Your server comes with an onboard FTP client of its own that can be run from the command prompt. This is useful if you want to connect to a remote FTP server on the Internet and download files directly to your server instead of downloading them first to your PC and then uploading them to the server.
To use this provided FTP client program, simply type ftp followed by the domain name or IP address of the remote FTP server that you would like to connect to. For example, if you wanted to connect to an FTP server named cdrom.com from your Freedom server, you could type the following at the command prompt:
> ftp cdrom.com
After a connection is established, you will be prompted for a username and password. If you are accessing an anonymous FTP server, you can usually use the name “anonymous” or “ftp” and use your email address for a password.
Once you are logged in, there are several commands that you can use from the FTP command prompt. Some of the basic ones are:
ls: Lists the files in the current directory of the remote system.
pwd: Displays the current directory on the remote system.
cd: Changes the current directory on the remote system.
lcd: Changes the current directory on the local machine that you are connecting from.
get: Retrieves a file from the current directory of the remote system, and places it in the current directory of the local machine that you are connecting from.
send: Sends a file from the current directory of the local machine that you are FTP’ing from and places it in the current directory of the remote system.
ascii or as: sets the FTP transfer mode to ASCII. Any text based file should be transferred in ASCII mode. Transferring text files in binary mode can cause them to become corrupted.
binary or bi: sets the FTP transfer mode to binary. Any file that is not a text file should be transferred in binary mode. Transferring binary files in ASCII mode can cause them to become corrupted.
quit or bye: closes the connection with the remote system and exits the FTP program.
For additional information on the provided FTP client program, type man ftp from the command prompt.