How to connect an FTP or FTPS server to file.rocks

Plenty of web hosts and older servers still hand out FTP logins. file.rocks can connect to one, so its files show up next to your other buckets.

You fill in one form, and file.rocks tests the connection before it saves anything.

1. Before you start

The connection runs from file.rocks servers, so your FTP server has to be reachable from the internet.

Have these ready before you open the form:

• Your server's address
• The port, if it isn't 21
• A username
• That user's password

It also helps to know whether your server supports FTPS.

2. Open the bucket form

Go to Settings, then Buckets, and click Add Bucket. If you don't have any buckets yet, the button reads Create your first bucket.

The Create Bucket window opens. Under Storage Type, pick Bring Your Own.

Open Provider and choose FTP / FTPS. The form switches to fields for your server.

3. Fill in the connection details

Host

Host is your server's address, like ftp.example.com.

Port

Port shows 21 as a hint, but the box itself is empty. If you leave it blank, file.rocks uses 21, whether FTPS is on or off. If your host gave you a different port, type it in.

Username and Password

Username and Password are the FTP account file.rocks signs in as. There's no key field for FTP.

file.rocks encrypts the password before it stores it.

Root path

Root path is the folder that becomes the top of the bucket in file.rocks. It starts as /.

The account you entered has to be able to open that folder, because the connection test lists it.

Nickname and Internal name

Nickname is the name you'll see in file.rocks, like "Home NAS". Internal name is a short ID for the bucket, like nas-home.

If you leave either one blank, file.rocks uses the host instead.

Use FTPS (TLS)

Use FTPS (TLS) starts out on. With it on, file.rocks connects on the regular FTP port and then switches the connection to TLS. That's called explicit FTPS, and it's the kind most servers support.

Implicit FTPS, an older kind that usually runs on port 990, isn't supported. If your server only offers that, check whether it supports SFTP instead.

With the switch off, the connection is plain FTP. Plain FTP isn't encrypted, so your username, password and files travel in the clear. The form shows a note saying so. Only turn it off if your server doesn't offer FTPS.

4. Save and test the connection

Click Save Bucket. Before it saves anything, file.rocks connects to your server and lists the Root path.

If that works, the window closes and the new bucket shows up in your Buckets list. It also becomes the bucket you have open.

If it doesn't work, nothing is saved, but you won't see an error message, and Save Bucket keeps loading. Reload the page, check these, then add the bucket again:

• Your server is reachable from the internet.
• Host and Port are right.
• Use FTPS (TLS) starts out on, so a server that only speaks plain FTP will fail the save test until you turn it off.
• The Username and Password are right.
• The Root path exists, and that user can open it.

If the server stops answering for 20 seconds, the attempt fails.

5. What's different from an S3 bucket

With an S3 bucket, your browser uploads files straight to storage. With FTP, uploads go through file.rocks servers, and each file can be 32 MB at most. A bigger file gets turned away.

Downloads and previews come through file.rocks servers too.

If you have big files or plan to sync a lot, S3-compatible storage is a better home for them. Cheapest cloud object storage compares the options. The guides for Amazon S3, Cloudflare R2, Backblaze B2, Wasabi and MinIO walk through each one.

Sync still works. An FTP bucket shows up in sync like any other bucket, and how to sync files between your own buckets covers the setup.

Importing a file from a link or torrent needs an S3-compatible bucket, so it won't work on an FTP bucket.

On the Usage page, Est. storage / mo shows a dash for an FTP bucket. file.rocks has no price list for your own server.

6. Upload a file

Open Files and drop something in. If it shows up, you're connected. Keep the 32 MB limit in mind while you test.

For more on uploading, see how to upload files to your own bucket. If your server speaks SFTP or WebDAV instead, the SFTP guide and the WebDAV guide cover those forms.

Your files stay in the bucket you connected, and file.rocks is how you manage them.