File Transfer Mode

The FW supports FTP, SFTP, and TFTP file transfer modes.

During file transfer, the FW can server as a server or client:

FW as a server: Administrators can access the FW from terminals to manage files on the FW or transfer files with the FW.
FW as a client: Administrators can access other devices from the FW to manage files on these devices or transfer files with these devices.

In the TFTP mode, the FW can serve only as a client. In the FTP and SFTP modes, the FW can server as a server or client.

Table 1 lists the advantages and disadvantages of different file management modes.

**Table 1** File transfer mode
File Transfer Mode	Application Scenarios	Advantages	Disadvantages
FTP	Applies to file transfer scenarios that require high security, such as version upgrade.	Features simple configuration and supports file transfer and file directory operations. Supports file transfer between two file systems. Supports authentication and authorization.	Transfers data in plain text and therefore brings security risks.
TFTP	Applies to scenarios where no complex communication is required between the client and the server, for example, the online version load and upgrade in lab LANs that have good network condition.	Uses less memory space than FTP. Features simple configuration.	Supports only file transfer, but not interactions. Transfers only files no larger than 32 MB. Transfers data in plain text, does not support authentication or authorization, and therefore brings security risks.
SFTP	Applies to scenarios that require high security, such as log download and configuration file backup.	Implements strict encryption and integration protection on data to ensure high security. Supports file transfer and file directory operations.	Requires complex configuration.

SFTP is recommended because of high security.