SmartFTP Review

Been on a vacation and took a lot of pictures? Big sized ones? Have a nice movie from your birthday party? Want to share them online in a secure way and don't know how? Well, FTP might be the answer for you. For this you will need a FTP client of course. A smart one. You need SmartFTP - a high class ftp client for Windows operating systems that lets you do everything about file transfer (over the Internet and intranets alike), developed by SmartFTP GmbH.

Just in case you're wondering, FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is a commonly used protocol for exchanging files over TCP/IP networks. It works as simple as this: two computers connect using FTP software (server and client), making possible the file transfer. You will also need a FTP account, ask one from your internet provider or use your own if you already have one.

SmartFTP has a modern GUI (Graphical User Interface), Windows XP-like and, above all its abilities, it can initiate secure connections (TLS/SSL), allowing you to securely connect to your accounts.

The interface is very simple to use. Just connect to your account, in the left side of the window the server panel appears, while the right side displays your drives. You can even drag and drop from left to right the files you need or do the reverse if you want to upload something. The bottom area has a tabbed panel with your connections, the speed and transfer queue dialogs.

About the file permission, I can say that is well implemented, the CHMOD feature enabling you to set all the rights for good security management (read, execute, write). SmartFTP also has a handy Statistic Popup little screen that's useful whenever you want to see the speed and the total amount of your traffic.

SmartFTP includes support for Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) and File eXchange Protocol (FXP), can also manage multiple connections from different servers and has advanced NAT/UPnP support (Universal Plug and Play).

SmartFTP client has a connection dialog configured to interact with TLS/SSL (Transport Layer Security/Secure Socket Layer) encryption parameters, allowing you to make secure connections over SSL (Explicit or Implicit).

The good

As FTP clients are widely used over the net, I must say that a very good and useful part of SmartFTP is the localization in 15 languages. The program is also free for personal and educational use, so it's a must have.

The bad

The bad? Hmm, I don't know. Here I should say that the FTP protocol has some security limitations (the data is in clear text, there's no specific method for encrypted data transfer). Fortunately, SmartFTP has FTP over SSL support.

The truth

SmartFTP is a FTP client that will satisfy both the beginner and the advanced user; it's intuitive and simple to use with a very well organized and friendly interface, with all the features someone can expect from this kind of software.

Here are some snapshots of the application in action: