BizTalk SFTP Adapter can send but not recieve files and FileZilla on Client connects

Question

I should start out by saying that what I want is to have an SFTP server that customers can connect to and drop files and I want my BizTalk on another server (local to the SFTP Server) receive those files. My assumption is I use the SFTP adapter in BizTalk 2013. Here's is all that I've done to test and troubleshoot to no avail.

I am using BizTalk 2013 on one virtual server (Client) with a static IP and have another VM on our network running an FTP server (Server). I'm trying both XLight and Cerberus FTP servers but both are having the same issue.

I have an orchestration with a receive location that receives a txt flatfile and puts it through a pipeline to disassemble, transform etc. In BizTalk admin I added an SFTP receive location on the FTP server to take the file in. When I start the biztalk application the receive port contacts the FTP server, I see that it makes the connection successfully, but then it closes immediately. When XLight is running the log says "[SSH_FXP_OPENDIR] Badly Formatted SFTP Packet" and when cerberus is running it says that it connects, goes to the appropriate directory opens a channel to receive and EOF and then closes the channel and terminates the connection.

I've troubleshoot this many ways and can say this. I've loaded FileZilla on the client and been able to connect through port 22 to the FTP Server and transfer files back and forth just fine. I also setup the biztalk applicaiton on the client to receive a file from a local folder and then after the disassemble, send the file via SFTP using the same connection variables as the previously mentioned SFTP receive port, to the server, at the same location. When I drop a text file in the client folder location in this scenario, the file goes into the application and gets sent to the FTP Server location, AND the connection to the SFTP server stays open.

Ports 22 and 21 are open both inbound and outbound and the connection obviously works given that FileZilla allows me to read/write/delete files back and forth.

Any help on this or maybe another route, would be appreciated. Maybe I should just use the SFTP to allow customers to connect and then use some other method to transfer the files between the local servers? I've also tried FTP and get no connections from biztalk to ftp server but filezilla connects.

Answer 1

I'm not sure on the adapter config for BizTalk 2013, but I've used the open source SFTP adapter from BLogical with success under BizTalk 2010. If nothing else it might confirm the server is setup correctly (although I suspect it must be some config on the BizTalk side)

Answer 2

Right, wrong or indifferent, the typical scenario (and what i would do) is what you begin to describe in at the end.

Have your FTP Server as the public interface then use the BizTalk FILE Adapter to read/write to the same folders. Assuming the file storage is internal, FTP(s) could be considered unnecessary overhead on the BizTalk side.