FTP Getting Started Guide

What is FTP?

FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol.

It's one of the ways you can get your files transferred from your computer, to your web hosting account.

In order to use the FTP and connect to your hosting account, you will need an FTP client.

The most common FTP clients are FileZilla and Cyberduck, both available for Windows, Mac OS and Linux.

There are number of other different FTP programs available, check out this article for full details.

How to download and install Cyberduck?

To download Cyberduck for Windows, click here.

Installing Cyberduck in Windows is straight forward.

Run the Cyberduck-Installer executable that you have downloaded, then just: Next >> Next >> Install >> Finish:

If you are using Mac, you can download and install Cyberduck from the App Store here. It requires OS X 10.7 or later.

How to download and install FileZilla?

To download FileZilla, click here.

Installing FileZilla on Windows is quite simple. You will need a Windows account with administrative privileges.

Click on the exe package after downloading it to start the installation.

The License Agreement will appear and if you agree and want to proceed with the installation, click on "I Agree". Select whether you wish to make the software available for all users or just yourself, choose the components you want to install and the destination folder:

Installing FileZilla on a Mac OS can be completed in several steps.

First you need to download the correct package for your processor.

Then double click on the package file and it will be automatically extracted.

After that you can use the software.

How to transfer files from your computer to the server?

To transfer files from your computer to the server you will need an FTP account.

Login to your cPanel and go to FTP Accounts:

Create a new FTP account, filling your:

- Log In: The FTP account log in username.

- Domain: The FTP account domain.

- Password: Your FTP password. You can use the Password Generator.

When the Password Generator button is clicked, the new password will appear in the text box within the pop-up window. If the password in the text box is not suitable, you can click Generate Password as many times as you like, until you are satisfied with the password.

- Directory: The Directory text box defines the new FTP account's top level of directory access.

For example, if you enter public_html/john in the Directory text box, the FTP account can access the /home/johndoe/public_html/john/ directory and all of its subdirectories, but cannot access /home/johndoe/public_html/.

The system automatically populates this text box with public_html/account, where account is the username that you entered in the Login text box.

- Quota: Enter the disk space quota, or select Unlimited.

Once you have your FTP account created, click on Configure FTP Client:

This will allow you access the FTP client settings - Manual and by using Configuration Files:

Using Cyberduck to transfer files from your computer to the server:

The easiest way to connect to the server using your FTP account is by using the Cyberduck FTP Configuration file:

- Go to FTP Accounts >> Configure FTP Client >> and Download the Cyberduck FTP Configuration file to your computer:

- Double click on the downloaded file to open it.

This will load your FTP Server and FTP Username in Cyberduck and you will simply need to enter your FTP Password:

Our servers support encrypted connection so you might be quoted to switch to FTP-SSL.

Click Change:

Then tick Always Trust, and click Continue:

The reason for the "This certificate is not valid" warning message is that the SSL certificate is issued for the server's Hostname.

You should be seeing the Cyberduck main window now:

To create a new folder or file on the server or to upload a file from your computer, right click in the main Cyberduck window:

Using FileZilla to transfer files from your computer to the server:

You can use the FileZilla Configuration File to connect to the server using your FTP account:

- Go to FTP Accounts >> Configure FTP Client >> and Download the FileZilla FTP Configuration file to your computer:

Click on FTP Configuration File and save it to your Desktop.

- To import the FTP Configuration File in FileZilla, start the FileZilla application and go to: File >> Import >> then point the application to your Desktop and select the xml FTP Configuration File that you have just downloaded:

This will import your FTP details in the FileZilla's Site Manager, which is accessible through: File >> Site Manager.

To connect to your site, click on File >> Site Manager >> select your FTP Server from the list under My Sites >> and click Connect:

You will be quoted for your FTP Password. Make sure that "Remember password until FileZilla is closed" is ticked, enter your Password and click OK:

That's it!

You should be connected to the server via your FTP Account now:

To upload a file on the server, locate it in the left Local side and double click it, or right click it and select Upload.

To create a new folder or file on the server, right click in the Remote side, and select Create directory or Create new file.

Where to upload my website files?

Your website consists of a group of files and directories, similar to the Documents folder on your home computer. To understand how directories and files function, consider the File Manager.

Contents of the “/home/johndoe” directory.

In the example above, there are three main directories:

/home/johndoe/ - This is your home directory. This directory contains all of your files. Files that you place in this directory will not be visible on the internet. When you view your files with FTP, Web Disk, or the File Manager, you will begin in this directory.

/home/johndoe/public_ftp/ - This is the directory used for anonymous FTP access. Anyone can download the files in this directory if FTP access is enabled.

/home/johndoe/public_html/ - The public_html directory contains the files for your site. Files in public_html and any subdirectories of public_html will be viewable by anyone on the internet. “/home/johndoe/www/” is the same directory as “/home/johndoe/public_html/”.

WARNING: When adding files to your site, it is important that you add them in the right place. For example, you will need to place files you wish to be visible on the Internet within public_html or a subdirectory of public_html. If you placed them in “/home/johndoe/” for example, no one will be able to view them.

Learn more:

What are my FTP login details?

How can I check my FTP client's log?

How to create additional FTP accounts in cPanel?