7. Using FTP clients

FTP clients are the most popular method of transferring WordPress files because they are not difficult to use, require no advanced technical knowledge and are not hindered by the limitations built-in to the WordPress uploader.

With an FTP client you can:

• Create, add and remove site files (plugins, themes, php, etc.) and directories without ever logging in to the site.
• Bypass WordPress limitations regarding upload size or type.
• More easily maintain local copies of site files or even entire sites
• Organize and schedule file transfers.

In addition to transferring files, FTP clients can also be used to create or edit files, although most do not have exceptional editors built-in. If you integrate a quality code editor with your FTP client, however, it becomes a useful tool for creating or modifying files and quickly making those changes live.

FTP/SFTP users must be created on your host’s servers. If your site is not hosted by WPMU DEV, the first step is to locate and follow your hosting provider’s guidance on creating FTP/SFTP users.

SFTP users for sites hosted by WPMU DEV are created in the SFTP/SSH tab of each site’s Hosting Dashboard or by following the guidance in our Creating SFTP/SSH Users guide.

An FTP or SFTP username and password are required to create an FTP connection. If you haven’t created such a user, see the Creating FTP/SFTP Users section of this guide before proceeding.

Begin by collecting the following information about the user and the relevant website:

• Host – The name your hosting provider uses to identify your site, also called the host address or connection address. Usually resembles the site’s domain name and may even be identical, but not always. Be sure to confirm the site’s FTP hostname with your hosting provider.
• Username – The username associated with the current FTP/SFTP user
• Password – The password associated with the current FTP/SFTP user
• Port – Provided by the host. The FTP port is often displayed on a site’s dashboard in the same area as the FTP user information, but not always. Contact your host’s support team for assistance if you do not know your site’s FTP port.

With the above information at hand, open your FTP client. With Filezilla, as with most FTP clients, a “quick connection” method is available. Enter the FTP/SFTP user credentials listed above into the appropriate fields and click Quickconnect.

Once connected, the primary site folder will appear in the Remote Site panel on the right side of the screen. Opening the site folder will reveal the public_html folder, where most WordPress site files are located.

The next step will permanently save this connection to the client’s Site Manager, so connecting in the future only requires a few button clicks.

While connected, click the File button and then select Copy current connection to Site Manager.

This will open the Site Manager and automatically populate the site’s connection information to the appropriate fields. Enter a name for this connection in the blue highlighted field.

If you are creating a conventional FTP connection–not SFTP–verify that the Encryption field is set to Use explicit FTP over TLS if available. If it isn’t, click the dropdown menu and select that setting.

Click Ok to save the new connection to your FTP client. Connecting to this site in the future will only require opening the Site Manager, selecting the site and clicking Connect. You will not need to re-enter the connection information.

A local site directory is simply a folder on your computer that mirrors the file structure of a specific website. Properly configured, the local directory will open, automatically, whenever the FTP client connects to its parent site. The file structures of the two directories appear side-by-side on screen, making FTP file management significantly more efficient.

The benefits of local directories include:

• Efficiency – It’s far easier to move files from a local computer to a server and back again, and to do so with confidence, when the file structures in both places match.
• Synced browsing – With synced browsing, as you navigate through either directory, the opposite directory will automatically navigate in the same manner so the file or folder currently active in one pane is readily available in the other.
• Directory comparison – A feature that uses color coding to highlight differences between synced directories.

The image below shows how synced browsing works. The Local Site panel on the left displays a local directory called mysite.com that was created and synced with a website directory that appears in the Remote Site panel on the right.

The green highlighting in the Remote Site panel indicates files and folders that match in both directories.

The two files and one folder highlighted in yellow in the local directory are highlighted because they are not present on the remote site. You can also see this discrepancy indicated in the data highlighted in red which confirms that, indeed, the local site has two files and one directory that are not present in the Remote Site directory.

If you still have questions or need assistance after reading this document, please don’t hesitate to contact our support superheroes using the available options under the Support tab in your Hub or via the Support tab in your WPMU DEV Dashboard.