FTP

To put your files up at ProHosting, you need to use FTP (more). Use your FTP software and connect* to the machine your account is on (e.g. "thunder.prohosting.com"). Use your username and password to log in. If you need to know the port number for your software, it is port 21 (port 21 is the default FTP port most commonly used, so most software has this filled in already). Don't worry about what ports are, just use 21 if asked.

The FTP server has a 90 second timeout for idle connections. This means of you're connected to the FTP server and you don't do anything constructive for 90 seconds, you're connection will be dropped by the FTP server. Changing directories is not considered "constructive". Only uploading and downloading files is.

Connect to the FTP server with your FTP program, and it should put you into the "html" in your user directory (the one that is named the same as your username). The "html" directory is where you want to put all your HTML files, GIFs, JPEGs, subdirectories and other files. Anything that is outside the "html" directory will not be accessible... In fact, you shoudn't be able to put anything above that "html" directory anyway.

If if doesn't put you in the "html" directory, then you should look for an "Initial Path" or "Initial Folder" field in your FTP program and set that to "html/". This will automatically put you into the "html" directory when you log in.

Be aware that there is a 20 person limit for connections to the FTP server at one time. When you FTP, please connect, upload your files as quickly as possible and disconnect from the server so that others can upload their files as well. Don't sit connected to the server while you are trying to edit your files. Do all your editing on your computer first. There had been times in the past where this was a really big problem, and hogging the server is extremely rude.

* A NOTE for users of HTML editors with auto-publishing features (e.g. Netscape Composer, HoTMetaL Pro, etc.). When specifying the server and path to go to, use:

as the server/directory to upload your files. See "Why are their different "home" directories?"

ASCII stands for American Standard Code for Information Interchange. ASCII is basically just a standardized text format for computers. When you hear about people uploading files in ASCII mode, they mean that they are uploading text files. Files with the following extensions are all text, and should be uploaded in ASCII mode: .htm, .html, .shtml, .php, .txt, .pl & .cgi.

Binary mode is for transferring binary information. Graphics, audio, video and executable programs are all examples of binary data. Files with the following extensions are all binary files, and should uploaded in binary mode: .exe, .zip, .jar, .class, .gif, .jpg, .jpeg, .bmp, .png, .avi, .mov, .au, .aiff, .ra, .rm, & .mp3.

When you upload files through FTP, you need to decide which mode to use. HTML files, Perl scripts and Text files should be uploaded using ASCII mode. Graphics and other binary files should use binary mode. If you use binary mode with ASCII files, then it will put ^M characters at the ends of your lines, and this will mess up your Perl scripts. If you use ASCII mode to transfer binary files, or you will corrupt them and they won't run, or play, as the case may be. There is no way to repair the files on the server, so you'll have to delete them from the server and FTP them to the server again in the correct mode.

Most FTP programs have settings that let it automatically decide which mode to use, or you can set which mode based on the file's extension or by checking the data in the file. Some also let you use one mode as the default (usually binary) and set which file types it will use ASCII mode for (WS_FTP LE does this). In this case, you can tell the program to use binary mode as the default, but use ASCII mode for files with ".htm", ".html", ".txt", & ".pl" (the most common you will deal with).

This is a file management technique. Instead of putting 5000 users in "home", they split them between a number of "home#" directories ("home1", "home2", etc.). However, if you account is on "blake" or "storm", your account only are in "home" and accounts are grouped in other ways (see next question).

As far as accessing files through the web browser, you don't need to know this. The server figures out where to go by looking up which "home" directory a given /~username is in. For FTP, the FTP program will be directed to the correct directory for your username.

Where you really need to know about your home directory is when using CGIs (See the for more info). Check the Account Administration page if you're not sure where you are.

It's the directory where all your files go. The "html" directory is basically there for content management purposes, which is a carry-over from the paid service.

In your user directory is a directory called "html". You don't need to include the "html" part in the URL to get to your site, and it won't work right if you did. But you do need to include this when referencing files in a CGI. When you FTP to the server, you may or may not get put there automatically. If not, you have to change into that directory to put all your web site stuff into.

If your account is on "blake" or "storm", there is no "html" directory, and you do not need one. This is important because both links in your pages and paths in CGIs will be a little different from accounts on other ProHosting machines.

