Serv-U Gateway installation instructions for Linux

10/29/2018 11:08 AM

1/13/2026 5:30 PM

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

Serv-U 15.4.1 supports the following versions of Linux:

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) v.7.2 (Recommended)
• Fedora 24
• Ubuntu 16.04
• CentOS 7.2
• OpenSUSE 42.1
• Rocky Linux 8

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

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

General Installation Process

1. Install the FTP software - automatically install as a service.

2. Add Gateway entries in Serv-U Management Console.

3. Add Listener entries in Serv-U domains to use the Gateway.

4. Test external connectivity from file transfer clients.

Prerequisites

Before proceeding with your installation, please ensure all of the following items are in place.

• Existing Serv-U Server and Connectivity
  You must have already installed Serv-U on a server that can make connections to Serv-U Gateway. These connections may be (and probably will) be through a firewall and can be restricted to a single TCP port (1180 by default), but you must have this connectivity in place before you can complete your installation.

• At Least One Serv-U Domain
  You must have at least one domain configured on Serv-U, and that domain should have at least one configured and active listener and at least one configured user.

• Current Version of Serv-U
  Serv-U must be at least version 12, and must be running the same major edition of software (e.g., "v12") as your Gateway.

• Separate Machine for Serv-U Gateway
  You must have a second machine (may be a virtual machine) on which you can install Serv-U Gateway.

Download the Serv-U 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 Licenses > Manage Licenses.

4. Scroll down and look for Serv-U MFT or Serv-U Gateway entry and click on "Choose Download" button right beside it.

5. Under Product Downloads > Server Downloads > select the appropriate version of Serv-U application you want to download.

6. Click on the "Download" button.

Serv-U Gateway Install

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

mkdir /usr/local/download

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

cd /usr/local/download

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

gunzip SU-Gateway-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:

tar -xvf SU-Gateway-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:

chmod 777 SU-Gateway-Linux-64bit-v15.x.x

7. Stop the Serv-U Gateway service. Run command: 

service Serv-U Gateway stop

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

./SU-Gateway-Linux-64bit-v15.x.x

9. Follow the prompts and complete the install.


Add Gateway entries

Almost all Serv-U Gateway configuration is performed through the Serv-U Management Console. Serv-U Gateway does not have its own management console.

1. Open the Serv-U Management Console and navigate to Server Details | Gateway.

   

   Note: Only perform these steps if you are testing Serv-U Gateway on a machine without a public IP address.

2. Click Add to create a new Gateway entry.
   Gateway Address: the IP address of your Serv-U Gateway machine. 
   (If this machine has multiple addresses, pick the internal address that Serv-U will use to connect to the Gateway, not an external address that end users would access from the Internet)

3. Port: 1180 
   (Leave alone for now.)
   Public IP Address: 
   (You may narrow this to only one binding later, but leave blank for now.)
   Enable Gateway: CHECKED 
   (You may toggle this setting later, but leave this on for now.)
   Description: 
   (Leave blank or put anything you want in here.)

4. After you click Save, the new Gateway should immediately show up in the list. Pay attention to the color of the icon.
      Great! Go to the next step.
      Serv-U is checking on the Gateway's status. Another status will appear in a few seconds.
      The Gateway is working but you are running dangerously close to the end of your trial or updates/support period. You should plan to buy or renew soon, but you may also move on to the next step for now.
      Something is wrong. Select the Gateway entry and then select "Properties" to find out why you cannot connect to your new Gateway.
   If you "fix" something (e.g., open a firewall port, start a stopped Serv-U Gateway service) it will normally take a few seconds for Serv-U to realize that a change has been made. To speed up the process, select your Gateway entry, "Edit" it and immediately "Save" your Gateway settings again.

5. Apply a license, if you have it. To do this:

   1. Select the Gateway entry

   2. Select "Properties" to open the "Properties" dialog.

   3. Copy your Serv-U Gateway Registration ID (not a Serv-U Registration ID) into the box and click Save.

6. If you are testing on a private network, declare one of your Gateway's internal IP addresses as the IP address that will receive incoming connections.

7. To force your Serv-U Gateway to listen on a private address:

8. Select your Gateway and click "Edit"

9. Type the private address that will receive incoming connections into the "Public IP Address" box.

10. Save and make sure the address you just typed shows up in your Gateway list.

Add Listeners entries

You must add Listener entries to each domain that will use your new Gateway.

1. Go into one of your Serv-U domains and open Domain Details | Listeners.

   

2. Before you add any Gateway Listeners, use an FTP client or web browser to sign on to one of your existing Listeners.
   The reason you want to do this now is to make sure that the user you will use to test your Gateway has been enabled, has access to the right materials, hasn't been locked out, etc. Make sure you test against one of the IP addresses on your existing Serv-U server, not the Serv-U Gateway.

