FTP 101 – Part 7: Difference between put and mput

Published {$created} by Carsten Blum

Uploading files with FTP can be simple – if you know the difference between put and mput.Just like get vs mget, the “m” stands for “multiple” – and that’s the key.

In this short tutorial, we’ll walk through what these commands do, when to use each, and how to avoid common mistakes.

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As always, to follow along with this tutorial you need to create an account with ftpGrid.

put – Upload a single file

Use the put command to upload one specific file from your local machine to the remote FTP server.

Example:

put backup.sql

This uploads backup.sql from your current local directory to the current remote directory on the FTP server.

Want to rename the file during upload? Just pass a second filename:

put backup.sql db-2025.sql

This uploads the file but saves it as db-2025.sql on the server.

mput – Upload multiple files at once

mput stands for “multiple put” and is used to upload many files at once, typically using wildcards like *.txt or *.log.

Example:

mput *.txt

This uploads all .txt files in the current local directory.

By default, you’ll be asked to confirm each file:

mput notes.txt? y  
mput report.txt? y

To skip these prompts, run:

prompt

Now when you run mput *.txt, all matching files will upload without asking.

Combining with lcd, cd, and ls

To control where files go, use these:

• lcd /local/path – change the local directory

• cd /remote/path – change the remote directory

• ls – list files in the current remote directory

Example session:

lcd ~/logs  
cd /uploads  
prompt  
mput *.log

This uploads all .log files from your ~/logs folder into /uploads on the server, with no prompts.

Summary: When to use put vs mput

Common mistakes to avoid

• ❌ Trying put *.txt – won’t work! Only mput supports wildcards.

• ❌ Forgetting to disable prompts before using mput – you’ll have to confirm every file.

Need to automate it all? Consider scripting with lftp or switching to SFTP. ftpGrid supports both!