If a person is looking to transfer files from the Raspberry Pi and the computer that they are using and do so remotely it is possible. This process does not require the use of removable media such as an external hard drive or even a USB connection. A person will not have to turn off the Raspberry and transfer the information to an SD card.
There is an easy way to get this information between the locations. The process of file transfer protocol or FTP will make this process easier. The files can be transferred and received on the remote server. There is an easy way to use the FTP to transfer these files.
Installing FTP
To transfer these files FTP needs to be installed on the server. There are some FTP servers that can be used and a person will need to find the one that is right for them. There is often a command known as proftpd to help. This command is easy to use and easy to install.
Using the Command
To use this command a person will type in the following: Sudo apt install proftpd. A window will then appear to begin the installation process. A screen will then appear which will allow a person to select the method of FTP servers they are looking for.
They can run the server only when a client is trying to connect to it. this will cause the connection to slow down but the server will be able to transfer the files from the Raspberry Pi without a problem.
A person can also use the standalone feature. This will allow the FTP to run all day and night. This will allow the connection to be fast. This is good if a lot of connection and file transfers are going to be used and the connection needs to be available.
It is recommended to use this option if several people are going to be connecting to the Raspberry Pi and they are going to use this connection often. Once the FTP is installed it can be connected and ready to use. There are some configurations that will need to be set to help this connection go smoothly and allow the files to transfer without a problem.
Configuring the Proftpd
To get this command to work it will need to be configured. To do this a person will need to have user rights and they will need to be able to control the screen. Once a person types the code in they will see a configuration line. That line is going to be very important for the file transfer process.
The first line that will be important to the user is the line that will say timeoutidle. This will relate to the idle time after the user will be disconnected from the file transfer. If there are several users on the Raspberry it is best to keep each user account separate.
To do this, the Defaultroot will need to be changed. The # is this code can be removed to change it. this will make the user log on to their folder directly and use the config conde. It will allow them to connect their files but it will not grant them access to the files that other people are looking to transfer.
If a person does want other users to have the access they will want to make this public. This will allow the users to access it and no password will be needed to transfer the files. To make this possible a user will need to remove the # from the Anonymous-ftp and the Anonymous>must.
This will allow a person to enter a username but they will not have to have a password to access this. Once either of these changes has been made, the sudo service proftpd reload command needs to be entered to make sure these changes are saved.
Accessing the FTP Server
Once the FTP has been installed and configured into the system a person needs to know how to access this information and the files that they are transferring. The FTP will need to be connected and a file transfer will need to be started. A person should be able to do this from the web browser. All they will need to do is type in a specific URL to begin the transfer.
Transferring Files
A person will enter FTP:// and they will then enter their Raspberry Pi user name and they will also enter the password. This will allow them to be logged into the system. It may seem like a pain but a person will need to do this to get their files. A person may also want to use Filezilla or some other program that will help with the FTP.
This will then begin the file transfer process and will allow a person to pick and choose the files that they will want to send. They can access these files and they will be able to send them all if they choose to. They will need to stay connected to this server as long as the files are being sent.
Accessing the Files
Once the files have transferred a person needs to know how they can access these files. Getting the files that have been transferred is easy. All a person has to do is log in. they will enter the IP destination from the Raspberry Pi and the user id.
There is also the port 21 that is the default port for the FTP protocol. Most of the files will be put there. All of the files can then be transferred. This will allow a person to also decide who has access to this information.
This process will allow a person to transfer information from the Raspberry Pi to the FTP server. It is not complicated after a few basic commands are entered. This will allow a person to have the information that they need to be transferred and they will not have to use any external storage devices.
