Have you ever wondered what is an FTP Server, what is it for and how does it work ? – Examples, then you should read the following information in which we will talk about it.
FTP servers can be very useful on many occasions, but before using them it would be good to know what these servers are and what they are for. Here we will tell you in a simple but profound way what you should know about this system for transferring files.
Before starting the following guide, we recommend that you learn what it is, what it is for and types of web server, which will guide you to better understand what we will comment on next.
What is it, what is it for and how does an FTP Server work? – Examples
A few years ago the term FTP was much more famous than it is today, in fact, today new Internet users may not even know it. Even so, at the time it became as relevant as so-called cloud storage can be today.
What is FTP?
FTP specifically refers to File Transfer Protocol, which is the verbatim translation of “File Transfer Protocol” name that is very accurate and describes exactly what it does. In fact, FTP specifically refers to the transfer of files over the Internet, using FTP servers.
As of today, it is not so widely used, in any case, web page developers or users with their own sites, usually know very well what this is about FTP servers . Since they tend to be implemented in the majority of websites with databases.
Either way, it is possible to access and connect to an FTP server from Windows with great ease, but clearly, you must first understand what ftp servers work for.
What is FTP for?
As we previously mentioned, FTP refers specifically to the transmission of data, in this case, it refers to the transmission of information from a computer to a server, which in most situations is a website.
In any case, the FTP alternative also serves to create a personal server through which another person can access and upload files. The advantages of this type of software are that a large amount of information can be moved without major inconveniences.
Indeed, using a server of these characteristics, you can move a lot of data. As we noted earlier, there are several methods by which to open an FTP server from Windows Explorer and other operating systems that you should consider.
Emergence of FTP
FTP servers are very old, in fact, it is one of the first technologies to transmit data in bulk very easily. It saw the light in 1971, and it was created by Abhay Bhushan, in any case, at that time it was a quite archaic system and different from what we know today.
It would not be until the 80s when the TCP/IP protocol became popular in which the FTP servers were standardized and began to be used more globally.
How an FTP server works
The operation of an FTP server is something complicated at a deep level, in any case, the use at a general level is very intuitive in the latest versions of this system, this being one of the advantages of this type of exchange, something that is especially useful for managing websites.
You wonder how do FTP servers work? This varies in relation to the service used, but in most circumstances it is very similar to the handling of folders and files present in platforms such as Windows or other operating systems.
In many FTP servers, the information is displayed organized in folders that can be accessed and saved or shared files, depending on the configuration options of the FTP server.
Example of a server that is FTP
If you want to know examples of FTP servers, you can access some services that provide options of these characteristics. Filezilla, vsftpd, Cyberduck or CompleteFTP are clear examples of this type of server for file transfer.
One of the most interesting aspects of the aforementioned is that it is even possible to connect an Android to folders on a Network with Samba and FTP and in this way transfer files between different types of devices.