examine Mount Points

If the files are stored on a mounted filesystem, follow these steps to check the mount points:

1. First, connect to the server via SSH.
2. Then, check the mounted filesystems using the mount command. This will display a list of all mounted filesystems and their mount points.
3. Next, verify that the filesystem containing the files is listed and that the mount point is correct.
4. If the filesystem is not mounted, or if the mount point is incorrect, the server will return a 550 error when attempting to access files within that directory.
5. If the mount point is not available, we need to mount the filesystem correctly or update the mount point in the server configuration.

Other Possible Causes and Fixes

• File Being Written to

  If an FTP client attempts to access a file that is currently being written to by another process, the server may return a 550 error indicating that the file cannot be accessed.

  Fix: Make sure that the file is completely written and closed by the application before attempting to access it via FTP.
• Incorrect FTP Mode (Active vs. Passive)

  The FTP client and server may not be in agreement on the mode of operation (active or passive), which can lead to connection issues and result in a 550 error.

  Fix: Switch between active and passive FTP modes in the FTP client settings. If we are using a firewall, it has to allow the necessary ports.
• Firewall or Security Software Interference

  Firewalls or security software on the server or client machine can block FTP connections, leading to access issues.

  Fix: Check firewall settings to ensure that FTP traffic is allowed. For FTP, ports 21 (control) and 20 (data) should be open. If using passive mode, ensure that the range of ports used for passive connections is also open.
• Corrupted FTP Client

  Sometimes, the FTP client itself may be corrupted or misconfigured, leading to unexpected errors.

  Fix: So, try reinstalling the FTP client or using a different client to see if the issue persists.
• User Account Restrictions

  Cause: The user account used for FTP access may have restrictions that prevent access to certain files or directories.

  Fix: Verify the user account settings on the FTP server.

[Are you getting 550 error while accessing files via FTP?  We can quickly fix it for you.]

Conclusion

In short, FTP error “550 no such file or directory” happens mainly when the file do not exist at the path, due to permission problems, etc. Today, we saw the top causes for the error and how our Support Engineers fix them.