Install Serv-U on Linux

10/15/2018 7:10 PM

3/31/2026 9:23 PM

The procedure below will show you how to install Serv-U MFT on a Linux server. Just download the right installer from the customer portal and follow the procedure.

Serv-U supports the following Linux versions as of version 15.5.

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) v.8
• CentOS 8
• OpenSUSE 15.5
• Rocky Linux 8
• Ubuntu 20.04 and 22.04
• Debian 12

To see the full list of supported operating systems for Serv-U, see our System Requirements page.
For Serv-U Gateway Linux installation procedure, please refer to this article.

 

Serv-U Managed File Transfer & Serv-U FTP Server

Download the Serv-U MFT and Gateway installer from your Customer Portal:
 

1. Open a browser and go to https://customerportal.solarwinds.com.
2. Log in using your SolarWinds Customer Account UserID and Password.
3. Navigate to Downloads > Download Products
4. Under Product Downloads, choose the Product and the Product version from the options
5. Under Release Downloads, look for the appropriate server version of the Serv-U application you want to download (FTP or MFT server for Windows or Linux).
6. Click on the "Download" button.

Install Serv-U MFT

1. Log in to the Serv-U server as root
2. Create a download folder. Run command: 

# Disclaimer: Scripts are not supported under any SolarWinds support program or service.
# Scripts are provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. SolarWinds further disclaims all warranties including, without limitation, any implied warranties of merchantability or of fitness for a particular purpose.
# The risk arising out of the use or performance of the scripts and documentation stays with you. 
# In no event shall SolarWinds or anyone else involved in the creation, production, or delivery of the scripts be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use the scripts or documentation. 

root# mkdir /usr/local/download

3. Go into that 'download' folder and copy the MFT install file there To go to the download folder. run command:

# Disclaimer: Scripts are not supported under any SolarWinds support program or service.
# Scripts are provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. SolarWinds further disclaims all warranties including, without limitation, any implied warranties of merchantability or of fitness for a particular purpose.
# The risk arising out of the use or performance of the scripts and documentation stays with you. 
# In no event shall SolarWinds or anyone else involved in the creation, production, or delivery of the scripts be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use the scripts or documentation. 

root# cd /usr/local/download

4. Unzip the file. Make sure to use the actual file name instead of v15.x.x. Run command: 

# Disclaimer: Scripts are not supported under any SolarWinds support program or service.
# Scripts are provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. SolarWinds further disclaims all warranties including, without limitation, any implied warranties of merchantability or of fitness for a particular purpose.
# The risk arising out of the use or performance of the scripts and documentation stays with you. 
# In no event shall SolarWinds or anyone else involved in the creation, production, or delivery of the scripts be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use the scripts or documentation. 

root# gunzip SU-MFT-Server-Linux-64bit-v15.x.x.tar.gz

5. UnTAR the file. Make sure to use the actual file name instead of v15.x.x. Run command:

# Disclaimer: Scripts are not supported under any SolarWinds support program or service.
# Scripts are provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. SolarWinds further disclaims all warranties including, without limitation, any implied warranties of merchantability or of fitness for a particular purpose.
# The risk arising out of the use or performance of the scripts and documentation stays with you. 
# In no event shall SolarWinds or anyone else involved in the creation, production, or delivery of the scripts be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use the scripts or documentation. 

root# tar -xvf SU-MFT-Server-Linux-64bit-v15.x.x.tar

6. Change the permission of the file to make it executable. Make sure to use the actual file name instead of v15.x.x. Run command:

# Disclaimer: Scripts are not supported under any SolarWinds support program or service.
# Scripts are provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. SolarWinds further disclaims all warranties including, without limitation, any implied warranties of merchantability or of fitness for a particular purpose.
# The risk arising out of the use or performance of the scripts and documentation stays with you. 
# In no event shall SolarWinds or anyone else involved in the creation, production, or delivery of the scripts be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use the scripts or documentation. 

root# chmod 777 SU-FTP-Server-Linux-64bit-v15.x.x

 7. Run the Serv-U MFT installer. Make sure to use the actual file name instead of v15.x.x. Run command: 

# Disclaimer: Scripts are not supported under any SolarWinds support program or service.
# Scripts are provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. SolarWinds further disclaims all warranties including, without limitation, any implied warranties of merchantability or of fitness for a particular purpose.
# The risk arising out of the use or performance of the scripts and documentation stays with you. 
# In no event shall SolarWinds or anyone else involved in the creation, production, or delivery of the scripts be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use the scripts or documentation. 

./SU-FTP-Server-Linux-64bit-v15.x.x

8. Stop the Serv-U MFT service. Run command: 

# Disclaimer: Scripts are not supported under any SolarWinds support program or service.
# Scripts are provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. SolarWinds further disclaims all warranties including, without limitation, any implied warranties of merchantability or of fitness for a particular purpose.
# The risk arising out of the use or performance of the scripts and documentation stays with you. 
# In no event shall SolarWinds or anyone else involved in the creation, production, or delivery of the scripts be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use the scripts or documentation. 

root# service Serv-U stop

9. Follow the prompts and complete the install.

Launch the Serv-U  Daemon - Launching the Serv-U Daemon and the Serv-U Management Console from GNOME or KDE: 

1. Go to Applications > Serv-U > Serv-U Tray.
2. Click the tray application in the system tray, and select Start Serv-U.
3. Double-click the tray icon to configure Serv-U. 

Note: You may also click the application tray and select Start Management Console to configure Serv-U. 
 
Run the Serv-U Management Console to set up your domain, listeners, and users - Launching the Serv-U Daemon and the Serv-U Management Console from the Console:

1. Go to the installation directory. The default location is cd /usr/local/Serv-U.
2. Change to root permissions. 
3. Start Serv-U:  ./Serv-U.
4. Configure Serv-U. If it was installed using --mode console, connect to the server with a web browser on port 8080.
User: admin
Password: admin
5. Set up your domain, and create an admin account. 

Notes:

• When you launch the Serv-U Management Console for the first time on an empty system, you will be prompted to set up a domain, some listeners (e.g., FTP) and your first user. You can instruct Serv-U to listen for SFTP (SSH) connections on a port other than 22 if you plan to continue to use your Linux's SSH daemon to support terminal connections. (Advanced users can bind their local Linux SSH daemon and the Serv-U SSH listener to port 22 on separate or specific IP addresses.)
• When you install Serv-U through a command-line interface, a default Admin Domain and administrator account is created automatically. After launching the Serv-U Management console, you must add your own administrator account , disable the default administrator account, and delete the Admin Domain.
• Make sure that there is an 'execute' permission to the /tmp folder before installing Serv-U. There are instances where the installation will stop because of this. Edit the /etc/fstab file inside the Linux server and make sure there are no 'noexec' attributes. If there is a need to remove the 'noexec' parameter from the /etc/fstab file, reboot the server after the changes and run the install file again.
• If the Management Console does not load through the default port 8080, it is highly a server firewall issue. Make sure to allow port 8080 for inbound connection in the server, or disable the server firewall completely. You can refer to this article for troubleshooting guide.