Virtual Machine in Azure Part 2: Configure to login with Microsoft Account & make it FTP Server

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Hi everyone. In the previous part you learned how to create a Virtual Machine on Azure. In this part I’ll show you how to set it up so you can sign in with your own Microsoft Account, and how to turn it into an FTP server.

Login with MS Account

Create a new user using a Microsoft Account as the username (for example blahblahblah@hotmail.com)

Once created, open Computer Management and pick Local Users and Groups under System Tools. The newly created user shows up there with a shortened name.

Open this User’s Property, switch to the Member of tab and add this person to the Remote Desktop Users group.

In the Control Panel, open System and Security, pick Allow Remote Access, and uncheck the “Allow connections only … with Network Level Authentication” option.

The last step is to open the .RDP file in notepad and change the line “prompt for credentials:i:1“ into “enablecredsspsupport:i:0“

That’s it. After signing in for the first time, you can undo the last 2 steps.

FTP Server

Setting it up in the Azure Portal

The first step is to create a port 21 in the Azure management section

Click Add in the Endpoint section of your Virtual Machine

Pick Add a stand alone endpoint and hit next

Pick FTP and the settings are filled in for you (:yay:)

Wait for it to finish

Setting it up on the Virtual Machine

Installing FileZilla Server

On the VM, download FileZilla Server: https://filezilla-project.org/download.php?type=server

During installation, accept all of its default options

Open FileZilla Server and pick Edit > Users

Add a new User with whatever name you like. This is the name you’ll use to sign in to your FTP Server later

Add a password for this account. Otherwise a Man-in-the-middle can reach your server and wreck it

Next, pick Shared Folders and add the Folder you will connect to in order to download or upload data

Note that there are options granting different permissions on the folder, and those permissions follow the account you created and selected in FileZilla Server

Note 2: never pick the root Folder (C:/ D:/ E:/); always pick a Folder one level below the root

Next, open FileZilla Server Settings and pick Passive Mode

Pick “Use custom Port Range” and fill in a port number on both sides (because you won’t want to create a hundred ports in the Azure Portal)

Then pick Retrieve external IP Address from

Setting up the Firewall

Open Windows Firewall and allow FileZilla Server

Pick Allow an app through Windows Firewall

If you can’t find FileZilla Server in the list, browse to its .exe executable

In the end it should look like this

Next, in Control Panel > Windows Firewall, pick Advanced Settings

Pick Inbound Rules and add the custom Port you just set up in FileZilla Server

Configure the port for this Inbound Rule

Setting it up on the Local Machine

Installing the FileZilla Client

Download the FileZilla Client at: https://filezilla-project.org/download.php?type=client

When it starts, enter the IP range from your Public IP on Azure

Fill in the information in the matching boxes and hit quick connect

The list of Folders you Shared shows up :3

Testing the speed of the newly created FTP Server

Azure’s network speed

Download

The company network’s QoS blocks high-speed downloads of large files (sigh)

Upload

The company network’s QoS blocks high-speed uploads of large files (sigh)