How to Upload files with FTP in C#
By FoxLearn 11/27/2024 8:25:16 AM 15.44K
Uploading files to an FTP server is a common requirement for applications that manage file storage or share files across systems. In this article, we will walk through how to build a simple FTP file uploader using C# Windows Forms.
The example leverages the FtpWebRequest
class for FTP communication and a BackgroundWorker
to manage file uploads while updating the user interface with progress.
How to Upload files with FTP in C#?
Open Visual Studio, then click New Project, then select Visual C# on the left, then Windows and then select Windows Forms Application. Name your project "FTPUpload" and then click OK
Drag and drop Label, TextBox, Button, ProgressBar controls from the Visual Toolbox onto your form designer, then design your form as shown below.
Building an FTP File Uploader in C# Windows Forms
You can create an FtpSetting
struct to encapsulate all the necessary details for an FTP upload:
// Define a struct to store FTP login details and file information struct FtpSetting { public string Server { get; set; } // FTP server URL. public string Username { get; set; } // Authentication credentials. public string Password { get; set; } // Authentication credentials. public string FileName { get; set; } // Name of the file to upload. public string FullName { get; set; } // Full local path of the file. }
Handles the actual file upload in a background thread.
Uses FtpWebRequest
to connect to the FTP server and stream the file in chunks of 1024 bytes.
// BackgroundWorker handles the file upload private void backgroundWorker_DoWork(object sender, DoWorkEventArgs e) { // Get the file path and FTP server details string fileName = ((FtpSetting)e.Argument).FileName; string fullName = ((FtpSetting)e.Argument).FullName; string userName = ((FtpSetting)e.Argument).Username; string password = ((FtpSetting)e.Argument).Password; string server = ((FtpSetting)e.Argument).Server; // Create an FTP request FtpWebRequest request = (FtpWebRequest)WebRequest.Create(new Uri(string.Format("{0}/{1}", server, fileName))); request.Method = WebRequestMethods.Ftp.UploadFile; // Provide credentials request.Credentials = new NetworkCredential(userName, password); Stream ftpStream = request.GetRequestStream(); FileStream fs = File.OpenRead(fullName); byte[] buffer = new byte[1024]; double total = (double)fs.Length; int byteRead = 0; double read = 0; do { if (!backgroundWorker.CancellationPending) { //Upload file & update process bar byteRead = fs.Read(buffer, 0, 1024); ftpStream.Write(buffer, 0, byteRead); read += (double)byteRead; double percentage = read / total * 100; backgroundWorker.ReportProgress((int)percentage); } } while (byteRead != 0); fs.Close(); ftpStream.Close(); }
Reports upload progress to the UI thread.
Updates the ProgressBar
and the status label with the current upload percentage.
private void backgroundWorker_ProgressChanged(object sender, ProgressChangedEventArgs e) { lblStatus.Text = $"Uploaded {e.ProgressPercentage} %"; progressBar.Value = e.ProgressPercentage; progressBar.Update(); }
Notifies the user when the upload is complete.
private void backgroundWorker_RunWorkerCompleted(object sender, RunWorkerCompletedEventArgs e) { lblStatus.Text = "Upload complete !"; }
Use the OpenFileDialog
to select the file to upload. The selected file's details are passed to the BackgroundWorker
via the FtpSetting
struct.
private void btnUpload_Click(object sender, EventArgs e) { using (OpenFileDialog ofd = new OpenFileDialog() { Multiselect = false, ValidateNames = true, Filter = "All files|*.*" }) { if (ofd.ShowDialog() == DialogResult.OK) { FileInfo fi = new FileInfo(ofd.FileName); _inputParameter.Username = txtUserName.Text; _inputParameter.Password = txtPassword.Text; _inputParameter.Server = txtServer.Text; _inputParameter.FileName = fi.Name; _inputParameter.FullName = fi.FullName; backgroundWorker.RunWorkerAsync(_inputParameter); } } }
Below is the code that handles the FTP upload form.
using System; using System.Collections.Generic; using System.ComponentModel; using System.Data; using System.Drawing; using System.IO; using System.Linq; using System.Net; using System.Text; using System.Threading.Tasks; using System.Windows.Forms; namespace FTPUpload { public partial class Form1 : Form { public Form1() { InitializeComponent(); } FtpSetting _inputParameter; } }
This example demonstrates how to build an FTP file uploader using a BackgroundWorker
. By structuring the FTP details in a struct
and separating the upload logic into events, the code is clean, modular, and maintainable.
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