In this tutorial we will guide you how to access ftp server in mac.
In mac, we can access FTP servers from the desktop only, without using any third party softwares. Let’s see how that’s done.
Step 1 – Connect to Server
To access ftp in mac, move to the “Go” Menu and click on the “Connect to Server” option. You can use the shortcut key Command K for that as well.
Step 2 – Entering in the ftp server address
With the new window opened up, you would be required to enter the address of your FTP server. Once done, simply click on connect.
Step 3 – Entering in the login details
After that, the authentication window will open up. Over here, you will see the two options. Connect as Guest or Connect as a Registered User. If you are a registered user, you would be required to enter the name and password which would be provided by the web administrator or hosting company. So let’s enter the username and password over here and click on the connect option.
Step 4 – Browsing through the Ftp server
It might take a few seconds to make the connection between your MAC and the FTP Server. Once the connection has been successfully established, you will see the contents of the FTP Server in the folder here. Now you can navigate and browse through your server.
MAC will also automatically mount the FTP folder once you have accessed it, so it can easily be accessible through the desktop once a successful connection has been established.
If you close the server windows, the folder would still be present and accessible. Therefore, if you want to exit from the server, do remember to eject the FTP server.
Step 5 – Using the Filezilla Quick Connect feature
Alternatively, you can use various third party applications for connecting with FTP in mac. One such application is Filezilla, which is a lightweight application available for the Mac Operating System as well. It is extremely easy to use and provides you with much more functionality than the Connect to Server utility in Mac.
The application can be downloaded from
filezilla-project.org
Over here, in the bar on top you can directly connect to your FTP server. All you would need is to enter the Hostname, username, password and the port number. The hostname can differ from your website domain, so it’s important to get the information from your hosting company. The default port number used for establishing an ftp connection is 21. Once you hit the quick connect button, it will automatically connect to your ftp server.
Step 6 – Uploading files through filezilla
With the connection established successfully, you can navigate and browse through your FTP server. If you want to upload anything, all you have to do is drag and drop the file in the remote site browser section.
Once the upload is complete, the file will be showing over here, which means it has been uploaded successfully.
Step 7 – Using the Site manager Utility
Furthermore, if you want the application to remember the login credentials of your FTP server, you can open up the site manager and add a site over here. For that, you would have to click on the New Site button.
Once done, you can start by naming the connection, entering the details like the host name and the port number. You can even use this application to log on anonymously to the FTP server, but for this tutorial, we will be choosing for the “ask for password” option over here instead. What this will do is ask for the password every time a connection is to be made with the server.
Now if you want to connect to the FTP server, all you have to do is open up the site manager, select the connection from the pane here and click on connect.
The application will prompt you for the password, and once entered, it will automatically connect to your FTP server.
And that’s how you can access your ftp server in mac.
Home