FileZilla is a popular FTP application that you can use to connect to other computers using file transfer protocol (FTP). With FTP you don’t need to worry about compatibility since the protocol is standard and supported by any OS that can handle an FTP client.
Previously, I wrote how to setup your own FTP server using IIS and in this tutorial we will show you how to setup your own FTP server using the free software called FileZilla. Download the server program from this URL: http://filezilla-project.org/ then install it on your computer like any ordinary program. Once you open the installed application it will show a terminal like window with line by line information on FTP events as they happen:
The first thing that you will need to do is create an FTP user account. Click the Edit menu and choose User:
Click the Add button to add a new user
Enter the name of the user then hit OK:
Enter the password:
We’re done adding a user. Now to share a directory click “Shared folders” then browse for the folders that you want to share:
Set the permission for the users, make sure to uncheck write and delete if you don’t want other users to modify your files and directories.
You may set the download speed limits if you feel your Internet connection will be affected by your clients. This is ideal if you want to control the amount of usable bandwidth:
Turn on IP filtering to prevent IP addresses from connecting to your server.
That’s it! You have an FTP server. To test it use an FTP client like FileZilla client or WinSCP. Just use the username and password you created on the steps above to login to the server. Pretty easy isn’t it?
I love the way how FileZilla made FTP’ing more accessible to casual users. It installs like a breeze and administering it is very easy to pickup.
Ben shows you how it’s done.
When your computer is connected to a router and you want to be able to connect to your FTP server from Internet, the hardest work is to forward TCP port 21 and a range of ports to allow active FTP. You have to setup NAT on the router interface and choose the port range in Filezilla setup.
You could also talk about DynDNS services that will allow you to connect from the Internet using a “myname.webhop.net” like adress if you’ve got dynamic IP adress from your Internet provider.