Alternative method of managing files and media Depending on your circumstances, you may or may not have login access to your web hosting server.. Connecting using an FTP program Almost
Trang 1The built-in Media Manager is a wonderful tool for Joomla! administrators In fact
if you have a Joomla! website that has been built by someone else, then this may be
your only tool for uploading new files to your web server
So we agree that it's a cool tool; one, which can limit file types and allow you to
create directories and upload files, but unfortunately one that is simplistic and has
its limitations One of these drawbacks is the lack of ability to move files about once
they are uploaded
Remember, we can create as many subdirectories as we wish (under our main media
directory) So the trick is to analyze your site purpose at the start of the project, and
set up these directories accordingly, which will save you time and frustration down
the line If your site is already established with files and links to these, then the job
will certainly become more time consuming to do A spring clean of the established
site is possible though, and will require new directories to be created, files moved into
these, and content and links checked to make sure they go to the correct destination
Alternative method of managing files
and media
Depending on your circumstances, you may or may not have login access to
your web hosting server If you do not, then one of your only options for
uploading files will be to use the Joomla! Media Manager, or the option of
third-party Joomla! Extensions
Trang 2FTP is a standard network protocol that is used to exchange and manipulate files
over a computer network A common use of FTP is to transfer files over the Internet
between a local computer and a web server, which is exactly what we are after!
FTP clients
There are numerous FTP clients (programs) that can be used to transfer files Some
of these graphically show the file and transfer processes, making the management
of your files from your computer to your web server very easy to do
FTP programs
FTP programs range from no cost applications through to commercial software
Which one you choose to use will be down to personal preference Most of these
programs provide drag and drop features as well as easy directory navigation tools:
Trang 3There are excellent FTP programs for all major operating systems Some popular
options for Windows and Mac are:
Windows
FileZilla
CuteFTP
SmartFTP
WS_FTP
cURL
Mac
FileZilla
Transmit
Cyberduck
CuteFTP
Fetch
FTP Command in Terminal
If you perform a search using a popular search engine, you will obtain a definitive
list of FTP programs A suggestion would be to download a trial version of these
to see which one suits your operating system and requirements
For the purpose of this topic, I have chosen to use and take screenshots from an
FTP program called "Transmit" It is a commercial product, but personally one of
my favorites For those whose use MAC computers, Transmit is recognized as a
wonderful FTP tool
Connecting using an FTP program
Almost all FTP programs require similar information in order to connect to the web
server Depending on the program you are using, the naming of these fields may be
slightly different
In order to connect, we need the following information which is usually derived
from setting up a user account (with FTP permissions) on your web hosting
control panel:
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Trang 42 User Name
This is your web server account username Often this can be in the format
of yourusername@yourdomain.com
3 Password
This is your web server account password
4 Initial Path
Some programs offer the ability to set an initial directory to navigate to upon
login If you do not have this option, then do not worry
5 Port
If the server requires connections on a port other than the default one, some
programs offer you the ability to enter in a port number It is best to leave
this as the default setting unless you know what you are doing
If you are having any issues connecting, then it's best to contact your web hosting
administrator in order to check your login access details
There are typically three types of FTP login methods available These are:
1 Anonymous FTP access
This is an easy connection method as you do not need to include any user
information Sometimes software companies offer updates or corporate
and government websites offer forms and content to be downloaded via
an anonymous connection method
Trang 52 Username
A simplified but restricted access level where you will be required to
enter just a username This type of FTP login is often used in school
and intranet environments
3 Username and Password
This is a more restricted security access level where the user requires both a
username and password in order to access the server This method is often
used by web hosting companies who offer people the ability to upload files
to the web server
If your FTP connection is set to username (or username and password), then you
should see a dialog box on the screen This will prompt you to enter your security
access details:
Once connected, you will need to navigate to your webroot folder Depending
on your web server, this area may be named httpdocs, mainwebsite_html,
public_html, or other naming conventions It will be inside this directory
where your Joomla! website files will reside
Trang 6When you have located your main http documents area and clicked to navigate
inside this, you will see the default Joomla! media folder named images.
