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How to: Open Web Site Projects Using FTP

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Microsoft Visual Studio allows you to work with Web site projects that you access using File Transfer Protocol (FTP). This makes it simple for you to work with sites that are hosted on another server, such as the server for a commercial hosting service.

The site to open must be available on an FTP server and you must have the following:

  • The name of the FTP server where you want to open the Web site.

  • The name of the folder (on the FTP server) where the Web files are stored.

  • Appropriate permissions to work with the files on the FTP server. This typically requires Read and Write permissions as a minimum.

You might also need the following:

  • A user name and password for the server.

  • The port number that is used to access the FTP server. This is typically port 21.

You can get the preceding information from the FTP server administrator.

To open a Web site by using FTP

  1. On the File menu, click Open Web Site.

  2. In the Open Web Site dialog box, click the FTP Site tab.

  3. Provide the following information:

    • Server   Type the name of the server, which can be in the format ftp://server.

    • Port   If the FTP server administrator has given you a port number that is different from 21, change this value.

    • Passive mode   Select this check box if there is a firewall between your computer and the FTP server.

    • Directory   Type the name of the folder where you want to open files.

    • Anonymous Login   Select this check box if the FTP server does not require you to log on in order to access files. Clear the check box to enter a user name and password.

      Note

      If you do not provide required credentials when specifying the login information for the FTP Web site, Visual Studio prompts you for them when you attempt to connect. Visual Studio never attempts to connect to an FTP server anonymously unless you explicitly specify anonymous login.

    • User name and Password   Type the credentials that were provided by the FTP server administrator.

      Note

      The user name and password for the FTP server might be different from your usual Windows login credentials.

  4. Click Open.

    Visual Studio connects to the FTP server and reads the files in the specified folder. You can now edit the files and create new ones. When you save a file, it is immediately written to the FTP server.

See Also

Tasks

How to: Specify the Web Server for Web Projects in Visual Studio

Concepts

Types of Web Site Projects in Visual Studio

FTP-Deployed Web Site Projects

Other Resources

Web Application Projects versus Web Site Projects in Visual Studio