The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is used to move files from one system to another, typically between an FTP client and an FTP server. Its great advantage is moving files that are too large to be email attachments. You can upload files from your system to a server or you can download files from a server to your system. Examples of commercially available FTP software include FTP_Pro, Fetch, and CuteFTP. The FTP process is illustrated below:

The benefits of using FTP include:

1. Moving files anonymously
2. Moving files identified by a user name
3. Reliable data transfer
4. Error checking
5. Avoiding email file size limitations
6. Providing users on different networks access to files

A disadvantage of using FTP is that the files are transmitted in clear text. This means that the packets can be intercepted and username and password information can be obtained.

File Type Settings
In the next lesson, you will learn how to use FTP.