FTP WorkStation Instructions

    The FTP WorkStation is meant for advanced users. It is much more complicated than the Freeloaders, but with it you can do much more. You login to an FTP server just as you do with the Freeloaders but with the FTPWS you can do a variety of file management operations. You can edit a file on your server. You can set permissions on any file or directory. You can create new directories. You can remove (delete) files and directories, and you can rename files and directories. In addition to these operations which can be done to existing files and directories on your server, you may upload a file from just about anywhere on the web... either a text file or a graphic or sound file. If you want to upload a text file (.txt or .html), you can choose to edit it BEFORE you upload it to your server. This is a feature I always thought would have been nice to have... now I have it :-). In fact you can "grab" a file from somewhere, edit it,m make a directory to put it in, upload it, AND chmod it all in a single transaction... It is fast and it is easy.. But you will need to know about all the options and below I have some explaination.

There are few tips I will be adding in the near future but for now read the instructions here and just try it out. I you have any comments or suggestions, E-Mail me, But please... if you are writing to ask why something didnt work, please cut and paste the server dialogue and send it to me. Being able to see the dialogue will make it easier for me to help you. Also, while you are moving your "cursor" around the various links and inputs, keep an eye on the "status bar" (the place where the page title appears) for extra information about links and form inputs.
loading the cookies saving the cookies
deleting the cookies ftp server
ftp username ftp password
ftp file path homapage base url
url to be grabbed direct action buttons
Edit local file Edit remote file
Upload a file Submit changes
additional command buttons ascii or binary mode
file permissions create directory
remove directory remove file
rename file or directory Server Dialogue
  • FTP Sever Dialogue
    The server dialogue will tell you about every command sent to the server and every response received from it. This is very helpful for determining what may have went wrong when learning how to operate the FTP WorkStation. Please Please read the dialogue before you leave the page so you can see if the transaction was successful... and don't try to repeat a faulty command. It will tell you what commands were sent and if it was successful or why it was not successful. Use the Server dialogue, it will save you time and trouble.

  • Loading the cookies
    This should be pretty self explanitory. If you click on one of the numbers by "Load Cookies" it will load which ever cookie corresponds with the number, there are 4 cookies available. When you load the cookie it will load your info which had been saved at the Freeloader. The inputs which can be saved are "host", "username", "password", "base url", "path" (path will be whatever you had saved in the subdirectory input at the Freeloader) and "url to be grabbed" (That is the "source url" if you're one of the many who are stuck in "Transloader Mode")

  • Saving the cookies
    Saving the cookies is just like loading them except whatever is in the inputs will be saved in the appropriate cookie.. WARNING... if you save blank inputs that will over write any cookie you had for that number. For instance, click "Save cookies" #3 when the inputs are blank, and you will save blank inputs in the #3 cookie, and consequentially if you had information there it will deleted.

  • Deleting the cookies
    Clicking on the "Dump cookies" links will delete any cookie for that number... click "Dump cookie #3" and you will delete cookie #3.

  • FTP server name
    This input is where you put the FTP server address... Most of them look something like "ftp.tripod.com"... some of them like Angelfire use annonymous logins.. I am not going to have a list of FTP server names.. I suggest that if you don't know your ftp server name, go to your homepager homepage and find that information.

  • FTP user name
    You should know your user name... if you don't well... i don't know what to tell you, but most Servers use the same user name you would use to login to any of the other member utilities that are offered to you at your homepager

  • FTP password
    HEY... What can I say... you have to know your password. if you don't, well.... you're stuck out. Unlike a regular password input, I have the password input showing the actual characters you enter... I do that so you can see if you have typed in the wrong password... If you have prying eyes around when you're trying to log on... tell them to leave the room or tell them to look at the spider dropping on them or something... then quickly type in your password and submit the form before they look back. And by the way... just because you can see the password in the input doesn't mean that anyonme else can. No one else can see your password. If I used the kind of input that puts in the ********* instead of the actual password, that would only keep you or anyone in the room with you from seeing what you are about to submit as your password. There has been some concern about this raised by people who simply don't understand any of it. I use the regular text input so you can see if you are about to submit a typo. BUT ANYWAY... unless the "hacker" is looking over your shoulder, he/she won't see your password.

  • FTP file path
    The FTP file path is the "path" beyond your base url or document root where any file or directory exists. If you want to perform some action on any file or directory , you must include its path in the FTP Path input. The actions which require an FTP path are "Edit local file", "Upload a file" and "Submit changes". OK... this seems to be the stumper for most people. This simply means that if your url is http://members.pages.com/~webber/ and you want to perfom an action on your index.html file of your parent tdirectory, you would only put "index.html" in the path input. If you want to perform an action on a file called "booga.txt" which lies in a directory called "stuff" you would place "stuff/booga.txt" in the path input. If you want to upload a file you just put the subdirectory you want it in followed by the name you want to call it. Suppose you have a file you want o upload and you want the url to be http://members.pages.com/~webber/images/picture.jpg, You would have to put "images/picture.jpg in the Path input. BUT the "images" subdirectory must exist or it can't upload it there, if it doesn't exist, it may upload it to your parent directory, or not upload it at all depending on the server you are uploading to. If you have your own domain, you may have to upload to a public subdirectory such as "public_html" or "home" or 'httpdocs".. If you have your own domain you should know where to upload to...if you don't ask your systems administrator.

