So if I want to log in as a different user, i cannot even if I close the window. When it works in Firefox, though, there is no way to log out. In Safari, I am only told that my user/pass is incorrect (thought it isn’t). I have been able to make this work in Firefox.
HTML file) or ask if you want to download it. TXT text file will often be displayed along with any. By clicking on a file the browser should either attempt to display it (e.g., a. By clicking on other directories you can see what’s in them (assuming you have the right to - otherwise they will be blank or you will be asked for a password). Once you are logged into the FTP site you will generally see a directory listing.
So, a fully qualified example might look like (I certainly hope this one doesn’t work! ? )…įtp://billgates: /special/secretplans In the vast majority of cases you can ignore the :port part as the browser assumes the standard FTP port 21 will be used for the connection and the vast majority of sites are configured that way.įinally, if there is any special path to a particular directory that you need, it would go after the host domain name. This would be the domain name for the host followed by the port to be used for connection. Some versions of Internet Explorer have special ways of entering the password see the more info link below.Īfter the sign you see host:port. And, remember that all of this is taking place in the open so all user names and passwords are being transmitted in clear text not encrypted. If there is a password required and you leave it out of the URL a dialog box should pop up and ask for the password as part of the connection process to the FTP site. So, if the site requires a real user login then you must provide the username at least so the browser does not attempt to log in as user anonymous. If you leave out the user, the browser will assume that this is an anonymous login and use that along with whatever E-mail address you have put in your browser preferences as the password (anonymous FTP sites demand an E-mail address as the password for various tracking or notification reasons). Second, note that there is a part before the host domain that tells the FTP site the login information: user: These are optional but, if the site needs a login you will have to provide one at some point. This tells the browser to use its FTP routines instead of its normal Web browsing routines. This looks imposing at first glance but, in reality is fairly simple.įirst, note that the URL does not start with but, instead, ftp://. Using a special Uniform Resource Locator (URL) or Internet address you should be able to log into most any FTP site and navigate the file tree at the site by clicking on directory listings. You don’t need to have an FTP program to download files from an FTP site.