How Can I Link to a File or Folder on My FTP Server?

One of the great features of an FTP server is the ability to use direct FTP links. With a direct link, you can use links to files and directories in emails and on your websites. Think of this: instead of sending a big attachment in an email, send a link to the file instead.

The format is really simple:

ftp:// username [colon] password [at] server.exavault.com [slash] folder-or-filename

For example: ftp://download:evtest@test.exavault.com/transfer.pdf

Here's what you need to know about direct links:

  • Don't use your main account username and password for a direct link.
  • You need to use ftp:// instead of http://
  • Both the username and password are optional.
  • Spaces, punctuation and other characters are not allowed in user names, passwords, folder, or file names.
    • Rather, you need to use a % [number] in place of the character:
      • Space: %20
      • @: %40
    • A complete listing can be found at w3schools' URL encoding page.
faq/transferring/direct-links.txt · Last modified: 2010/05/29 19:42 by exavault