Fetch Ftp Client For Mac Os X
Mac OS X has a built-in SSH client called Terminal which can be used to connect to remote servers. By default, Terminal.app is located in Applications > Utilities folder. Double-click on the icon to start the client.
Note: In addition to graphical clients, if you arefamiliar with the Mac OS X terminal, you may usecommand-line FTP and secure FTP (SFTP) programsfrom the Unix prompt.
The following clients are the most widely used. In addition to FTP,many (but not all) are also capable of SFTP:
Captain FTP has the ability to split files, download each segmentindividually, and then reassemble the pieces. Particularly whenconnecting to servers that limit the bandwidth for eachconnection, this can greatly improve download speeds. Captain FTP isalso an SFTP client. It is shareware available from: |
Fetch has a long history and enjoys tremendous popularityin the Mac OS community. Though it was not updated for several years,in version 4 it re-emerged as a modern, OS X-native FTP client,supporting server-to-server transfers, resumable downloads, and sitemirroring. Developed by Jim Matthews, formerly of Dartmouth, it is available freeof charge to users affiliated with academic institutions. For others,Fetch is available as shareware. Visit the Fetch web site at: |
Although Hefty FTP does not have a particularly intuitive interface, itdoes have a few unique features, such as the ability to scheduledownloads and play MP3 files. It also has a separate windowthat you can use to queue file transfers, pause and restart downloads,and adjust the priority of queued items. It is shareware from Black Diamond; you canvisit the Hefty FTP web site at: |
Formerly called Anarchie, Interarchy has enjoyed a longhistory as a favored Mac OS, and now Mac OS X, FTP client. It is oneof the most advanced programs of its kind, offering several featuresunavailable in other FTP clients, such as integration with the Mac OSX Network Utility, and supports a number of protocols includingSFTP. It behaves much like the Finder in the way itdisplays and manipulates files on FTP servers, making it easy to usefor those familiar with Mac OS X. Developed by Stairways Software, itis now a commercial product. Visit the Interarchy web site at: |
NetFinder offers an interface that looks and behaves more like theFinder than any of the other programs. It is very customizable andhas a strong feature set. Perhaps its most useful feature is itsability to move files between directories and servers without usingthe hard drive as an intermediary. Created by Peter Li and VincentTan, NetFinder is available as shareware. Visit the NetFinder web site at: |
osXigen is an FTP and SFTP client with several advanced features,including a time zone manager that makes it easier to synchronize withdistant sites. It is shareware available from JomoSoft. You maydownload it from: |
RBrowser is a Mac OS X-only application that provides a graphicalinterface for the FTP, SFTP, and SSH programs built intothe operating system. It is a commercial product developed by RobertVasvari. You may download a demo from the RBrowser web site: |
As its name indicates, SimpleFTP is an FTP and SFTP client thatforgoes advanced features for ease of use. Although its interfacedoesn't attempt to mimic the Finder, it is straightforward anduncluttered. SimpleFTP is shareware available from On-Core, Inc. Youmay download it from: |
Transmit combines elements of Fetch and the Finder,resulting in a very easy-to-use FTP and SFTP program. Transmit offersa compact and attractive interface that lets you view remote and localdirectories in the same window. Developed by Panic, Transmit isavailable as shareware from: |
Although primarily a web browser, Microsoft'sInternetExplorer also doubles as an FTP client. It has fewer featuresthan the dedicated FTP clients, but its downloading capabilities arebetter than Netscape's or Mozilla's. Visit the web site for InternetExplorer for Mac OS X at: |
Mozilla is the open source web browser upon which recent versions ofNetscape are based. It is updated more frequently than Netscape, butits feature set is more experimental. It is less functional thandedicated FTP clients, but has the advantage of combining severalfunctions in a single application. Visit Mozilla's web site at: |
Netscape, which is Mac OS X-native in version 6 and later, is afreeware web browser that also functions as an FTPclient. It has fewer features than the dedicated FTP clients, but hasthe advantage of providing several services in one application. Visitthe Netscape web site at: |
Client comparison table
For a side-by-side comparison of the clients discussed in thisdocument, refer to the following table. Aside from the standardfunctions of FTP and SFTP, all clients allow you to bookmark sites andoffer at least limited support for drag and drop.
| Feature | Captain FTP 2.x | Fetch 4.x | Hefty FTP 1.x | Interarchy 6.x | NetFinder 2.3.x | osXigen 2.0.x | RBrowser 3.x | SimpleFTP 1.0.x | Transmit 2.x | Internet Explorer 5.x | Netscape 7.x/Mozilla |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resumed downloads* | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| HTTP download | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| SFTP support | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No |
| Multithreaded | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Yes1 | |
Move remote files between servers** | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Session transcript | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No2 | No2 |
| View remote file | Yes3 | Yes | Yes | Yes3 | Yes | Yes3 | Yes3 | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| MacBinary upload | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No |
| Finder-like interface | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No |
| Classic version available*** | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Notes:
*The server must also support this feature.
**This implies that the move does not involve the localhard drive. Both remote servers must support this feature.
***Either as a separate version or as a Carbon applicationthat will work in either Mac OS X or in earlier versions of theoperating system
1Possible with Composer, which is the web editor componentof Netscape and Mozilla
2The web browsers have a history feature that approximatesa very primitive transcript.
3It will download the file and open it in the appropriateapplication. It has no built-in capability to display text files, however.
I need a small graphical utility, using which I can ssh to a server and see all the files and copy and paste (drag and drop) into my local machine.
I am running Snow Leopard.
daviesgeek13 Answers
A great free FTP client. This is my go-to application. Anytime I need FTP access, I use Cyberduck. It's not quite as lightweight as Fugu, but it adds a lot more functionality than Fugu. I also really like the Growl integration with Cyberduck.
