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FTP vs HTTP

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7 replies

by steve.doig

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G'Day Folks,

A website has ~4MB mp3 files for downloading

I was of the opinion FTP is faster and more robust, but another opionion I've heard is it is less secure and more prone to outside manipulation...

Thoughts please.... :)

Cheers,
Steve

7 replies

by fenaikh

Hi

HTTP:hypertext transfer protocol. Best for sendign and receiving html code which web browsers then display as Web ?pages?
FTP : file transfer protocol. Fastest,Cheapest, May have security issues around both getting an putting, and best for sending and receiving data files
The advantage of FTP over HTTP is that in some implementations broken FTP connections pick up where they left off, (no need for full file retransmission) which useful for large files over modem lines

I hope this will help you.

Good luck
Mohamed

by ebob

Sometimes, it sure looks like we're using HTTP to download files. This is especially true for the younger generations who's only tools for Network access have been EMail clients and Web Browsers.

However, I'll bet that even an "HTTP" file transfer is running "FTP", under the covers (unless the file is of a format that can be readily handled by the Web Browser).

So in other words, a link like "http://www.yoursite.com/file1.exe" probably kicks an FTP client to actually transfer the file. This is kept transparent to the user, which is why so many people use their Web Browser for practically everything.

Of course, if the file can be handled by the browser, then HTTP remains as the file transfer protocol.

To answer your question: FTP is actually more secure and more robust than HTTP. There is more error checking. As for external manipulation, I would bet on FTP. If security was my concern, I would not use either, but would investigate several Secure Shell options.

As for which I would use on a website: I would just let the software figure it out and simply link to the file, without specifying the protocol:

My File (MP3)

by estebandelatorre

IF YOU HAVE TO ASK FOR A USER AND PASSWORD IN ORDER TO ALLOW A DOWNLOAD, FTP IS MORE STRONG, BECAUSE ONCE THE CLIENT IS CONNECTED AND AUTHENTICATED, HE CAN DOWNLOAD FILES AS HE WISH.
SAME BUT UNDER HTTP YOU WILL HAVE TO DO ONE OF THESE:
A.- KEEP THE SESSION ID (NOT SO EASY TO DO)
B.- ASK FOR A USER&PSW ON EACH TRY.

BY THE OTHER HAND, IF DOWNLOAD IS FREE, HTTP IS RECOMMENDED THUS YOU WILL NOT HAVE TO SETUP FTP SERVICES (A DOOR WHICH MAY BE HACKED)
HTTP'S DOWNLOADS CAN BE AUTO-RESUMED BY THE EXPLORER

HOPE IT HELPS

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