Overview

SFTP or Shell users are formed when new users are created. The distinctions between these user types are explained in the following paragraphs.

Users of FTP

Because all of your data (including your login information) is sent over the Internet in plain text, anyone could intercept it, FTP is not considered a secure protocol.

As a result, GreggHost highly advises you to use just an SFTP or Shell user. If you need to utilize FTP for any reason, follow the guidelines in the FTP security page to convert the protocol to FTP.

Comparison chart
The figure below shows the main distinctions between SFTP and Shell users. Both protocols are equally secure to use.

Log in with an FTP client and use the command line

Secure
SFTP
Yes No Yes
SFTP users
To upload a website you’ve created to GreggHost’s servers or make changes to an existing website, you’ll need an SFTP user.

SFTP users are similar to FTP users, except that the SFTP protocol connects to a server via an encrypted connection. In order to connect to the server via SFTP, your client uses port 22.

The FTP Users & Files page displays the username as well as the user type.

show information button for users to manage
The username in the following example is dh test user. To see more information about this user, click the Show Info button.

change access settings and manage users
As you can see, the user has been configured as an SFTP user.

Shell users
Users who can connect using SSH and SFTP are known as shell users. The “Shell” is the Linux command line that you can use to run commands on your hosting server.

Changing to a Shell user and clicking on the Manage Users and Show Info button
Click the Show Info button next to your user on the FTP Users & Files screen.
change access settings and manage users
Protocol SFTP can be found on the bottom left, indicating that the user is an SFTP user. By clicking the Edit Access Settings link, you can convert the user to a Shell user with SSH access.
Organize users choose ssh
From the dropdown, select SSH on.
select ssh from the list of users to manage
Choose the Shell type you want to use.
When you create a Shell user, you also get four command-line shell options:

The default shell on Linux and Mac OS systems is Bash, which stands for Bourne-again shell.
Tcsh – is an enhanced version of the Berkeley UNIX C shell. It’s a command language interpreter that can be used as a shell script command processor as well as an interactive login shell.
Ksh is an interactive command line language that can provide access to the UNIX system as well as other systems on which it is implemented.
Zsh – a shell made for interactive use and is also a scripting language.
More information about GreggHost’s available shells can be found in the following article:

The default Shell type is available at GreggHost Bash. Click Save Changes.

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