Why Box.net and not FTP?
The most common use of FTP is to download files off the internet. When the web was first created, HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) was created to transfer HTML pages (websites). It was meant to transfer small amounts of text from servers to users, not large files like music and videos. Since demand increased and users want to do more with their data, FTP was created to allow for this. However, FTP has limitations that services like Box.net do not have.
Some concerns to using FTP instead of a service like Box.net:
- FTP communicates usernames and passwords between the client and host in clear text, which is a potential security concern.
- Data is transmitted unencrypted to the server.
- FTP can be cumbersome to set up and requires desktop software, and someone knowledgable in setting up/configuring a server.
- Multiple TCP/IP connections are used, one for the control connection, and one for each download, upload, or directory listing.
- It is hard to filter active mode FTP traffic on the client side by using a firewall, since the client must open an arbitrary port in order to receive the connection.
- FTP is a high latency protocol due to the number of commands needed to initiate a transfer, making it slower than other methods.
- No integrity check on the receiver side. If a transfer is interrupted, the receiver has no way to know if the received file is complete or not.
- No date/timestamp attribute transfer. Uploaded files are given a new timestamp.
Box solves all these issues, see how here: Compare Box to FTP
