01 FTP, SFTP & FTPS — what's the difference?
| Protocol | Port | Encrypted? | When to use |
|---|
| FTP | 21 | No | Avoid — passwords are sent in plain text |
| FTPS | 21 / 990 | Yes (TLS) | FTP wrapped in TLS — supported by most hosts |
| SFTP | 22 | Yes (SSH) | Most secure — recommended for everyone |
Tip Always use SFTP if your hosting plan supports it (all ServerBD plans do).
02 Creating an FTP account in cPanel
Step 1cPanel → FTP Accounts in the Files section.
Step 2Enter a username, choose a strong password, and set the directory (e.g. public_html/uploads).
Step 3Set quota or leave as Unlimited. Click Create FTP Account.
Step 4Click Configure FTP Client on the new account row to see ready-to-use settings.
03 Connecting with FileZilla
Step 2Open File → Site Manager → New Site.
Step 3Fill in:
Host: ftp.yourdomain.com (or the server hostname)
Protocol: FTP - File Transfer Protocol
Encryption: Use explicit FTP over TLS if available
Logon Type: Normal
User:
[email protected]
Password: ••••••••••
Step 4Click Connect. Accept the server certificate if prompted.
Step 5You'll see your local files on the left and the remote server on the right — drag & drop to transfer.
04 Connecting with WinSCP
Step 2On the Login dialog, choose File protocol = FTP (or SFTP).
Step 3Enter Host name, port (21 for FTP / 22 for SFTP), username and password.
Step 4Click Login. Switch to Commander view for a familiar two-pane layout.
05 Switching to secure SFTP
SFTP uses port 22 — the same as SSH. ServerBD allows SFTP on all hosting plans using your cPanel username and password (not a separate FTP account).
Step 1In FileZilla, change Protocol to SFTP - SSH File Transfer Protocol.
Step 2Set Port to 22.
Step 3Use your cPanel username and cPanel password as the credentials.
Warning SFTP gives full account access. Don't share these credentials with developers — use a sandboxed FTP account instead.
06 Troubleshooting FTP connection errors
| Error | Cause | Fix |
|---|
| Login authentication failed | Wrong password / username format | Use full [email protected] as username |
| Connection timed out | Firewall / port 21 blocked | Switch to SFTP on port 22 |
| Could not connect to transfer socket | Active mode firewall issue | In FileZilla: Edit → Settings → Connection → FTP → set Passive |
| 421 Too many connections | Hit account connection limit | Reduce simultaneous connections to 2 in Site Manager |
| 553 Cannot create file | Folder permissions wrong | chmod the folder to 755 from File Manager |