Introduction to the FTP transfer protocol
FTP = File Transfer protocol.
After electronic mail and the WEB, FTP is another Internet service that evolutions in technology have made much easier to use, but the aspect of which is still not very user- friendly.
This service, with email and discussion groups, were the only tools in existence before the appearance of the Web in 1990, and were at that time used mostly by research centres and universities.
What does it do?
Everything is (almost) said in the title, and boils down to the possibility to transfer files to or from other connected computers.
All over the world, millions of multimedia files (documents, latest versions of navigators,
FTP servers.
The ALPEG players are themselves ftp servers.
The programmes used to communicate with these FTP servers are called quite simply FTP
clients.
Here again we encounter the notion of Client/Server, where the client is the one who benefits from the operation and the server is the one that makes itself available to you.
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Between two connected computers (even different ones: Mac, PC, Unix...) that use the same FTP protocol, there will be transfer of files on the network.
The size of the file to be transferred is unlimited, however, it often conditions the length of the connection.
-Download, means to import a document from a server to your computer.
-Upload, means to export (send) a document from your computer to a server.
It goes without saying that the above definitions reflect your position as a user, but the same terms apply during transfer between two servers, which then function as relays.
Who has access to it?
Everyone doesn't have access everywhere, and for example the directory of my site is protected by a code. It is usually this way for the server of a company storing files which are often confidential, and reserved for managers and external heads of agencies, or in universities, where the entry of certain documents is reserved for its students and teaching staff only. You must know the password to have access to it.
Other FTP sites are freely accessible without a password, and you can go "shopping" there with complete peace of mind. Sometimes it all happens without formalities, or some ask you to fill in the identifying input field beforehand (your login = your name) that you simply replace with the word anonymous and then to give your email address as password. This service is known by the name of "anonymous FTP site".
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