Download & Install the WinSCP Client
The first step will be to download and install a client for pushing files to the Web Hosting servers. WinSCP™ is a free and open-source sFTP, FTP, WebDAV, S3 and SCP client for Microsoft Windows. You can get the installer here and the installation Instructions here.
Initial Connection Setup
Running WinSCP for the first time opens the Initial Connection Manager:
Configure the login session as follows:
- ‘File Protocol’ is SFTP
- ‘Host Name’ is ‘web.osu.edu’
- ‘Port Number’ is 22
- ‘User Name’ is a string built from your name.#, an ‘@’ symbol, and the remote site’s account ID (aka: OSU WebHosting Name)
- ‘Password’ is your Name.# OSU Password
Post-Connection Window Definition
File Structure
Most of your website’s files will go under the htdocs/ directory, and you can simply drag & drop your files there. However, you may wish to host multiple websites under one Web-Hosting account. (aka: Multi-Cores) This can be easily achieved by creating new directories under htdocs/ and using a properly-formed .htaccess file. For additional details, click here.
The php-bin/ and php-data/ directories contain the files required for PHP scripting support. The latter is also meant to hold files that should be accessible only to PHP scripts and not downloadable via a web browser. While you can accomplish this with .htaccess files as well, this is meant to be even more secure. Please note that any changes made to php-bin/php-cgi and php-data/php.ini are overwritten each build run. We provide access to them for reference purposes only. If you need to make changes to PHP’s behavior, then you’ll need to use ‘user.ini’ files instead.
Anything ending in .php will be executed as PHP script rather than displayed. If you name a PHP script something other than with a .php extension, the script won’t run and may even display sensitive data to the browser such as a database login / password. If your PHP script is named properly and is still displaying the code instead of executing it, contact us as your account may not have PHP enabled at all. (This was common for older accounts, but it is enabled by default for anything recent)
The tmp/ directory should be used for all temporary file needs – nothing should ever use the server’s /tmp. There are numerous servers in the cluster and no guarantees that a user will hit the same one each time. The individual temp directories are synchronized across the entire cluster and provide better separation protection between individual Web Hosting accounts.
The raw access and error logs are accessible via the logs/ directory. Content is only retained for a couple of days, though, so it’s more for troubleshooting and debugging than retaining historical data. If you need access to logfiles older than what’s available here, request them through the University’s Help Desk.
Need More Information?
Is OSU Web Hosting right for you? Check your eligibility.
More questions? Check the support section or contact us.
Ready to get started? Request hosting now!