ARCHIVED: Use WinSCP to connect to Webserve

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Note:

Due to the evolving coronavirus situation, the retirement of Webserve was delayed until April 16 to allow classes that reference sites on Webserve to continue with minimal disruption.

All remaining Webserve sites were disabled beginning April 16, along with login access to webserve.iu.edu. If you have websites that still need to be moved to IU Sitehosting, you should migrate immediately.

UITS suggests using WinSCP as your Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) client. WinSCP is available for free from IUware.

  1. To open WinSCP, double-click its icon on your desktop (WinSCP desktop icon); alternatively, click Start, select Programs, then WinSCP, and then WinSCP.
    Note:
    The path to the program may differ from computer to computer.
  2. Enter the following:
    • Host name: webserve.iu.edu
    • User name: Name of your web account
    • Password: Your Webserve account passphrase
      Note:
      For most, the name of the web account appears after the tilde (~) in the URL for that account.
  3. Click Login.
    WinSCP login screenshot
  4. To retain your connection settings, click Save.... For security reasons, UITS recommends that you do not save your passphrase.
    WinSCP save session screenshot
  5. The first time you connect to your account on Webserve, you may receive a "Warning" prompt similar to the screenshot below. Click Yes. The prompt will not appear again.
    WinSCP warning prompt screenshot
  6. On the left, you will see the files and directories of your local computer. On the right, you will see the contents of your account on Webserve.

    To access your account's www directory, double-click www or its folder icon. The files in the www directory will appear on the right.

    WinSCP file panes screenshot

    The drop-down menu with the folder icon shows which directory you are working in on your Webserve account (1). To move back to your login directory, click the up arrow folder icon (2).

    WinSCP file panes screenshot
  7. To transfer files, drag and drop your files between the two panes:
    • To upload files to your web account, drag files from the left pane (local computer) to the right pane (Webserve account).
    • To download files from your web account, drag files from the right pane (Webserve account) to the left pane (local computer).