What is FTP? Everything About FTP

What is FTP? Everything About FTP

Hello. This is an article to give you information about file transfer protocol. I will try to explain everything about file transfer protocol.

If you have downloaded any files from the Internet (e-books, movies, games...) and used a cloud-based service to share these files, actually, you're using ftp.



So What is File Transfer Protocol?



File transfer protocol is a path used by computers on the TCP/IP network to transfer files from one to another, which has been in use for over 40 years and changed itself to comply with the standards. And yes, it is possible to transfer all kinds of files with file transfer protocol and in some cases it's even faster than http. FTP is a standard network protocol used for the transfer of computer files between a client and server on a computer network. It can be used with DOS on Windows and a command line interface such as the terminal on Linux, MacOS. It's one of the first developed internet protocols. An interactive connection is established with the computer, files are sent and received between two computers with the help of a series of commands provided by the ftp while transferring files from one computer to another with file transfer protocol.



there are two modern uses of file transfer protocol: education and intra-unit migration of server files. File transfer protocol is one of the best ways for beginners to introduce Internet protocols before moving on to more complex versions. Ftp can also preferable for transferring the server files of an organization within a closed system because it eliminates security concerns.



What is FTP Server?

with the file protocol server, it is possible for the clients to download and upload files from the server



this can be a physical server that you store in your company with a connection to your company's local network which enables your employees to share files. You can also connect the ftp server to the internet, however this would be a security risk. Thus, employees can access the data stored on the server from any ******** whenever they want.





Things to consider to connect file protocol server

It is very important to enter correct e-mail address as the pass in anonymous file protocol server because some ftp centers don't tolerate inappropriate mail addresses. So, it isn't possible to connect file protocol server. It's necessary to transfer files such as exe, zip in binary mode. Usually the default transfer format in file protocol server is ascii. The files to be transferred must be sent correctly. When a directory is entered in an anonymous file protocol server, there are short texts indicating the size, name, date and content of the file. It's very important to analyze and read these parts without skipping.



What are the types of File Protocol Server?

File protocol server:

1) active file protocol server
2) passive file protocol server

The ftp client decides which file protocol server type will be used in a file transfer process. Now let's explain these two file protocol types.

What is active file protocol server?

It's the first type of file protocol server published and it's called active file protocol server because the client is in active role. If active file protocol server is used during file transfer:



Active file transfer protocol in the client role connects to the server on port 21 from the command port. The server to be connected sends the greeting message and asks the client to enter information such as username and pass. If the information is correct, the server responds to the client by opening a file transfer protocol command line. If the client wants to start the file transfer, it opens a port larger than 1024 on its side and it notifies the server. So, the server establishes a connection with the port declared by the client and the file transfer is started. A confirmation message is sent by the client when the file transfer process is completed.



What is passive file protocol server?

Because of active file transfer protocol doesn't work properly in today's internet technologies, software developers created a technology called passive file transfer protocol. Because the firewall software installed on the computer acting as a server, antivirus programs and firewall tools prevent active file transfer protocol's work. For this reason, passive file transfer protocol technology is more common these days.



If passive file transfer protocol is used during the file transfer:



Active file transfer protocol in the client role connects to the server on port 21.. after the welcome message it sends the username and pass query to the client. The client enters this information and if the information given by the client is correct, port information is transmitted to the server. The client starts the file transfer by connecting to the port opened by the server.



What is FTP Client?

If you want to upload files to a remote computer, a client program is a program installed on the user's computer that uses this protocol to connect a server and download/upload files.



You can use an file transfer protocol client to log into a secure file transfer protocol server, browse the server's folder structure and upload or download files.



The client has a user-friendly interface that clearly displays your computer and file transfer protocol server ********s and a tool to manage multiple login accounts on multiple servers.



The client logs all your file transfer protocol sessions and provides a way to choose between active/passive file transfer protocol type when connecting to servers.



The client allows you to set folder and file permissions on the server and "anonymous" file transfer protocol.