3. Click Add to create a new Listener entry.
   Type: Select the same type as the local Listener you just tested. 
   (Again, this ensures that server configuration is not the issue if you encounter problems during testing.)
   IP address: Select an IP address on your Serv-U Gateway. Use an external or "Internet-facing" address if possible. 
   (Use an internal address on the Serv-U Gateway only if you cannot test from "outside the firewall".)
   Port: Use the same port as the Listener you just tested. 
   (Exceptions: Use a port other than "22" if you are testing SFTP on a Gateway deployed on Linux. Also use a different port if you are testing Gateway on the same machine as Serv-U.)
   Enable listener: CHECKED
   PASV IP Address (FTP/S only): Leave blank for now. 
   (You may need to adjust this later, but work on basic connectivity first.)

4. After you click Save, the new Listener should immediately show up in the list. Pay attention to the icon.
    Great! Go to the next step.
    There is a problem with the Listener. This could be due to a port conflict, due to a loss of connectivity with the Gateway or several other reasons. Check your Domain Log, then your System Log for more information.

5. Check "Server Activity | Server Log" to make sure the Gateway has gone live.
   Look for entries like this: 
    
   
   These are both BAD entries. The first entry shows a connected Gateway, but this Gateway will not be able to listen for any inbound connections because the "IP(s)" entry is blank. The second entry shows a configured Gateway that cannot be reached. If you see either of these entries, STOP and check the work you did in the "Add Gateway Entry" section.
   Look for entries like this: 
    
   
   These are both GOOD entries. The first entry shows a connected Gateway that is ready to receive inbound connections on a particular IP address. The second entry shows that a SFTP Listener configured to listen on port 2225 is now ready to receive inbound connections. If you see entries like this, your Gateway and its Listeners are fine. Please proceed to the next section.

Test External Connectivity

Before you deploy to production (or perform a demonstration for management) you should perform an end-to-end connectivity test.

1. Test your first Gateway Listener.
   Use the same client and same username you used to test your local Listener. Connect to the "Public IP Address" of your Gateway using the appropriate protocol and port for your first Gateway Listener.

2. Flip back to the Serv-U Management Console and open "Domain Activity | Domain Log" to examine your connection.
   Look for entries like this: 
    
    
   
   These are all GOOD entries. The first entry shows that an inbound connection came in to an SFTP Listener on the Gateway. The second and third show that my Serv-U server (on 192.168.5.71) has bound a session to the incoming session from the Gateway.

3. If all is well, go to the next step. Otherwise, double-check you are really connecting to Serv-U Gateway or use the troubleshooting section below.

4. Set up and test the rest of your Gateway Listeners by repeating the steps above.
   Also repeat these steps if you want to add additional IP addresses to your Gateway. (Gateway Listeners cannot currently bind to multiple IP addresses.)

Software update

Every update arrives as a complete installation package. Simply run a newer installation package to update your Serv-U Gateway software.
No backup is necessary on your Serv-U Gateway machine because no configuration is held there.

Unattended updates

To perform an unattended ("silent") update, use the "-silent" parameter when you invoke the installation program from the command line. Remember to run updates as root or use the "sudo" command to start the installation program. (Use of "sudo" is preferred.)

Troubleshooting

Follow this procedure to find the source of a connection error reported in Serv-U's Gateway tab.

1. Check that the Serv-U-Gateway process is running.

2. Check that Serv-U Gateway is listening on TCP port 1180 and is bound to the expected IP address(es).

3. Check that network firewalls and routers permit TCP access over port 1180 from Serv-U to Serv-U Gateway.

4. Check that local firewalls permit TCP access over port 1180 from Serv-U to Serv-U Gateway.

If you do not see your Serv-U Gateway IP address listed in a new Listener's IP Address drop-down.

1. Ensure Serv-U is connecting to Serv-U Gateway OK (a green icon in the Gateway list).

2. Make sure EITHER:

   • Your Serv-U Gateway machine has at least one public IP address

   • You performed step 5 in the Add Gateway Entries section above (because the Serv-U Gateway machine only has private IP addresses)

Helpful Commands

The process name is Serv-U-Gateway. Try:

• ps -Al | grep Serv
  sudo /etc/init.d/Serv-U-Gateway stop
  sudo /etc/init.d/Serv-U-Gateway start
  service Serv-U-Gateway start
  service Serv-U-Gateway stop
  service Serv-U-Gateway status
  service Serv-U-Gateway restart

The default port Serv-U Gateway listens on is TCP 1180. Try:

• netstat -an -p | grep 1180
  sudo netstat -an -p | grep 1180

A common local Linux firewall is iptables or firewalld. Try:

• sudo /etc/init.d/iptables status
  sudo iptables status
  sudo firewalld status
  sudo iptables stop
  sudo firewalld stop

   

The Gateway writes a limited bootstrap log here:

• /usr/local/Serv-U Gateway/Serv-U-Gateway.txt

Additional assistance

See Plan your Serv-U Gateway deployment for a project template that allows you to select the right Serv-U architecture and coordinate with related IT teams to deploy Serv-U Gateway into production.
Additional assistance is available from our Technical Support Team.