Upload Files For Free

Any website work will require that you upload files to your server, and better for you, if you can upload files for free. The purpose of this tutorial is to show you how you can do this using a utility which has a free option. You can of course, use any utility that you like, the process is fundamentally the same.

Please note that this tutorial is part of a series teaching you how to install php scripts. If you have come here in the first instance, you might care to cast your eye over the earlier tutorials, so that this one fits in sequence.

Ok, so we want to upload files to your server.

The first thing you will need is an FTP client, or a program that allows you to contact your server, and send files to it. I personally use a program called Core FTP Lite for this job, which is an excellent tool. All of the images created for this tutorial use Core FTP Lite, but the principals are the same no matter which FTP client you are using.

The first thing that you will need to do, is to set up a project, which will handle the link to your site. After installing Core FTP Lite, and starting the program, you will arrive at a screen similar to that shown below.

By all means take the time to familiarise yourself with all of the icons and menus, but for now, we need to click on the 'Sites' menu. You should see a menu similar to that shown below:

Click on the 'Site Manager' link and another screen will pop up.

The pane on the right is where you will need to fill in the login information relating to your site. I have given you some clues as to what is required, but if you don't have the information, then you will need to contact your ISP.

At the bottom of the screen, there are some buttons:

When you have typed in the information, click on the <Connect> button. Core FTP will launch and attempt to access your site. If you are successful, you will see some files appear in two panes below the main program menu, similar to that shown below.

And on the right hand side ...

You will see the default location of either pane (which you can change) in the field just above each panel.

If the login fails, you will see an error. If this happens, load up the site details again and double check them. If you are unsure, contact your ISP.

You will see that there is an explorer type menu in each pane. Use the menu to navigate where you want to go. In our example, the pane on the left shows us the location of files on our hard drive. You will need to navigate to where you unzipped the script files. They should show up as below:

On the right hand side, either navigate to where you are told the files need to be placed in your instructions, or, as in our case, you will need to create a folder to hold the script files. If we want to create a folder, you can do it in the following way.

1.	Right click in the right hand pane somewhere. You will see a screen similar to that shown below.
2.	Scroll down to the 'Directory Commands' option, and hold the mouse there. The menu will expand, and you will see four more options as illustrated.
3.	Click on the 'Make Directory' option.
4.	Type in a directory name. Please note, that on the server side, the directories are likely to be case sensitive. I suggest that you operate on that assumption.
5.	Click on the <OK> button, to save the name.
6.	Your new directory will now be accessible in the right hand pane.

Now for the final phase ...

Upload Files To Your Server

1.	In the right hand pane, navigate to the installation folder, ie the folder on the server where you want your script files to be held.
2.	In the right hand pane, select all of the files and folders that you want to upload. The screen should look similar to that shown below.
3.	If you are satisfied that you have the correct files to upload in the left hand pane, and the correct location for the files on the server in the right hand pane, click on the right facing transfer arrow
4.	If you want to send files the other way, then hit the left pointing arrow above the right hand pane.
5.	If the file exists on the server, you will see the following screen
6.	The transfer will start and you can relax, and congratulate yourself that you have managed to upload files for free.