Managed File Transfer Glossary

Hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) is the original file transfer protocol for data exchanged between clients and servers during a web browsing session. It has been superseded by its encrypted variant HTTPS, but both protocols let users upload, download and manage files through a web browser instead of a file transfer protocol (FTP) client.

Hypertext transfer protocol secure (HTTPS) is the encrypted version of HTTP that’s used to transmit data securely over the internet. HTTPS is most commonly used for uploads and downloads of multimedia content (text, images and video) via a web browser client, and it uses transport layer security (TLS) to protect credentials and content during a session. HTTPS support in secure file transfer environments is often used to provide streamlined, user-friendly file transfer operations that can be performed over a browser without any additional software requirements.

HTTPS file transfer uses the hypertext transfer protocol over transport layer security (TLS) to move files through a secure, browser-based connection. Unlike plain HTTP, HTTPS encrypts commands and data in transit to protect credentials and payloads against interception without the need for significant firewall configuration. Modern managed file transfer (MFT) servers support HTTPS to give users a familiar web interface for uploads and downloads and to support API-based workstreams.

HTTP (hypertext transfer protocol) moves files between clients and servers over TCP port 80 or 443. Unlike a file transfer protocol’s (FTP) separate control and data channels, an HTTP transfer embeds commands and payload in a single stream that passes easily through firewalls and proxies. Some managed file transfer (MFT) solutions add HTTP and HTTPS endpoints so users can offer browser-based upload and downloads. Web browsers are by far the most common HTTP client, and the protocol is ideal for lighter-weight data transfer of mixed content.

High availability (HA) in a secure file transfer server describes an architecture that keeps file transfer services operational in the event of network issues, hardware malfunctions, security attacks or other challenges. HA is typically created through a combination of hardware redundancy, failover clustering, load balancing and automatic session recovery.