  • Home page base url
    This feature is one I always wanted to see on the other FTP uploaders, but as far as I know I am the only one that has it. If you put in your homepage base url, this program will give you a link to the file which was the subject of any action after the action is completed. And you can save the base url in the cookies

  • Url for uploading or editing a remote file
    This input is for the url which you want to upload, or the url you want use with . If you aren't used to the freeloaders, and you are still stuck in "Transloader mode" this is equivalent to "source url". Anyway, if you want upload a file or edit a remote file, you must have a url in this input.

  • Direct actions
    The "Direct actions" are "Edit local file", "Edit a remote file", "Upload a file" and "Submit Changes". The four entrys below describe each action.

  • Editing a local file
    This is pretty straight-foreward. To "Edit a local file" means that you will have to log in to an FTP server and edit a file locally. To edit a local e file you must include an "FTP server name" in its proper input, an ftp user name in it's appropriate input, an FTP password, and an FTP path for the file to be edited.

  • Editing a remote file
    To Edit a remote file, all you have to do is include a url in the "URL to be grabbed" input and click the "Edit a remote file" button. This will load that file into an editor so that you can edit it before saving it on your server. After editing you must click "Submit Changes" but be sure to include any appropriate FTP info for the server and path you want the file to be placed.

  • Uploading a file
    This should be easy. If you want to upload a file to your FTP server, just include a url in the "URL to be grabbed" input, fill in the FTP info, including the path where you want to place the file, then click "Up load a file".

  • Submiting changes
    Submitting changes is only used after you have edited a file. You must use it when you "Edit local file" or "Edit remote file" and you MUST have your FTP info included along with the path you want the file to be placed. When you are through editing, click "Submit Changes". WARNING... DO NOT press the "Submit Changes" button unless you have just finished editing a file and you are happy with your edits. If you click "Submit Changes" while you have all your FTP info entered, it will save a file to the FTP path you have specified. If you don't have the editor loaded with a file opened ... it will save a blank page at that FTP path... In other words... If you put in your FTP info including path (we'll say, "index.html") and click "Submit Changes" before you load the file in the editor using "Edit Local file" it will save a blank file at your "index.html".

  • Selecting Ascii or Binary mode
    The ascii checkbox is checked by default, but you can "uncheck it" to upload a binary file such as an image file or sound file. You should upload html and text files in ascii mode and you should upload images and sound files in binary mode. The only time you ever need to uncheck this box is when you are uploading a sound or image file using "Upload a file".. You can upload html files and text files in binary mode but... don't do it... you don't have to.

  • Additional Server commands
    These additional server commands can be sent and executed along with any "Submit Changes" or "Upload a file". The "additional commands are listed below. You can send any or all of these commands every time you use "Submit Changes" or "Upload a file". There are buttons which will give you a prompt in which to put the commands but you don't have to use the buttons. You can just enter the info in the command inputs at the bottom of the page. If those inputs are not empty, a command using that info will be sent to the server. The information that is in those inputs at the bottom of the page will determine what command is sent. Read on to get info about each command.

  • Setting file permissions
    File permissions determine who wil be able to read, write or execute a file or directory. The command that changes file permissions is called "chmod". I hope to have a better explaination of file permissions soon, in fact I am going to write a page about it, but for now, if you don't know anything about them it is best that you do not change permissions on files or directories. But if you are writing CGI scripts and you need to set permissions to be "user executable" I already have the "chmod 755" command in the prompt which is activated by the "Perms" button. If you are setting a file to be executable the command in the "chmod cmnd" input should look like this:



  • Creating a new directory
    You can create a new subdirectory every time you use "Submit Changes" or "Upload a file". To make a new subdirectory you just put in the file path for that directory. If you want to make a subdirectory called "images" in your parent directory, the text in the "create new dir" input should look like this:



    If you want to make a subdirectory named "gifs" which will be a subdirectory of the "images sub, the text in the input should look like this:



    DO NOT include a beginning or trailing slash in the "create new dir" input... it won't harm anything but it won't make a directory either.

  • Removing a directory
    You can delete any directory that is empty. Just type in the directory you want to remove, just as you would enter a directory to be created. Never include beginning or trailing slashes.

  • Removing a file
    You can delete any file in your directory using this command. Just be sure and include the full path to that file. For instance, if you want to remove a file called "badgif.gif" in the "gif" subdirectory of your "images" directory, the text in the "remove file" input should look like this:



  • Renaming files and directories
    You can also rename any file or directory. You must include the complete file path to the file to be renamed and the file path to the new name you want to give it. If you are wanting to rename that same "badgif.gif", the text in the "from" input should look like this:

    from:

    and the text you put in the "to" input should look like this:

    to:

    If you are wanting to rename that same "gifs" directory to "GIFS", the text in the "from" input should look like this:

    from:

    and the text you put in the "to" input should look like this:

    to:

    When renaming files or directories, do not include beginning or trailing slashes in the inputs.

Well thats all of the instructions I can think of now, but I am sure there will be more added as people start using it and writing me with questions. So check back later to see if any new questions are answered for you.