FTP client recommendations

February 3, 2004 6:40 PM

Does anyone have a good recommendation for a FTP program?

D'oh. I should have mentioned "Windows" somewhere in that question.

posted by billybunny to computers & internet (28 comments total)

If you're considering retail software, I always liked GlobalSCAPE's CuteFTP.

If not, SmartFTP is an excellent substitute.
posted by Danelope at 6:45 PM on February 3, 2004

(And if the servers you're using are capable of the more secure SFTP or SCP protocols, I'd recommend WinSCP.)
posted by Danelope at 6:48 PM on February 3, 2004

It's not what you asked, but for Mac I highly reccomend Panic's Transmit.
posted by jazon at 6:51 PM on February 3, 2004

WS_FTP LE is free, reliable, simple to use, and non-system intensive.
posted by nthdegx at 6:57 PM on February 3, 2004

For PCs I second the WS_FTP suggestion.

For Macs I second the Transmit suggestion.
posted by o2b at 7:16 PM on February 3, 2004

I like FTP Voyager quite a bit.
posted by tranquileye at 7:32 PM on February 3, 2004

I recommend FileZilla, open source, freeware goodness.

I haven't used ws_ftp in a while, but I remember it having one of the most user hostile interfaces I'd ever seen.
posted by turbodog at 7:46 PM on February 3, 2004

I checked out about every one available about a year ago and liked FTP Voyager the best, well enough to register it. I second turbodog's assessment of ws_ftp, and would also note that I stopped using CuteFTP a long time ago when they started incorporating spyware (don't know whether they still do this, but once is enough for me).
posted by rushmc at 7:49 PM on February 3, 2004

I second the suggestion for FileZilla.
posted by ajr at 7:50 PM on February 3, 2004

Another vote for WS_FTP. Solid, quick to grasp the use of.
posted by Keyser Soze at 8:39 PM on February 3, 2004

What about windows explorer? Everyone seems to forget that in most versions of Windows you can open up "My Computer" and enter "ftp://user:[e-mail]" and you'll be logged in just dandy. No extra software to install, and you've got drag and drop (and even preview) functionality just like you'd have if you were working on your local drives.
posted by SpecialK at 8:41 PM on February 3, 2004

True, SpecialK...but are there any issues with binary/ascii transfer, or the ability to CHMOD files/directories with Windows Explorer? I don't know -- just popped into my head.

FWIW -- I'll echo the WS_FTP vote.
posted by davidmsc at 9:10 PM on February 3, 2004

or the ability to CHMOD files/directories with Windows Explorer?

You right click on a file, choose "properties", and there the permissions are.

just like you'd have if you were working on your local drives.

Not quite. If Microsoft were to make it so that you could actually just read/write files to the remote-mounted-via-ftp filesystem, I would almost forgive them for the number of things they've left broken in IE 6. But it's a pretty good implementation as it is -- I've given up on FTP.

What about windows explorer? Everyone seems to forget that in most versions of Windows you can open up "My Computer" and enter "ftp://user:[e-mail]"

Might be easier to choose "My Network Places" and use the "Add Network Place" pad-looking thingy. It gives you a wizard interface and stores it for quick access later.
posted by weston at 9:17 PM on February 3, 2004

*shrug* All I know is that I stopped using command-line FTP programs after I realized that I could ftp within Explorer. I've never had a problem, and I up/down load everything you'd need with a normal website on a daily basis.

Weston - true, but I like the shorthand. ;)
posted by SpecialK at 10:07 PM on February 3, 2004

WinSCP, here.
posted by five fresh fish at 10:11 PM on February 3, 2004

Nothing takes the place of good old ncftp as far as I'm concerned.
posted by majick at 10:19 PM on February 3, 2004

Another vote for ncftp. Clean, classic, and convenient.
posted by vorfeed at 12:24 AM on February 4, 2004

SecureFX. Not free, but very much worth it.

People still use straight FTP? *shudder*
posted by majcher at 1:15 AM on February 4, 2004

Another vote for the free and open filezilla wonderfulness. Even after I've knocked off points for blatently using the cliched 'zilla' suffix.
posted by twine42 at 1:20 AM on February 4, 2004

Another vote for smartFTP, but if you're mainly editing text files, &c, then look at ftpedit.
posted by seanyboy at 1:38 AM on February 4, 2004

What about SSH secure shell ? Both a terminal emulator and a (s)ftp explorer. There's a free license for non-commercial use. Unless you want to stick to unencrypted FTP of course...
posted by swordfishtrombones at 3:08 AM on February 4, 2004

I've used CuteFTP, and it 'works good' but I'm currently using CoffeeCup Free FTP and I like it just fine. Especially for freeware.
posted by anastasiav at 4:33 AM on February 4, 2004

SmartFTP is my FTP of choice as well. WinSCP for SSH'ing. And when I absolutely, positively have to suck up all the available bandwidth in the building because I have a huge site to upload, LeechFTP's threading ability does the job. I used to use it as my default, but the error reporting wasn't very good.
posted by yerfatma at 4:50 AM on February 4, 2004

What Weston said above - I never realised you could do it in explorer before. Many thanks!
posted by BigCalm at 5:24 AM on February 4, 2004

I have always used CuteFTP and found it excellent. I tried SmartFTP and it is a good substitute for occasional use, but I find it a bit clunky to use.

I did not know that you could use Windows Explorer for FTP (although I should have). That is a great boon, particularly for those times when you are using someone else's computer. I have a concern though - there does not seem to be a way to log out - doesn't that leave a security hole on the server? At least until the timeout breaks the connection, anyway.
posted by dg at 6:06 AM on February 4, 2004

While possible, the problem with using Internet Explorer (and, by extension, Windows Explorer) is that Microsoft is dropping support for the protocol due to phishing-related security issues. I suspect that, one of these days, running a Windows Update will disable the aforementioned functionality.
posted by Danelope at 7:30 AM on February 4, 2004

Another vote for FTP Voyager. It's rock solid, I think it cost me $50 USD to register it, but I've been able to download the newest version twice now. Very very handy and stable.
posted by patrickje at 10:25 AM on February 4, 2004

only because it hasn't been mentioned before, bulletproof ftp is a good one, too.

I've always been a fan of cuteftp, but I've determined that their newest version is a complete dog.
posted by crunchland at 12:49 PM on February 4, 2004