Post-Processing

Add post-processing scripts to run on package receipt.

Aspera^®Faspex™ administrators have the ability to execute post-processing scripts on the server to accomplish tasks such as virus checking, moving files, and creating backups once packages arrive. Post-processing uses a set of filtering options to determine when to execute customized scripts. Aspera Faspex can execute shell scripts and Windows batch scripts, where information about the package is passed to the script by means of environment variables.

Post-processing scripts that have been activated execute automatically after the initial transfer to a default inbox. The relay of a package to a custom inbox does not trigger script execution.

Note:

In the event that a Aspera Faspex Administrative account is compromised, post-processing can be a serious threat to your server's security. Thus, Aspera strongly recommends that you update your administrative users' permissions in order to prevent unauthorized users from executing post-processing on your Aspera Faspex server. To secure your Aspera Faspex server, follow the instructions described in Configure a Secure Aspera Faspex. Note that by default, post-processing is enabled. To disable it for security reasons, please see the instructions at the end of this topic.

To prepare a post-processing script, follow the steps directly below.

Prepare the post-processing script

Generate your post-processing script and place it in a directory on the machine running your Aspera Faspex server. Take note of, or copy, your script's full system path on the server. You can utilize the following environment variables in your post-processing scripts, but be sure to use the proper format. For example, the variable faspex_pkg_directory will be available as $faspex_pkg_directory in shell scripts, and %faspex_pkg_directory% in Windows batch files.

Variable	Description
faspex_pkg_directory	Storage directory of the package. See cautionary note below.
faspex_pkg_name	Package title.
faspex_pkg_note	Package note.
faspex_pkg_id	Package ID.
faspex_recipient_list	Comma-separated list of recipients. (e.g. "admin, johndoe")
faspex_recipient_count	Number of recipients. (e.g. "3")
faspex_recipient_i	Name of the recipient. (i starts at "0", e.g. faspex_recipient_0, faspex_recipient_1 ...).
faspex_sender_id	The sender's ID.
faspex_sender_name	The sender's full name.
faspex_sender_email	The sender's e-mail.
faspex_pkg_total_bytes	Size of the package in bytes.
faspex_pkg_total_files	Number of files in the package.
faspex_pkg_uuid	The package's UUID (36 characters).
faspex_metadata_fields	Comma separated list of the metadata fields defined for the package.
faspex_metadata_<field>	The value of the metadata field named <field>. In the field name, spaces are converted to underscores, non alphanumeric characters or underscores are stripped. For example, "my field" becomes "my_field"; "*my_group" becomes "mygroup".

CAUTION:

If you are upgrading from Aspera Faspex 2.X to 3.X and use post-processing scripts, you will need to modify the scripts as follows, since the package's full path is no longer available to the scripts:

If the transfer server is on the same machine (node) as Aspera Faspex, ensure that the package path is prefixed with the Aspera Faspex user’s docroot. After doing so, you may want to check for an extra slash character in the path if you have a slash both at the end of the docroot and at the start of the path as defined in $faspex_pkg_directory. For example, the entry /home/faspex/faspex_packages/$faspex_pkg_directory and a package title of "NewVideos" could result in /home/faspex/faspex_packages//NewVideos - 10d8a2f1-30f4-47ad-a55b-6f8dbba7ff8d/PKG - NewVideos.
If the transfer server is on a different machine, modify post-processing scripts to invoke the Node API, or mount the remote volume on the Aspera Faspex server.

Set up post-processing within the Aspera Faspex Server GUI

Go to Server > Post-Processing and click Create New.

In the Add New Script screen, enter the following information. Click Create when finished:

Script to run

Item	Description
Name	A descriptive name for this script.
Path to script on server	Enter the full path to the executable script that exists on the server. Important: The System user Faspex should have the proper permissions to access and execute this file.
Active	Check to enable this script.

Execution criteria

All specified criteria must match the uploaded package's attributes for the script to be run on that package. All match fields in this section are optional. When Exact match is checked, the package attribute has to match the specified criterion exactly for the script to be run, the entered text will be matched anywhere in the field.

Item	Description
Package name	Execute when the package name matches the string.
Sender name	Execute when the sender name matches the string.
Sender email	Execute when the sender email matches the string.
Recipient name	Execute when the recipient name matches the string.
Recipient email	Execute when the recipient email matches the string.
Package note	Execute when the package note matches the string.
Package date	Execute when the package date falls into the determined range.
Package size	Execute when the package size falls into the determined range.
Package file count	Execute when the package file count falls into the determined range.

For security reasons, you may optionally disable post-processing in faspex.yml. The DisablePostProcessing setting can be found in the faspex.yml file, accessible via the following path:

/opt/aspera/faspex/config/faspex.yml

Important:

Aspera strongly recommends backing up faspex.yml before modifying.

Within faspex.yml, change "DisablePostProcessing:false" to "DisablePostProcessing:true"

...
DisablePostProcessing:true
...