How to Convert ftp_download.php to Use ncftpgetc

1. Converting ftp_download.php to ncftpget

If you want to replace the PHP-based FTP downloader with ncftpget, create the following file:

/usr/local/directadmin/scripts/custom/ftp_download.php

Insert the following content:

/bin/sh

FTPGET=/usr/bin/ncftpget
TOUCH=/bin/touch
PORT=${ftp_port}

if [ ! -e $TOUCH ] && [ -e /usr/bin/touch ]; then
       TOUCH=/usr/bin/touch
fi

if [ ! -e $FTPGET ]; then
       echo "";
       echo "*** Backup not downloaded ***";
       echo "Please install $FTPGET by running:";
       echo "";
       echo "cd /usr/local/directadmin/scripts";
       echo "./ncftp.sh";
       echo "";
       exit 10;
fi

CFG=${ftp_local_file}.cfg
/bin/rm -f $CFG
$TOUCH $CFG
/bin/chmod 600 $CFG
/bin/echo "host $ftp_ip" >> $CFG
/bin/echo "user $ftp_username" >> $CFG
/bin/echo "pass $ftp_password_esc_double_quote" >> $CFG

$FTPGET -C -f $CFG -V -t 25 -P $PORT "$ftp_ip" "$ftp_path/$ftp_remote_file" "$ftp_local_file" 2>&1
RET=$?

/bin/rm -f $CFG

exit $RET

Make it executable:

chmod 755 /usr/local/directadmin/scripts/custom/ftp_download.php

2. Slowing Down Backup Rate to Avoid Flooding Remote FTP

If many users are being backed up, the backup system may connect too quickly to the remote FTP server, causing rate limits or blocks. You can add a delay after each user backup.

Create the file:

/usr/local/directadmin/scripts/custom/user_backup_post.sh

Add:

#!/bin/sh
sleep 20
exit 0;

Make it executable:

chmod 755 /usr/local/directadmin/scripts/custom/user_backup_post.sh

This adds a 20‑second pause after each user’s tar.gz backup is created.

3. Building a Redundant Backup Server

DirectAdmin is designed as a single‑server system, but you can still build redundancy using two main approaches:

3.1 Method 1: Nightly Backup Transfer + Automated Restore

You can transfer nightly backups to another DirectAdmin server and automatically restore them via cron.

To generate the restore command:

• Start a normal restore
• Immediately run:

cat /usr/local/directadmin/data/task.queue

The output is what you add to cron to automate restores.

3.2 Method 2: Using rsync (Recommended)

This method:

• Does not require a second DirectAdmin license
• Uses far less bandwidth
• Transfers only changed files

Be careful not to overwrite system files such as /etc/passwd, /etc/group, /etc/shadow.

4. Adding a Date to FTP Backup Filenames

By default, FTP backups do not include a date in the filename. You can modify ftp_upload.php to add a date stamp.

4.1 Create a Custom Copy

cd /usr/local/directadmin/scripts/custom
cp ../ftp_upload.php .
chmod 755 ./ftp_upload.php

4.2 Add Date to Filename

Add this line after the #!/bin/bash shebang:

ftp_remote_file="`echo $ftp_remote_file | awk -F. '{for (i=1; i

ftp_remote_file="`echo $ftp_remote_file | awk -F. '{for (i=1; i