There are many file transfer protocol clients for different systems. Many of them are free and you'll see below. But there are also premium file transfer protocol clients with extra features like the option to automatically transfer files in a particular program.



Most Popular FTP Programs

There are many programs in the world that provide file transfer protocol connection.

FileZilla
WinSCP
CyberDuck
Transmit

How to create an ftp connection?

Well, there are two methods to make an ftp connection. You can make ftp connection with ftp program or web browser. But I recommend ftp program to make na ftp connection.



You'll need these to create an ftp connection: Ftp username and password, port to connect, internet connection.

What about FTP Security?

The most vulnerable place of your site is the file transfer protocol connection. However, a few simple precations will minimize the risk of any attack.

Create a username and password on your hosting account while performing FTP transactions.

=> Delete the FTP user when the job is done.
=> Use Passive FTP instead of Active FTP.
=> Set the FTP connection to break at reasonable intervals.



Creating FTP connection with FTP program

I will use FileZilla for the narration.

1- First of all, we need to get the FilaZilla program, you can go to the website of the program called FileZilla from the link https://filezilla-project.org/ and you can get the latest version program from here.

2- Then install the program on your computer by clicking on the EXE file you downloaded and confirming each step.

3- After the setup, you can open your program and proceed to the next steps.

4- First, let's get to know the parts of the program.



red

1 and 2: These two sections show the storage space on our own device. Here we can see the files in our own storage.

3 and 4: In these two sections, we see the storage area on the device that we connect via FTP. This field is empty yet because I haven't established a connection.

5: During the transfer, the files waiting to be transferred will be displayed in this field.

6: If there are files that couldn't be transferred, they will appear in this field

7: The files transferred to the device without any problem will appear in this section.



green

1: In this field, we enter the host server information from the file transfer protocol.

2: In this field, we enter the username from the ftp.

3: We enter our password in this field.

5: We need to enter port information in this field, usually connection is established from port 21.

6: After entering our necessary information, we provide our connection by clicking this field.

7: In this area, we can reconnect to FTP addresses that we have connected to with a single click.



How to use FTP from a browser?

The trend in recent times shows itself as accessing all internet services from more efficient and interactive environments and using different services interactively. The most popular of these environments is the WEB (World Wide Web). Many internet services -including FTP- and many additional features can be used over these environments. So, another way to do file transfer protocol is to FTP via the Web. This method is easier to use. You can easily import a binary file in ASCII mode with standard FTP programs by mistake. Such inconveniences are eliminated in FTP via the Web. Also, because of their useful features such as bookmark and cache, these environments have some convenience.



It's also worth noting the graphical interface feature provided by most Web clients. Thus, as soon as you receive an image file in standard image formats, you can send the image to the screen.



Some FTP Commands

cd: Change directory: (cd <directory name>)
to switch to the previous directory: (cd ..)

pwd: It shows the path of the working directory.

dir: Lists files, if connected.

ls: Lists files of the remotely connected computer.

get: Get file from the remote computer.

mget: Get multiple files. For example: mget * .zip mget a *. *

put: Send one file. put <file-name> (<name-in-send-where>

mput: Send multiple files.

ascii: Switch to ASCII transfer mode.

binary: Switch to ASCII transfer mode.

delete: It is the command to delete the desired file in an FTP ********. delete <file - name>.

mkdir: The command to create a new directory in the FTP

rmdir: Removes a directory on the remote computer. rmdir <directory- name>.

lcd: Displays local directory if typed alone or if path typed after lcd will change the local directory.

close: Exits from FTP.

quit: Exits from FTP.



Some FTP services have the ability to compress an entire directory. For example we can get a subdirectory named linux compressed as GET linux linux.zip. However, this feature may not be available in every FTP services.

Source: https://www.turkhackteam.org/hosting/1938718-ftp-nedir-ftp-hakkinda-her-sey-detayli-anlatim.html
Translator Gauloran​