VPS & Dedicated Hosting: Enabling FTP on New Servers | Bluehost Support
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VPS & Dedicated Hosting: Enabling FTP on New Servers

Overview

This article will explain how-to enable FTP on a newly provisioned VPS or Dedicated cPanel server. Since FTP is an unsecured connection point to the server, cPanel has it disabled by default in version 11.86 or prior. For additional information regarding why FTP is disabled by default, please review the following article from cPanel; click here to learn more.



Login to the WHM

You will need to be able to log in to WHM on your server. This requires knowing the root password for your server. If you don't know the root password or haven't set one up, please, see VPS & Dedicated Hosting: Log in to WHM.

  1. Log in to the WHM by going to yourdomain.com/whm in a browser. Replace yourdomain.com with your domain.
  2. Once you get to the login page, enter your username and password.
    • Username will be root.
    • Password will be the root password for your server.
      The WHM Login Page
      The WHM login page.
  3. If this is your first time logging into the WHM, you may see a page titled Feature Showcase. Click on Exit to WHM at the bottom of the page.
    Feature Showcase

    The Feature Showcase page with Exit to WHM was spotlighted.

Access the FTP Server Selection

  1. Search for FTP in the top left corner of the WHM.
  2. Select FTP Server Selection.
    FTP Server Selection

Select your option

  1. Here, the default setting for FTP is Disabled.
  2. We advise using the PURE-FTPD service as it is the server's faster, more reliable FTP service.
    FTP Server Selection is disabled

Set your option

Once the new option is selected, scroll down and click Save.FTP Selection Server Pure-FTPD

If you need further assistance, feel free to contact us via Chat or Phone:

  • Chat Support - While on our website, you should see a CHAT bubble in the bottom right-hand corner of the page. Click anywhere on the bubble to begin a chat session.
  • Phone Support -
    • US: 888-401-4678
    • International: +1 801-765-9400

You may also refer to our Knowledge Base articles to help answer common questions and guide you through various setup, configuration, and troubleshooting steps.