How to Configure Your SFTP Client

ftp

Last modified: November 21, 2024

Overview

This document details the information required to connect to your cPanel account via SFTP (SSH File Transfer Protocol or Secure File Transfer Protocol). SFTP provides file access, transfer, and management tools that resemble FTP through a secure SSH connection. SFTP is not FTP over SSH. Instead, it is an entirely separate protocol.

Configure your SFTP client

You should follow your SFTP client’s documentation to learn the specific steps to set up your SFTP client connection. If you do not have an SFTP client installed on your computer, we recommend one of the following clients:

SFTP clients typically require the following information to connect to a server:

Item	Description	Example
Hostname	The server’s hostname.	`hostname.example.com`
SSH port number	The port number on which `sshd` listens.	`22`
Security	Whether the client combines FTP and SFTP functionality.	FTP or SFTP
Username	The SSH username that the client uses to connect to the server. The username can be either of the following: A cPanel account username. The `root` user. Important: You cannot use an FTP account to connect via SFTP.	`example` `root`
Password	The SSH user’s password.	`luggage12345`
Private Key	The SSH user’s private key. This is the absolute path to a private key on your local computer (for example, `c:\data\id_dsa`). cPanel users can generate and download a private key via cPanel’s SSH Access interface (cPanel » Home » Security » SSH Access). The `root` user can generate and download a private key via WHM’s Manage root’s SSH Keys interface (WHM » Home » Security Center » Manage root’s SSH Keys). Important: The SSH user’s private key is encrypted. The system may prompt you to enter the key’s password when you connect via SFTP.	Click to view…

If you cannot connect to your cPanel account via SFTP, open a support ticket with cPanel Technical Support.