uploading your files - preparation

Uploading is quite simply the process of moving a copy of your web files to your web host's server. The concept is easy, but in order to go ahead you'll need at least three things:

a way to transfer your files

You'll almost certainly use software designed to make this task easy. This is known as an FTP program (or if you want to sound really geeky, an FTP client). FTP stands for file Transfer Protocol, which sounds technical, but is just a shorthand way of talking about moving files from one location to another.

There are many FTP programs available to download online, but two of the best are Smart for Windows (the basic version is free) and Fetch for Macs (free trial, then $25 fee). We talk about using these below.

your personal hosting account password

You will be given (or asked to choose) a personal password when you sign up for web hosting. Many hosting companies send a confirmation email which includes important information such as your password and the FTP address and (see below).

your hosting company's FTP address

You'll obviously want to send your web files to the correct place, and an FTP address ensures that this happens.

Every hosting company has its own specific FTP address which will connect you to its server. Many will look something like this -

ftp://sooperdooperhosting/simplersteps - but that's just an example.

As already mentioned, the FTP address is sometimes included in your confirmation email. If not, all hosting companies should have an online admin area which you can use to try to find the address (try the FTP, Upload or Publishing sections, if available - if not, use the search).

We know that this can sometimes get confusing, and if, once you've finished reading these sections, you're still unsure about how to proceed don't hesitate to contact your hosting company directly. Remember the importance of that personal customer support?

Tell them you're trying to upload and they should be able to talk you through it.

uploading - using your FTP program

We couldn't possibly explain how to use every single FTP program individually, but essentially they all work in the same way. Most have two windows side by side, one giving a view of the web files on your computer, the other (eventually) showing an exact copy of these on the server (Fetch has just one window, a view of the server).

To make a connection to the server, you will need to log in by entering your host's ftp address and your password (most log-in panels also provide a username box, but you'll rarely need to use this unless told to do so by your hosting company).

Smart provides a step by step video on how to make this connection on its help page, and Fetch has a tutorial here.

When the connection has been made, you then need to transfer your website files to the server.

DON'T upload the folder you've been using for storage (which in our case, we named 'my site'). You only need what's inside it - the 'index.html' page and folders.

Both Smart and Fetch allow you to drag and drop these files straight into the upload window. (If you use menus instead, upload the index file first, then the Site Folder).

See Smart's help page videos on uploading files, or the Fetch tutorial on uploading files created in iWeb

a final note

Remember what we told you about site structure earlier? For your website to work perfectly, the version on the server needs to be identical to the one on your computer, with all files and folders in the same position.

Not so long ago, you'd need to set this up manually by laboriously creating new folders on the server, uploading, creating a new folder, etc.

Luckily, both Smart and Fetch copy the structure for you automatically. Just make sure that you drag the entire Site Folder into the upload area (along with the index page, of course). All of its contents, including sub-folders, will be replicated exactly.

Good luck - and enjoy your new website!