Click for GOLFonline, by the editors of GOLF MAG

Transferring files with FTP

What is FTP (file transfer protocol)?
When should you use FTP?
What's anonymous FTP?
What software do you need to run FTP?
What hardware do you need to run FTP?
How do you make an FTP transfer using a browser?
How do you make an FTP transfer using a shell account?
How do you make an FTP transfer using an FTP client program?
How do you locate files to transfer?
What is an Archie server?
What is FTP (file transfer protocol)?

File transfer protocol (FTP) is one standard method for downloading files from other computers, over the Internet. FTP also allows you to upload files from your computer to a remote system. The transfer process works much like copying a file from one hard drive to another--except one drive is on your local system and the other can be halfway around the world.

In many regards, FTP is an older, simpler, and more limited alternative to the file transfers provided by newer Internet tools such as gopher and the World Wide Web. But even these services often use FTP underneath many of their actual file operations.

Back to top

When should you use FTP?

If you want to download a trial version of a program, get a technical report, or retrieve a graphical image, FTP may be the tool you need to make the transfer. Many files on the Net are made available only via FTP. Others files made available through both FTP and another Internet service, such as the World Wide Web or gopher, may be easier to retrieve with FTP.

From the information provider's point of view, FTP is one of the easiest Internet services to set up and maintain. Because just about everyone who uses the Internet has the hardware and software needed to retrieve files via FTP, it's one of the most universal distribution methods on the Net.

On the minus side, getting a file on FTP requires you first navigate through a directory system to the right location. Then, you have to specify the file by the name used by the file system. As with standard Unix, filenames are case sensitive.

Another minus: Because of some obscure historical technical factors, you may have to tell the system when you're going to transfer a binary file, such as a program or formatted text. If you forget to do so, some servers will provide only seven out of each eight bits in the file--which generally makes the result worthless.

Back to top

What can you find on FTP?
The Web brings you the Net's best, brightest, and newest information, but many workaday documents are best downloaded via FTP. Look for leads to thousands more in "How do you locate the files to transfer?"
What's anonymous FTP?

Access to some FTP servers is limited to users who can supply an authorized username and corresponding password. But if the organization providing an FTP server chooses to do so, it can set up the program to accept "anonymous" users without the required username and password--and thereby make the information on the server available to anyone on the Internet.

These days, most systems of this type are set up to accept "anonymous" as a username, and then your e-mail address as the password. Normally, it's good netiquette to give an accurate address--after all, you're a guest asking to use resources. But if you're worried about privacy and don't want to give your address for some good reason, you'll find most systems accept any entry of the right format, such as me@nowhere.

Back to top

What software do you need to run FTP?

Since you're reading this on the Net, you may not need a separate FTP client program. All the popular Web browser programs include simple FTP client services. If you're only downloading a few files now and then, it's probably not worth getting and learning a separate program.

But you may want to look into some of the more popular implementations for either a server program running on a host computer or a client program on your local computer.

Some popular Windows freeware and shareware programs, for example, include WinFTP, CuteFtp, WS FTP and Quickftp. For details on these, see the Index of Xiaomu Niu's Internet Application Collection. On the Macintosh, Anarchie and Fetch are the standards.

If you're using the Internet through a Unix shell account--via a dialup, local area network, or directly attached terminal--you'll find the system has an FTP client as a standard system command file. That is, you can start up FTP by typing ftp and at the command line and hitting Return.

Better than the standard Unix FTP program is NcFTP, which will remember commonly used sites, automatically log you on as anonymous, and more. Type ncftp at the command prompt, or ask your system administrator to if NcFTP is available on your system.

Back to top

What hardware do you need to run FTP?

FTP is one of the least-demanding Net services, so if you can run a browser you can almost certainly run a separate FTP client as well. Older FTP programs and ones designed for Unix shell access are entirely text-based and can even run on simple text-only terminals. More recent FTP programs use standard point-and-click mouse-based environments.

On the server side, FTP program requirements are similarly modest. Just about any computer with an Internet address (an IP address) can be the server, but you may need a large and fast hard disk if you want to offer your users a large selection of files.

