FTP is the protocol that every single web hosting server uses to allow its subscribers and users to upload and download content between their servers. The servers are just computers like the ones you have at home, but much more powerful and with a lot more disk space. The reason they have so much storage space is because hundreds of user websites are stored on that one computer and each of them has the ability to connect to the server and transfer files via an FTP client. Whenever you connect to your web host to work on your website, use FTP. Some people may be using SFTP but probably aren’t aware of it. Either way, use some form of FTP!
FTP clients are simply programs that allow you to use all the commands available for the FTP protocol, e.g. B. Upload, Download, Move, Rename and much more. It’s of course possible to do all of this manually without the use of a GUI (Graphical User Interface) that commercial FTP clients provide you with similar buttons and menus. Manual methods often involve a command line interface, where the user enters the FTP commands directly, telling the server exactly what to do. This would take too long to learn for most people and most likely wouldn’t be worth learning if they just want to do the odd file upload or download! Graphics-based FTP clients remove all of this complexity and give you simple buttons to click to run the complicated commands for you. A new generation of FTP convenience has arrived in the form of web-based FTP clients. These are simply online interfaces or small programs that allow you to access your FTP/Web server from a website. If you want to use this type of service, make sure that the website hosting the web-based FTP client is trustworthy, as you will need to enter your credentials to gain access to your FTP space. If it is a malicious website, it is very easy for them to steal this information from you!
Public FTP servers allow you to log in without any user credentials and you are considered an anonymous user. Paid web hosting and FTP hosting services do not allow anonymous logins as this is obviously a serious security breach! Even if anonymous logins are allowed, an anonymous user cannot perform any file operations. You are only allowed to see the content of the server. The concept of anonymous user access is declining as it becomes increasingly useless and a security risk that most administrators do not allow. Corporate servers and servers that contain sensitive information are most likely using SFTP (Secure File Transfer Protocol) and not just FTP (or at least they should!) because all instructions and activity information is private and not visible to the public or anyone else. Such information can be used by certain resourceful individuals to crack passwords and perform a whole range of other malicious activities.
Thanks to Tom C W Higgins | #FTP #coming
