Member Avatar for arnieman

Does anyone have a recommendation for a good FTP client with compare/sync feature?

:confused:

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A short, practical primer to get reliable compare/sync behavior (ties together points made by , , , and without repeating specific products).

When evaluating a client, focus on the compare method and safety controls rather than marketing names. Key capabilities to look for are: compare-by-size and timestamp plus optional checksum verification; explicit one-way mirror vs two-way sync modes; a dry-run/preview that lists changes without applying them; timestamp/permission preservation; exclude filters; resume/partial-transfer support; logging and scheduling. Beware mapped-remote-drive approaches — they are convenient for browsing (as noted) but often perform poorly and can hide recursive sync issues.

A safe sync workflow to follow:

  • Make a backup or snapshot of the target before running a full sync.
  • Run a preview/dry-run and review the change list carefully.
  • Use one-way mirror for deployments to avoid accidental deletions on the source.
  • Test on a small directory first, including filename case and symlink behavior.
  • Prefer checksum verification for critical files when timestamps disagree.
  • Keep detailed logs and enable retries; start with conservative settings (no auto-delete) until confident.

If the remote supports SSH/SFTP, use a protocol designed for robust sync rather than raw FTP; where available, consider using rsync-style tools for efficient, reliable synchronization (rsync is the canonical reference). Finally, balance free vs paid: free tools cover many needs, but paid clients often add safer previews, scheduling, and advanced filters useful for production deployments.

Recommended Answers

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Member Avatar for stymiee

can do that.

Member Avatar for WaltP

See . IMO it make this FTP stuff much easier. The FTP site simply becomes a drive on your computer. I use personally use Webdrive.

Member Avatar for TheNNS

I use serve-u, it's free!

Member Avatar for FreelanceITs

Does anyone have a recommendation for a good FTP client with compare/sync feature?

:confused:

You may want to try using 'FileZilla' and you can download it at

Member Avatar for blrouley

I use RhinoSoft's FTPVoyager. It's not free, but it has a great interface and advanced features, including Folder Synchronization.

Enjoy!

http://www.ftpvoyager.com/dn.asp

Member Avatar for TheNNS

free stuff is probably better

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