Back to top

How do you make an FTP transfer using a browser?

In most browsers, you access FTP servers by typing your request in the URL address window in a stylized format similar but not identical to the way you specify a Web address.

You start the request with FTP://--rather than the http:// you'd use for Web addresses--followed by the path to the file. The first path element is always the name of the machine and domain in the Internet's standard "dot" format. Next comes a slash, then the pathway to the file starting at the root directory on the specified machine.

For example, to retrieve the version file Navigator Gold for Windows version 3.0 from Netscape Communications, you'd type in FTP://FTP7.netscape.com/pub/navigator/gold/3.0/current/
windows/g32e30.exe.
Here, FTP:// is the file access method, FTP7.netscape.com is the name of an FTP server where the file resides, /pub/navigator/gold/3.0/current/windows/ is the set of directories that form the path to the file, and g32e30.exe is the name of the file.

You can also type in just the access method and the server name--in this case, FTP://FTP7.netscape.com--then click your way down the directory tree to the file you want.

Back to top

How do you make an FTP transfer using a shell account?

As with most Unix programs, you start the FTP program by typing the name of the program at the prompt. Then, you can issue FTP commands, such as open to select a server, cd (change directory) to navigate down the directory tree, get to retrieve a particular file, or mget to be asked, one by one, whether you want each file in the directory with a name matching the pattern you specify.

Before you make an actual transfer of a file that contains any data except ASCII text, that is, text without any special formatting control characters, you may have to issue the binary command. This changes the default transfer from seven bits for each character to eight bits if the system is an older one that defaults to seven bits. When you're done, you type quit to exit the program.

Most FTP implementations offer more than a dozen other commands, including a set to upload files, which may or may not be supported on the host side. You can get detailed instructions by typing man FTP at a shell prompt--and in some systems by typing the command help at an FTP prompt.

Back to top

How do you make an FTP transfer using an FTP client program?

Details vary depending on the program, but most FTP client programs for Windows or Macintosh offer the same command functions. That means you open up the program, select a server, pick the files you want to transfer from a scrolling list, set binary or ASCII transfers with a check box, and then transfer your files with the click of a button.

Back to top

How do you locate the files to transfer?

While no single directory includes every one of the millions of files you can obtain via FTP, there are several good lists that display sites or files by name, topic or location.

Two good ones you can reach via the Web are

If you know the name of the FTP server, but not the exact path or file name from there, you can navigate and explore step by step. First, you open the server by putting FTP:// and the server's name in the URL address box, using the Open function in a client program or issuing the open command from a Unix shell account.

Then, you work your way down the directory tree to the appropriate file. While details vary, the Unix convention is to put files that are available for transfer in subdirectories of the "/pub" (public) directory, so that's usually a good place to start.

If you know the name of the file as it would be listed on the computer directory, but not the name of the server, you can search for the file using an Internet service called Archie.

Back to top

What is an Archie server?

When you know the name of the file you're looking for but not the server or directory in which to find it, you may not have to resort to a tedious, brute-force search. Several Archie servers on the Net allow you to query a database that indexes many publicly accessible FTP sites. A fairly complete list of these servers can be found at Nexor Archie Services.

From the Web, you can submit a query using an Archie gateway, such as you find at NCSA.

From a Unix shell account, type Archie to start the program, or archie -s filename to do a quick search. Here, -s is the substring option that tells the program to accept partial matches and ignore case , and filename is the name or a portion of the name you're searching for.

Custom FTP client programs usually have an Archie function or mode that sends your request out to an Archie server.

If you're a Unix tyro, note that most servers accept a number of options including regular expressions. Details are found by typing man archie at a Unix prompt.

Back to top

Steven Rosenthal practiced up with more than 1,000 previously published articles about interaction, networking, and communication before writing this one.

Return to Net Coach

Have suggestions, tips or advice for the Coach? Drop a line to NetCoach.


Help | About NetGuide Live | Feedback

Home | What's On Now | Search+Browse | Explore | Net Know-How | News/Reference

Copyright © 1997 CMP Media Inc.