How to set up an FTP server for your computer and phone
Transferring files directly between your computer and your Android phone is tiresome. Whether you want to add custom ringtones, organize your photos, or quickly delete files that are taking up too much storage space, the process involves connecting both devices with a cable, changing the security settings on your phone, and most likely confusing the phone calls will for some reason not shown in the file browser. And then, inevitably, the cable gets disconnected and you have to go through the whole setup process again.
Luckily, you can save yourself all these hassles and set up a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) server on your Android phone instead. It sounds technical, but it’s actually quite simple – with FTP, any computer (Windows, macOS or Linux) on your WiFi network can access the files on your phone easily and wirelessly. That way, the next time you need to transfer files, you can easily do it by simply moving documents from one folder to another.
This is especially useful if you’re not a big fan of the cloud.
Hot to set up an FTP server on Android
First you need to set up the FTP server on your phone. The easiest free way to do this is to download the WiFi FTP server app from Google Play, which is free with ads (you can also pay $1 to go ad-free if that’s a problem ). If you know your way around, you can quickly start an FTP server by opening the app and tapping beginning button, but if you’re not sure what you’re doing I suggest you go settings.
First, disable anonymous access and set up a user ID and password. This allows people to access the files on your phone only with those credentials. Proceed with the verification Use FTPS. This option provides an extra layer of security and ensures that all your transfers are encrypted, meaning even someone breaking into your network cannot see what files you are transferring. This probably doesn’t matter if you’re just using it at home, but it’s nice if you ever have guests or one of your neighbors cracks your credentials.
[Related: Wireless sharing with Apple, Android, and Windows devices made easy]
Use it to go back to the app’s main menu and tap beginning.
The next screen will show you all the information you need to sign in from another device. We break it down for you: Server URL is the local address of your server, which you can think of similar to a website URL. You need this to tell your computer where to look for files. user identification and password are the credentials you chose earlier – you need them to transfer files from another gadget. when turned on, Anonymous access allows users to access your phone over the network without credentials. Activation is easier but certainly less secure, so do it at your own risk. Finally, root directory is the folder on your Android phone that you can access from other devices on your network. By default, this is set to all of the gadget’s internal storage, but you can change it to only share a specific folder while keeping the rest of your phone locked.
How to access the FTP server from your computer
Your phone will now share files over the local WiFi network, which means you can access those files on any device that’s also connected to it. To do this, you need a file browser, also known as an FTP client.
There are many great FTP clients out there, but we recommend Cyberduck (available for macOS and Windows) as it’s beginner-friendly. This program is open source, which generally means that it is known to be safe and also very easy to use. Download, install and open Cyberduck and click on the main menu Open connection. Use the window that appears to enter the information you see on your phone.
[Related: How to share huge files online]
To the Server, Enter the numbers and decimal points below Server URL on your phone – but only up to the colon. After that, enter the numbers in the Harbor field instead. It’s a little confusing, but take the screenshot above for reference. Proceed by entering your username and password and clicking Connect. You can now browse your phone files from your computer.
You can now click and drag files to and from your handheld device and easily delete any documents you want. When you’re done, turn off the FTP server – just open the app again and tap Stop. This will also prevent the server from draining your battery.