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FTP

Setting up and using FTP

FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is the method you will use to copy your web pages and files from your computer to your webspace on our server. To use FTP you need software called an FTP client to transfer your files quickly and easily from your computer to your hosting account. We recommend you use WS_FTP, although you can use many other FTP packages. You can obtain a copy of WS_FTP from Ipswitch.


Please note that if you have FrontPage Extensions installed on your account, you should use FrontPage to 'publish' your site to ensure that the special features within FrontPage sites work as intended. See our FrontPage information page for more information about publishing with FrontPage.

 


The instructions here are for the free version of WS_FTP. Most FTP client software is similar and the settings you need will be the same or similar to those for WS_FTP.

To configure WS_FTP to connect to your hosting account you will need the FTP Host Name, your FTP username and FTP password. These can all be found in your Hosting Activation Notice which is sent to you upon activation of your web hosting account. Please keep this document safe in case you need it in the future.

Firstly, open WS_FTP. You will see a 'Session Properties' window. Click 'New'. Enter the following details:

Hostname = ftp.your-domain-name. com

Username = ftp account name (your domain name)

Password = password you set for the ftp account. You may also wish to tick the 'save password' box, although doing so will allow anyone with access to your computer to access your web hosting account. You should now be able to connect to your web hosting account.

Setting up other dedicated FTP software
You may use other dedicated FTP software such as Cute FTP or Terrapin for Windows or Fetch for Mac. The set up procedures for these should be similar to those for setting up WS_FTP.

Dreamweaver and other software
Dreamweaver and other software may include integrated FTP capabilities. You may or may not be able to use these with your web hosting account with us. We can make no guarantees as to which software packages with integrated FTP will work with our hosting packages and we do not provide support for them. Instead, we recommend that you use WS_FTP. However dreamweaver has been fully tested on our servers and have never found any problems.


Hosting Account Directory Structures
It is important that you upload files to the correct directories on your web hosting account. If you upload them to the wrong directory then they will not be viewable on your website. It is therefore important that you understand the directory structure of your web hosting account.

For Windows hosting accounts, the directory structure is as follows:

DB folder is for access databases. All private and access databases should be placed here. You can then create ODBC connection in helm to databases in this folder.

Logs folder is where all log files are kept.

wwwroot folder is where all files should be published too.

Uploading files to your Windows web hosting account
Connect your FTP client to your web hosting account and navigate to the htdocs directory. In the left hand pane of your FTP client, select the files you wish to transfer then click the right arrow. It doesn't matter whether you transfer files in ASCII or binary mode, and you shouldn't need to set file permissions as files inherit permissions from the Windows operating system.

Troubleshooting
If you have difficulty connecting your FTP client to your web hosting account, check that you are using the correct settings and try again. If problems continue, reboot your computer and try again. If problems continue, try using a different ISP. If you are still having problems, wait an hour or two and retry - if there has been heavy usage or a problem at our end then this should be cleared after a short while.

If you receive error messages when attempting to connect, then you can find out what these mean by searching the WS_FTP knowledge base at
http://www.ipswitch.com.

If you receive a 'Receive error: blocking call canceled' message, then check whether passive mode transfers are enabled or disabled. If they are enabled, disable them. If they are disabled, enable them. You can find the checkbox for 'Use Passive Mode Transfers' by clicking the Options button and selecting the Sessions tab. For normal use, we recommend that passive mode transfers are enabled.

Another common problem is that users still see old versions of their web pages despite uploading new versions. This will be because you are viewing the copy stored locally in your browser cache instead of the new version you have uploaded. To clear the browser cache on Internet Explorer, go to Tools > Internet Options then click Delete Files. Tick the checkbox for 'Delete all offline content' and click OK and wait a minute or two for the cache to clear. Then revisit the web page. If the old page is still showing, force a reload by holding down the CTRL key and clicking refresh a few times. This should cure the problem.

Users with Linux hosting accounts should also check that they have transferred files in the correct mode and set the correct file permissions. Images uploaded in ASCII mode and text based files uploaded in binary mode will often appear to be missing. Scripts without the correct file permissions set will display an error.

 

 



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