[Novices] permissions & sharing between users

[Adam Tauno Williams]

> Basically, I have a computer at the office with a set domain name and 
> sftp enabled (but no web serving or anything).  I'd like users I've set 
> up to be able to log in and download / upload files from / to a "public" 
> directory of some kind.  First, how would I make a directory like that, 
> and where's the standard place to put it?  /usr/share or something?

It should be in /var, such as /var/ftp or /var/sftp, unless you're on
SuSe where the kosher place is /srv/ftp or /srv/sftp, etc...

> Second, suppose I wanted a subdirectory of my home directory to be 
> shareable in this way.  I tried 'chmod 1777' and the like but still 
> other users can't see it, I guess because the parent directory is still 700?

You should be able to set your home directory to 711, then they will be
able to open files and directories, but only if the name is know;  which
if it is shared by some service is probably true.  I do this and then
set my Desktop & Documents folders to 700.

Or you can design a more select method using setfacl/getfacl if you are
using a filesystem that supports ACLs (XFS).