When you have successfully navigated to your remote main media folder (or any
of the subfolders within this), you will need to make sure that you also navigate
locally to the folders or files you wish to upload Most FTP programs offer you the
ability to create new directories, and drag and drop files from your local computer
to the web server
By using an FTP program, you can gain additional control over your website files
and content
FTP programs can allow you to:
Create files and directories
Rename files and directories
Move files and directories
Delete files and directories
Set file and directory permissions
FTP programs offer you the most flexibility in managing your website files, but it is important to take care when using FTP programs By connecting to your directory structure on the web server, you are navigating amongst core Joomla! files
FTP via a web browser
In addition to browsing the World Wide Web, modern web browsers are
comprehensive internet tools containing additional features such as RSS
readers, the ability to use e-mail, and work with FTP
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Trang 7Although you can use dedicated FTP programs as we have covered, it's easy to connect
to FTP servers using a typical web browser such as Firefox or Internet Explorer
For the purpose of this example and screenshots, we will be using Mozilla Firefox
Connecting to FTP via a web browser
There are some cases where web browser FTP access can be restricted by
organizations, but in general, if you can use an FTP program to connect to your web
hosting server, then you should be able to connect via FTP using your web browser
The benefits of using a web browser are: Well it's free and you probably already
have it in front of you!
As when using an FTP program to connect, there are typically three types of FTP
login methods available These are:
1 Anonymous FTP access
Authentication methods for FTP via a web browser are the same as when
using a software-based FTP program
2 Username
A simplified but restricted access level where you will be required to
enter just a username This type of FTP login is often used in school and
intranet environments
3 Username and Password
This is a more restricted security access level where the user requires both a
username and password in order to access the server This method is often
used by web hosting companies, who offer people the ability to upload files
to the web server
There are usually two methods of connecting to FTP via a web browser These are:
1 Enter an FTP address into the address bar
For most web browsers that offer FTP support, it is possible to type in the
syntax: ftp.yourserver.com or sometimes ftp.yourdomainname.com, and
then press Enter.
Trang 8If your FTP connection is set to Username (or Username and Password), then
you should see a dialog box on the screen This will prompt you to enter your
security access details:
If you are having any issues connecting, then it's best to contact your web
hosting administrator in order to check your login access details
Once connected, you will need to navigate to your webroot folder
Depending on your web server, this area may be named httpdocs,
mainwebsite_html, public_html, or other naming conventions It
will be inside this directory where your Joomla! website files will reside
2 Entering directly into the address bar
The second method of connecting via FTP in a web browser is to enter the
user information directly into the address bar Although this can save you
a step, I often find that users can make mistakes using this method, taking
them longer than the previous connection method
Different browsers may have slightly different syntax, but when using
Mozilla Firefox you would enter something similar to the following
directly into the address bar:
ftp://username: password@yourserver.com
For example, if my username was john and my password was 12345, then
that would look like: ftp:john: 12345@yourserver.com
Quite often the username can contain the domain name If this is
the case, the syntax would look like: ftp:john@yourserver.com:
12345@yourserver.com
Trang 9Uploading and downloading
Once you are connected to FTP by a web browser (by either of the previous
methods), the uploading and downloading of files is usually quite intuitive
To upload a new file, make sure you are residing in the correct remote directory for
upload Browse to a file on your computer and simply drag this file over into your
web browser Depending on the size of the file, this might take some time to upload
and then the process should complete You can download a file in a similar manner,
or you might need to double-click on the file to start downloading it
Web browser plugins
A number of popular web browsers offer you extension plugins, which can enhance
the FTP capabilities when using the browser connection method
The Firefox web browser has a useful extension called FireFTP This plugin offers
you a left and right view to easily manage and move files via FTP using your web
browser FireFTP is just like having a stand alone FTP program on your computer
It's free to use and works on Windows, Mac, and Linux More information about
FireFTP can be found by visiting http://fireftp.mozdev.org/
Trang 10The following screenshot shows the FireFTP plugin:
It is important to mention that, if you are performing regular file uploading, then
using a specialist FTP browser plugin or FTP program will offer you additional
features and make life easier for you Usually you can save your favorite connections,
so you can login to your web server with a few clicks
With lots of free FTP programs available now that provide the options for file
moving, renaming, and in some cases server-to-server file movement, there is no
reason why you should not be using one of these if you have FTP server access
and perform regular transfers
SFTP
Secure FTP (SFTP) is a program that uses SSH to transfer files SFTP encrypts both
the commands and data being transferred, creating a secure connection between
your computer and the remote server You can use SFTP via an SFTP client, or the
command line Most FTP clients do offer SFTP support, but not all web hosts support
SFTP, so it will pay to check with yours before trying to use this transfer method