
Frequently Asked Questions
Shared Hosting — File Transfer Protocol
(UNIX and Windows)
FAQ - File Transfer Protocol
The process by which files are transferred from your local computer to the web server is called "FTP" (File Transport Protocol). You have unlimited access via FTP 24-hours a day. As such, you can create and maintain your web pages on your own computer and upload files to your web site at your leisure. If your website software does not include FTP (upload) capabilities, or you do not use such software, you will need to use an FTP program to upload your files.
Some of our customers use the following FTP programs if they don't already have one on their computer. Since these FTP programs are provided by their respective owners, AT&T does not provide technical support for them. These programs are listed here for your reference: Microsoft FrontPage Users
Customers with Microsoft FrontPage extensions installed on their sites should only use the FrontPage publishing feature to transfer files. Using regular FTP can corrupt the extensions, disabling the functionality of the FrontPage web and requiring that the site be deleted to reinstall the extensions.
You can allow anonymous FTP access to visitors wishing to download or upload files to your web site as if you were running your own FTP server. You can enable (and disable) ANON FTP access within Edit Account Information within your account Control Panel. Just check (or uncheck) the Anonymous FTP Enabled box.
Security Responsibility Data Transfer Q&A: Changes to setting up Anonymous FTP access (UNIX only)
To increase your FTP site's security and to provide you with greater control over your FTP site, AT&T is introducing a number of changes in the functionality of our anonymous FTP services. These changes require that you make some simple modifications to your existing anonymous FTP directory structure.
This question and answer (Q&A) document highlights the major issues regarding the functional changes in our anonymous FTP services. Here you will also find what you need to do to modify your FTP site to use these services. Q: What changes are being made to anonymous FTP accessibility and functionality?
A: There are a number of changes that you should know about:
Q: What anonymous FTP functionality will not be changed?
A: Overall anonymous FTP functionality will be largely unchanged. The changes to FTP functionality are limited to the above-mentioned anonymous FTP directory structure -- specifically, the addition of "/aftp" -- and the security-based limitations on user navigation via anonymous log in.
Q: Should I create the "/aftp" directory? What happens if I choose not to create it?
A: We suggest that you create the "/aftp" directory and populate it with the folders and files that you wish to make available to your anonymous users. If you choose not to create the "/aftp" directory, our system will create the "/aftp" directory automatically the first time an anonymous user tries to connect to your anonymous FTP site. Once the “/aftp” directory is created, the anonymous user begins navigation of your anonymous FTP site from within that directory. Keep in mind, however, that the “/aftp” directory will be empty when the system creates it for you. In the unlikely event that the system cannot create the "/aftp" directory, the user's anonymous connection will be not be allowed.
Q: How should I update hyperlinks that point to my anonymous FTP site?
A: As the "/aftp" directory is now required for anonymous FTP access and navigation, its addition to your site obviously changes the paths to any files or directories that you make available to your site's anonymous users. Therefore, any external hyperlinks (links located on Web pages) that point to those files or directories will need to be updated or somehow redirected accordingly. Below, we provide advice on two methods that you can use:
Q: Will this new anonymous FTP functionality include the ability to display messages to my site's users?
A: Yes. You now have the ability to customize and display the following user-facing messages:
Place first.msg into the directory (or directories) where you want its message to display when a user changes to that directory. Q: If I am using anonymous FTP for downloads only, can I still use file permissions to restrict anonymous FTP uploads to my site?
A: Yes. However, as anonymous FTP runs using your UserID, the Owner permissions need to reflect the type of access that you want to allow in the /aftp directory. For download-only anonymous FTP access, you need to set the permissions on the /aftp directory to 500. Realize that these permissions will also affect your normal FTP access to the /aftp directory. When updating files in the /aftp directory, you (as Owner) need to set the permissions, temporarily, to 700 (that is, 7 - rwx - for Owner) so that you can update the files that are inside the /aftp directory.
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