It’s been a long time coming, but I’ve finally decided to give up on WS_FTP. It started when I kept running into the Failed to Load OpenPGP Keys from Keyrings message last year. It isn’t a bad message, it’s just one of those things that really irritates me. It came up every time I started the software and I couldn’t get rid of it. Then it went away and I forgot about it, but I would remember it every time I went to start up again. I would dread starting the application. It’s a shame, really, because I had been using the software for a really long time.
Even though I found a solution to the problem, it had become time to move on. I had just grown up from the simplistic software that had carried me for so long, and it was time to find a new utility for my FTP needs. More importantly than the message that had dogged me for months and months was the fact that FTP was born of a time when I didn’t really care – or really think – about security, and now I tend to think about it all the time. So I wanted to approach it from that angle instead.
Strangely, though there are lots of FTP programs that try to make things easier and prettier for your average user, security isn’t high on the list. You have plenty of companies who are trying to wrap up a nice package, but they don’t consider what’s behind it all. You get explorer interfaces and drag and drop and who knows what all is in there, but if the transfer isn’t secure and your credentials are exposed, who really cares about it all? Unfortunately it meant that stayed with WS_FTP for far longer than I needed.
Eventually, however, I found WinSCP. This lovely little piece of – free – software clocks in at just under 2.5MB, while the last release of WS_FTP I have, from 2007, was well over 10MB! Now I get that 10MB isn’t that big these days, but we’re talking about file transfer program, people! It’s a simple function. I don’t need a massive program here, I just need to transfer some files and I don’t need all the bells and whistles. Just get the job done!
One of the reasons for the lower size is undoubtedly because WinSCP depends on the uber-reliable PuTTY (and Pageant) for SSH and authentication purposes – something that I already have. In fact, since I already have a key set up on my account, I just had to point WinSCP at it, and I’m logged in – no passwords sent at all. Take that, WS_FTP!
Is WinSCP as full-featured as WS_FTP? Probably not. But you know, it has the option of using a single- or dual-window configuration, I can keep multiple sessions active at any one time, and I can drag-and-drop to my heart’s content. Since I can make the majority of my connections via a secure connection (where allowed), something I was having all sorts of trouble with previously), that’s really all I need. For those few connections where I need a regular FTP connection, WinSCP will do it. Consider me a satisfied customer.