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FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is the grand
daddy of the file sharing protocols. Although it started out in a
cruder form than
what we are used to today, its interface and
functionality have evolved, thankfully, making it a viable option
for many applications. As the name implies, FTP simply handles
copying files from one computer to another. Even if you’re not
a computer wiz, you’ve probably heard about FTP just surfing the
web. In fact, you may have already used it and not realized it when
you downloaded files with your browser.
A wide variety of drag and drop GUI based FTP
programs are available making FTP as easy to use as Windows' file
Explorer. From the perspective of the user, it’s just as easy to
move files between folders on your PC as it is to transfer files to
and from an FTP server on the internet. FTP is a client-server
based approach, and you need both types of applications, i.e. FTP
servers and FTP clients, to successfully transfer files using this
method. You don't need both types of applications on both of
the computers involved in the transfer, however. One of each
application type is all that's needed. Here's how you
determine which application needs to run where:
The person who will be requesting the
file to be moved uses an FTP client on
their computer.
The FTP server is run on the
computer that must answer the request for file
movement.
To repeat, the only computers that need to
run an FTP server are the ones that must respond
to requests for file transfers.
The initiator of the requests needs only to use
an FTP Client.
FTP works well because all it does is get files
from one computer to another, which is great if you want to transfer
a batch of files. You won’t directly view or edit a file on
another computer through FTP. For example, let’s say you want to
edit a web page on another server. First you will have to use FTP to
transfer the file to the computer with the editor, and then edit it,
and then copy it back. So two copies of the file exist. Some of the
FTP clients today allow you to do this seamlessly, but behind the
scenes they still must transfer the file to the client computer
first. This differs from the LAN based file sharing most of us think
of where only one copy of the file exists on disk. In that scenario,
the file remains on another computer where it is directly read and
written to by the applications. But depending on what you need to
do, FTP’s functionality may work just fine. It is also fast and
efficient.
Tip:
If you plan to run an FTP server, you need to
be security conscious when configuring it. FTP is powerful because it is a
well-established standard. But because it is a standard, lots of people
are familiar with it, and the ways that it can be attacked or
compromised. Be sure to use strong password protection and
only share the minimum number of folders necessary.
Tip:
I would not
recommend running an FTP server on your local network unless you
have a firewall in place, and even then, I recommend changing the
FTP server to use a different port number other than the default
port number. Also see
this note if your FTP server is on a shared Internet
connection.
There are several excellent graphical FTP clients
and servers available online. FTP originated as a command line tool
and Windows includes a command line version of an FTP client. But
with the selection of excellent graphical FTP clients available, you’d
have to be a masochist to use the command line version. Browsers
such as Netscape and MS Explorer can also be used to download files
from FTP servers. However, browsers don’t provide a means to upload
files and are fairly limited in their flexibility compared to the
full blown graphical FTP clients.
Ipswitch’s WS_FTP
(screenshot) is a popular and
easy to use FTP client offering synchronizing and scripting
features. Ipswitch offers a companion WS_FTP Server as well. One of
my favorite FTP clients is CuteFTP
(screenshot) by Globalscape.
CuteFTP also presents you with file explorer like navigation of
local and remote directories side by side. A handy feature in
CuteFTP is the file queue that allows you to traverse a directory
tree marking files or entire directories for download later. Another
FTP client worth mentioning is FTP Voyager
(screenshot) by
Rhinosoft. This is just a small sampling of available FTP clients.
CNET’s download.com web site has an extensive list of
available ftp clients and servers.
Tip:
If you plan to run an FTP server, you need to
be security conscious when configuring it. FTP is powerful because it is a
well-established standard. But because it is a standard, lots of people
are familiar with it, and the ways that it can be attacked or
compromised. Be sure to use 
