Introduction
FTP [File Transfer Protocol] is one of the oldest protocols still in use on the Internet today. This is mostly due to its proven speed, reliability and functionality. Since so many web administration tasks involve sending files to the server, understandably FTP can be put to use for nearly all of them.
FTP clients are available for all operating systems capable of connecting to the Internet. Some are better featured than others though, and are often found as shareware.
What FTP can do - What FTP can do:
» Navigate through your files and directories
» Upload & download files
» Create and delete directories
» Manipulate file & directory permissions
Connection Quickstart
Firstly you must obtain an FTP client that is capable of the required functionality.
Configuration - To set up your FTP client to connect to your account requires three things:
» server address - enter your domain name or your server IP address
» login ID - your login ID you received with your account
» password - the password you chose when you ordered your account
Upon logging in, the 'remote' window of the FTP client will show a list of files in your home directory. Of special note is the public_html directory, where you will want to place any files you wish to be accessible through your web server, and the public_ftp directory, for files you want accessible from your FTP server.
Site Management
To start uploading your web site, upload your files into the public_html directory. Be sure your main page is named either index.html or default.html and is in the public_html directory, as the web server will look for one of these two files when people access your domain directly.
Hidden Files - Certain files/directories will not appear when logged in via FTP; mostly the 'dot' files - those that have filenames that begin with a period.
Transferring Files - Transferring files in most graphical FTP clients is as simply as dragging file from the local window (your computer) to the remote window (the server). Just be positive that you are in the correct directory on both sides before transferring any files.
Changing File Permissions - Changing file permissions (sometimes referred to as attributes) is usually as simple as right clicking on the file you wish to modify permissions for. For most users this will not be necessary but will be for users upload CGI files.
File Types - Although most FTP client should detect this automatically, it should be noted that FTP has two transfer modes - ASCII and BINARY. Most uploads should be done in BINARY mode, however, if you are uploading files which are in text [ASCII] they should be uploaded in ASCII mode to convert carriage returns correctly. [Unix uses different signals for the end of a line of text than Windows or Macintosh].
Note: HTML Files [.html, .html], Perl/CGI Files [.pl, .cgi], and Text files [.txt] should all be transferred using ASCII mode, as they are ASCII based files.
FTP Resources
The following links are to some FTP software which is recommended, but not commercially endorsed by Pappashop All of these programs are certified to function with our servers, and should be relatively easy to configure and use.
Windows Clients
» Bulletproof - http://www.bpftp.com/
» Filezilla - http://filezilla.sourceforge.net/
» CuteFTP - http://www.cuteftp.com/
» WS_Ftp - http://www.ipswitch.com/products/ws_ftp/index.html
» FlashFXP - http://www.inicom.net/pages/en.ffxp-home.php
» LeapFTP - http://www.leapware.com/
» FTP Voyager - http://www.ftpvoyager.com/
» SmartFTP - http://www.smartftp.com/
Macintosh Clients
» Fetch - http://www.fetchsoftworks.com/
