while doing ftp i get error which look like

421 Service not available.
i have checked the server to which i want to connect by ftp
vsftpd service is running there...
si can you please tell me what should i do?... i am using RHEL4.0

check these settings in vsftp.conf

Or, a complete example:

and then restart it:
/etc/init.d/vsftpd restart

thank you for your suggestion.. i have done all the changes that you have told. but same error comes.. can u tell me what should i do now?...

Do this:
#chkconfig vsftpd on
#service vsftpd restart

Even though if you are getting error,
uninstall and install again.

Yes.


Post the contents of: /var/log/vsftpd/vsftpd.log

Then, describe how you have "Checked the service is running", and tell me how you are connecting to it. Ie, which ftp program are you using?, have you tried disabling firewalls?, have you checked on another machine?, what is the output of: /var/log/messages when the error occurs?

Think about the problem, and what you would need to diagnose it without being able to touch or see it physically, it would help me to help you.

In this order:

Can you see ftp server, ping it:
>ping ftp-server

Yes,
Is the ftp server running?
>ps aux | grep -v grep | grep vsftpd

Variation on this theme are:
is ftp server started automatically:
>/sbin/chkconfig --list | grep ^vsftpd

Is the ftp server configured properly?
There is a lot that can go wrong here but...check
userlist_enable=, userlist_deny=, tcp_wrappers=, anonymous_enable=,

Is the ftp server setup to allow ftp services?
Check Firewall/routing settings
>/sbin/iptables -L
>cat /etc/hosts /etc/hosts.deny /etc/hosts.allow
If you are running FedoraCore/RedHat then as root:
>system-config-securitylevel
make sure the ftp service is enabled.

also, check the output of the vsftpd log file for clues:
>cat /var/log/vsftpd.log
>cat /var/log/messages
>cat /var/log/secure

Now you are getting out on your own.
The log files give lots of clues as to what goes right and what goes wrong.
The /var/log directory is like a newspaper of you system.
Scan it for interesting tidbits about your box, you will be surprised at what you find in these log files, harddisk errors, mis-configured software, security breaches; I know I am finding new interesting bits of info in the /var/log directory.

I know this is not an answer but it is a "teach you to fish" routine.