Apparently there is a bug in UBUNTU 14.04 where the VSFTP does not seem to work It is a reported bug by Ubuntu kernel and there is an updated kernel which works. Unfortunately for the Amazon EC2 it seems that they still have the older version. There is an option to get the latest Ubuntu Kernel and update it but that will be great with a fresh install. For those installed the option seems to be limited. The PROFTPD seems to be working. Here are the details. LOGIN IN using the pem key via putty: #sudo su root - root# apt-get install proftpd Edit the proftd.conf in /etc/proftpd/proftpd.conf vi /etc/proftpd/proftpd.confg Make sure port 21 is not commented out Make the below changes. # In some cases you have to specify passive ports range to by-pass # firewall limitations. Ephemeral ports can be used for that, but # feel free to use a more narrow range. PassivePorts ...