Awesome little FTP client. As I noted above, this is a lightweight FTP client. It is great for simple FTP transfers and browsing. I do like the dual panel navigation.
EDIT: I forgot to add these.
I haven't actually used Filezilla extensively, but from what I've seen of it, I really like it. I downloaded it and played with it for a bit and I really like the tabbed connections. I also like the ability to jump to a path easily.
A free FTP/FTP-SSL client. I don't usually use RBrowser because a $29 upgrade is necessary to unlock other protocols (Local, FTP/SSL/TLS, SFTP-SSH). I do like the Site Manager. It's a handy little thing to have.
I searched and came up with some other free FTP clients:
The one downside I see is that this is for Firefox. The website doesn't make it clear how it works with Firefox, so I assume it is an extension.
This one relies on Google's MacFUSE. Since I don't know anything about MacFUSE, I don't know if this is good or bad.
I have never used Transmit before, but I have used Coda and I definitely would recommend anything from Panic. The only reason I haven't used this because of the $34 price tag.
Never used it, just found it when searching.
An amazing program with a long, long, long mac heritage. It's way up there with Transmit by Panic and Interarchy as a file transfer program loved by long time Mac power users.
Never used it, but looks good from the screenshots. I really like the fact that it looks like Finder. I may have to give this one a try.
Just searching around and found yet another one...It looks pretty nice, except it's no longer supported. However, you can still download it.
daviesgeek
daviesgeekTransmit
Panic's Transmit tops my list. An extremely well built and executed FTP Client that fully supports sFTP. Priced at $34.
Transmit is an excellent FTP (file transfer protocol), SFTP, S3 (Amazon.com file hosting) and iDisk/WebDAV client that allows you to upload, download, and delete files over the internet. With the most Mac-like interface available, Transmit makes FTP as simple, fun, and easy as it can possibly be.
Forklift
Forklift 2 is another terrific client that is just as solid and just as well built. Priced at $29.95.
ForkLift will connect to any remote server FTP, SFTP, Amazon S3, WebDAV, the SMB, NIS and AFP shares on your local network, or your Bluetooth mobile phone- pretty much anything you can plug into or hook up to a Mac. ForkLift also carries a complete toolbox for managing your files, including Folder Synchronization, Batch Renaming, Archive handling, Application deleter, editing files over remote connections and many more. All these power features are packaged into a Finder-like, dual-pane interface that delivers superior workflow while remaining absolutely familiar to use, along with QuickLook, Spotlight search and all.
Cyberduck
Lastly, Cyberduck rounds out the list. It is not as well polished, but it sturdy and does the job. It is free.
Cyberduck is a robust FTP/FTP-TLS/SFTP browser for the Mac whose lack of visual clutter and cleverly intuitive features make it easy to use. Support for external editors and system technologies such as Spotlight, Bonjour, Keychain and AppleScript are built-in.
There are others to be sure, but these are the one's I've used and personally recommend. Additionally, you may want to hit up places like MacUpdate, VersionTracker, or iUseThis for these types of questions. You will find much more diversity and get a better understanding of the programs available to you.
ExpanDrive acts just like a USB drive plugged into your computer. Open, edit, and save files to remote computers from within your favorite programs—even when they are on a server half a world away. ExpanDrive enhances every single application on your computer by transparently connecting it to remote data.
bmike♦FileZilla
I have tried Cyberduck and Flow in the past but Filezilla offers a side-by-side interface which is quite useful. The only limitation with this tool is that it's not really MacOSX-aware, e.g. it shows all hidden files
Most other answers gave an objective analysis, but I'll share my experience.
Top clients:
- Flow: really nice interface.
- Transmit: very fast, can mount as Finder volume.
- Cyberduck: the best for the inexistent buck.
Add to others
This provides more of an interface like Finder than the others (stricyly much more like the original NeXT version) Apart form standard ssh/ftp it will syncronise directories etc.
MarkMarkA more recent option is to use the newer implementation of Fuse for OSX in combination with SSHFS. This is a better solution because most of the applications mentioned are either outdated or payed (and expensive).
Fuse for OSX allows you to use new file systems in user space and SSHFS configures the system to allow you to connect to SSH drives automatically, as if they were drives supported by OSX.
CaptainFTP is the best choice
Easy to download from itunes:
Yummy FTP (commercial) : http://www.yummysoftware.com/
Can't believe the one that blows most of the above out of the water hasn't yet been mentioned.
Fetch Ftp Client For Mac Os X
We're looking for long answers that provide some explanation and context. Don't just give a one-line answer; explain why your answer is right, ideally with citations. Answers that don't include explanations may be removed.
If you need graphical utility with support for SSH you may try CRAX. This software has a built-in SSH client and after connection to the SSH server it's possible to invoke file operations like copy, move, and delete.
Ftp Client For Mac Osx
grg♦It's worth considering some of the Web-based alternatives, like Monsta FTP (Disclaimer: I'm involved with this).
They save you having to install software on every device; instead you do it all through your Web-browser, with the same features as any desktop client.
Nimesh NeemaIf you are working with large files, then maybe consider Truck.app.
It employs rsync for file transfers, which is generally faster than FTP.
Disclosure: I am the developer of Truck.
Filezilla For Mac
I tried Cyberduck and Transmit. None of them has functionality of preserving modification date. SCP on terminal does that.
You must log in to answer this question.
Osx Sftp Client
protected by bmike♦Mar 22 at 11:46
Mac Ftp Client Command
Thank you for your interest in this question. Because it has attracted low-quality or spam answers that had to be removed, posting an answer now requires 10 reputation on this site (the association bonus does not count).
Would you like to answer one of these unanswered questions instead?