...where "u" is the first letter in your username, and "username" is, of course, your account username. You can check your account directory at the Account Administration page if you're not sure where your account is.

No, there is no delay between uploading and viewing your files. Unlike what you may be familiar with at GeoCities, where FTPing a file (used to) send it to a temporary place to be moved later, at ProHosting, you are uploading files directly to the directories that your files are in. If you can't see your files after uploading, make sure you've put them in the "html" directory and that the URL is typed in the correct case and spelling. Filenames are case sensitive on the ProHosting servers.

And no, the files don't need to be approved before posting them. There are some content guidelines for user sites, but nothing needs approval beforehand. Of course, ignoring the guidelines can result in account termination, but that usually doesn't happen unless someone complains about your site.

You didn't name your main web page "index.html" or "index.shtml". If you name it something else, the server will not know which file to display, and cannot guess for you. Filenames ARE case sensitive (at least for the index file), so DO NOT use "index.HTML" or "Index.html" or some other variation or it will not work. This applies to subdirectories as well.

Some servers, if a default file is not present, will display a list the files in the directory, but at ProHosting, the servers are set up to not do that.

Sometimes this happens if the connection times out. There is a limit on how long the FTP server will stay connected without doing something. Try reconnecting.

Otherwise it could be related to PASV mode. In your FTP application, look for a setting called Passive Transfer mode, or PASV mode, and enable it, or disable it... make it the opposite of what it is, and the FTP should work.

Normally, PASV mode enables FTPing through some firewall setups. I couldn't find a reason for the "no port command" error, however, in looking for the answer, I found a site that goes into boring technical detail as to what PASV mode does (but I won't bother you with that URL here).

This means that the maximum number of FTP connections allowed on the server are all full. You'll have to try back later. Some FTP applications allow you to do multiple retries to get into the server if it doesn't at first succeed. WS_FTP LE does this, but I'm not sure if the latest version of Fetch for the Mac will.

This means that the server thinks you have no space left in your account. If this is not true, you'll have to contact the webmaster.

The current limit is 20 users. The limit is there because the server only has the power to handle a certain amount of FTP sessions at one time, along with HTTP and running CGIs and all the other stuff. If you keep a limit on the number of users, then you can guarantee that the server can handle the traffic. If you allow the number of connections to be infinite, then if hundreds or thousands of people connected at the same time, everything (the FTP and web server) would get really slow. Having a limit on connections allows the server to perform at reasonable speeds.

The FTP server also has a 90 second timeout for idle connections. This means of you're connected to the FTP server and you don't do anything constructive for 90 seconds, you're connection will be dropped by the FTP server. Changing directories is not considered "constructive". Only uploading and downloading files is.

This means that the server is down or you have a bad network connection. You'll have to try back later.

If it is a problem with ProHosting's server, I guarantee that they know about it long before you do, and are doing what needs to be done to fix it. If it's something wrong somewhere else, there's nothing you can do but wait it out. That is just the way of the Internet.

This could indicate a number of things. If you received the mail saying your account is active, and you checked the Account Administration page and found your account listed there, then your account is has been set up. However, sometimes there seems to be a delay in the time you get the welcome message and when you can actually log in via FTP. Usually, you will get the error message "530 Login incorrect". The delay seems to be anywhere from 24 to 48 hours, so if you still have problems after a couple days, e-mail webmaster@free.prohosting.com.

However, sometimes the FTP server is just busy. Remember, there is a limit of 20 users that can connect to the FTP server at one time. Keep trying.

This could be a problem with the directory ownership or permissions for the directory you are in. See the Permissions Guide and Ownership Guide for more information.

Well, set up your site. This FAQ isn't about creating web pages. Basically, you have to get all your GIF and JPEG images, sound files, etc., and of course, your HTML files, and upload them to the server. (In the "html" directory in your user directory.) To get started, I recommended you do the following...

First, create your files on your computer and view them in the browser locally, and when they are the way you want them, upload them to the server. Use relative paths* for pointing to images and other files and create the same relative directory setup in your ProHosting account.

Second, and this is important: save copies of all your files. This way if ProHosting crashes or accidentally deletes your account, or some other catastrophe, you still have your files and can easily upload them again.

* Some info on paths can be found in the CGI, Perl, SSI, etc. section.