I was woundering if someone can help guide me. Ive set up and configured a http server and ftp server. With that I configured php. I realy just want guidence on this question not spoon feeding. I have set up a web server and ftp server. With that i configured php and learned how to make my own php scripts. Here is what I want guidence in

senerio: Ive set up my own server and now want to host for others. So I make a form for people to sign up. To be secure I use SSL3, the form gets processed by the php script I have writen. Now useing the username and pass I want to have my script add the users acount to the server, instead of me manualy haveing to go to my administration interface and add in the acount. I want it to be autmated. Simulary the user will want a way to upload files, so I set up a ftp server, but the same problem arises. I would have to manualy enter the user into an acount, but I want this to be automated with a php script.

Im comterable writeing php. I have been google searching and searcing the forms here, I desided to experiment and I looked in the directory for my FTP server and found a file users.pro and when opened I found that it contained all the user acount info includeing the password in plain text. So ive desided not to use the ftp server, but I could just as easily write a php script to write the binary data to the file by just imitateing the format that the other acounts are in. But is there a easyer way. I looked at some comerical ftp server software and none of which seem to have a feature built in to make the process of automateing adding users. So I was thinking, is the only way to automate this process a mater of trial and error, finding the file that stores acount info and adding the info yourself.

If the file was encripted I would need to know the encription used so I can also encript the data.

What I want is, can someone guide me as to how I would go abouts this. i.e. just trial and error, playing with user setting files, or is there a simpler method I am over looking?

Anything that can guide me in the right direction would be apreciated.