CHMOD with FTP

Changing permissions (CHMOD) recursively using SmartFTP

What is CHMOD?

CHMOD is a UNIX command that changes the mode of a file. There are three modes a file can have turned on or off: read ability, write ability, and execute ability. Each mode can be set for either the owner, the members of the owner's group, or all users.

Here you will find detailed instructions how to change the permissions of a file using SmartFTP. SmartFTP is an FTP client, which can be downloaded from here.

How to use CHMOD?

When you have downloaded and installed the FTP client, please connect to your FTP server. (In case you have an account with SiteGround, please, use the username and pass of your cPanel account to connect via FTP.)

Once connected, you will need to locate the file(s)/folder(s), where you would like to change the permissions. In this example, we will change the permissions on the Templates folder and all of the subdirectories/files within it.

Next, right-click on the Templates folder. A new menu will appear as shown below. Click on Properties / CHMOD.

A new window will popup. In this new window there is a field labeled Permissions. Change the value in this field to the appropriate number as specified by the documentation of the product you're using. In this example, we will change the value to 755 as shown below.

You may also want to change all of the permissions of the files and subfolders on the templates directory as well. SmartFTP has a useful feature that allows you to change the permissions recursively. This means that the permissions you have entered in the Permissions field will also be applied to all of the files and subfolders of your current selection. To do this, check the checkbox labeled Apply changes to this folder, subfolders and files as shown below.

Let the request process. This can take several minutes if you are changing the permissions on a lot of files. That's it, well done!

Please, feel free to contact us if you have any questions or recommendations about this tutorial at: tutorials 'at' siteground.com