Using FTP to Create Folders and Upload Files
We've lumped these two functions together because they both require the use of an FTP program (File Transfer Protocol program) or a browser-based web-site manager.
NOTE ON FILE MANAGERS: Some web hosting companies offer a browser-based solution for you to upload and manage files on your web site -- these kinds of solutions are often included as part of the "web site control panel" system that your web hosting company provides to allow you to administer your site. These systems can vary a lot from one host to the next, but for the most part they are perfectly safe to use. The only drawback is that they usually allow you to upload only one file at a time, which takes a bit longer than a "real" FTP program.
The process of uploading file to your web site can be summed up as: The files that constitute your web site are located on a server. A server is nothing more than a super-duper computer that your web hosting company owns and probably resides in the basement of some fancy building along with a hundred other servers. The term "upload" means that you are moving a file from your local PC to the server. Kinda like how you move files from your camera to your PC -- you "upload" photos from the camera to your PC. The term "download" is the reverse.
You can think of it this way: You "upload" files from a small machine to a bigger machine. You "download" files from a big machine to a smaller one.
In order to move files from your PC to your web site, you need to use a special FTP program. Some operating systems (Windows XP) have FTP functionality built into the operating system. On the PC, Windows usually allows you to FTP using Internet Explorer, however Internet Explorer is not really the best program to FTP files -- and we highly recommend that you DO NOT use Internet Explorer to upload files to your web site.
We recommend the following FTP programs:
NOTE: When uploading the Wimpy files to your web site, be sure to check that the SWF, JPG and and media files are uploaded using "binary" mode, and all the "text" kind of files such as PHP, ASP, CFM, HTML, XML are uploaded using "ascii" mode.
Usually browser-based upload utilities do not allow you to set the "transfer mode" -- however, most standard desktop-based FTP programs allow you to choose which kind of "transfer mode" to use for each kind of file that you upload. That being said, most FTP programs are smart enough to recognize certain kinds of files.
We bring this to your attention just in case you run into any difficulties... it's just one of those things that you can check if things start to go haywire.
If you are using an FTP program to upload files, you will need a couple bits of information before starting, namely:
- An FTP host address
- An FTP username
- An FTP password
The "Host address" is usually referred to as "Host," but sometimes referred to as "FTP Account" -- FTP programs may use another name, but basically, this is referring to the address to the website. The username and password should be self explanatory.
A typical host / user / password would looks similar to:
Host: www.yoursite.com
User: sally
Password: somethingTricky
Some web sites are set up to use a different "Host" name:
Host: ftp.yrousite.com
User: sally
Password: somethingTricky
Locating the "web root"
Once you've got your FTP program set up and you are able to log in, you may have to locate the proper folder (directory) that your web site is actually stored in.
As mentioned earlier, a web server is nothing more than a super-duper machine that your web hosting company owns and probably resides in the basement of some fancy building in California along with hundreds of other servers. And because a server is "just another computer" it is very similar to your PC in the way that things are organized. The server that your web site is "on" probably contains 30 or 40 other web sites as well. Some web sites have their own server machine (dedicated server), but usually only very large web sites require a dedicated server.
So, to keep things organized, each web site gets it's own folder (directory) on the server. For example, a typical directory set up for three web sites would look similar to:
/www/home/websiteA
/www/home/websiteB
/www/home/websiteC
Likewise, your PC may be used by more than one person. Sometimes when you start up your PC, you have to log in. So in order to keep things organized, Windows sets up a directory for each user. If you've ever snooped around on the "C" drive, you might be familiar with the following directory structure:
C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users
C:\Documents and Settings\bob
C:\Documents and Settings\sally
Each user's directory contains a number of additional sub-directories such as:
C:\Documents and Settings\bob\My Documents
C:\Documents and Settings\bob\My Photos
C:\Documents and Settings\bob\My Pictures
... and a variety of other files and folders.
If Windows is configured to "show hidden files and folder" you will notice that within each user's directory also contains:
C:\Documents and Settings\bob\Desktop
C:\Documents and Settings\bob\Application Data
Likewise, on a web server each web site's directory also contains sub-folders that help the server know where certain important information is located, such as email, logs, and other account and web site information.
For example, here's how a typical web site's directory structure would appear:
/www/home/websiteA/user_email
/www/home/websiteA/public_html
/www/home/websiteA/web_logs
So, as you know, on your local PC, all of this directory structure stuff is not inherently obvious, most people are not even aware of it! But your PC would not be as easy to use if it were not so cleverly hidden. If you've ever taken the time to peak into the "Desktop" directory for your account, you would realize that all of the icons that appear on your desktop are also in the "Desktop" folder as well. This means that your familiar desktop is actually just a glorified folder! Another way to look at the desktop is that it is kinda like your own personal web site on your local computer.
Likewise, a web server uses a directory called "public_html" -- all servers are set up differently, so the actual name may vary. Some other common names are "www" or "html" or "public." This "public_html" folder is actually where all the files that make up your web site are actually located.
Now to further complicate things, most web servers hide all this directory structure stuff. So when you log in using an FTP program, all you ever see is the directories that are pertinent to your web site.
For example, when you first log in you can expect to see something like:
user_email
public_html
web_logs
... and maybe a couple other miscellaneous folder and files.
If you go into the directory named "public_html," you should see a file named "index.html." This file "index.html" is your "home page" and any other pages and graphics that are associated with your web site should also be located within this "public_html" folder.
Roots
The term "root" is used to denote a "base" or "starting point." There are basically three kinds of "roots":
Server (or system) root
The "server" or "system" root is a reference to the main hard drive that contains all the files for the server. This is synonymous in the Windows world to the "C" drive -- or -- C:\\
Account root
Account root refers to the directory that contains ALL the files for your web site, including emails, logs and other important account information.
Web root
This refers to the directory that contains all the files that make up your actual web site.
Now, the tricky thing here is how a web server "points" to your web root.
There is often confusion on how a web address (URL) "knows" where all the files are located. In other words, when you enter "http://www.yoursite.com" into a web browser, how on earth does the browser know how to display my files!
In a nut shell... When a web server receives a request for your domain name, it directs the web browser to the Web Root directory. By default, the web server will automatically present the browser with the file named "index.html" -- some web servers are set up to present a different "default" file, some other default files are "index.htm" or "default.htm."
The best way to determine that you've located the "web root" is to create a simple text file and upload the newly created text file to the web root directory. Then using a web browser (such as Internet Explorer), enter the URL to the text file.
For example, create a new text file and name it "test.txt" and type something into the text file, such as "hello world." Then upload it to the web root. Then using a web browser, enter:
http://www.yoursite.com/test.txt
If "hello world" appears in the browser, then you know that you've successfully located the "web root."
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