Support
Help with MinoFTP 1.0 for macOS. Most questions are answered below — if yours isn't, email us.
Contact
We read every message. Replies usually arrive within two business days. English and Chinese are both fine.
Before you write
Including these details means we can usually answer in one reply instead of three:
- Your macOS version (Apple menu → About This Mac).
- The MinoFTP version — shown in the About section of Settings.
- What you expected to happen, and what happened instead.
-
A copy of the connection log, if the problem involves connecting or transferring:
open the Log button in the toolbar, then press Copy
and paste it into your email. Passwords are already masked as
******, so the log is safe to share. - The exact server address and port you were connecting to, if you are comfortable sharing it.
Troubleshooting a connection
Almost every FTP problem is one of three things: the wrong credentials, a firewall blocking the data connection, or a server that behaves unusually. Work through these in order — the log panel tells you which step failed.
1. Check the basics
- Host, port (21 for FTP, 990 for implicit FTPS), username and password.
- If your provider requires TLS, turn on Use TLS in the site and pick the right mode.
2. If it connects but hangs when listing files
The login succeeded but the data connection could not be opened. This is a firewall or NAT problem far more often than a MinoFTP problem. MinoFTP talks to your server directly, so nothing in between is ours to fix — but you have two levers:
- Switch the site from Passive to Active mode. Passive mode asks the server to open a port back to you; if the server's data-port range is blocked, that cannot work. Active mode has your Mac open the port instead, which often succeeds where passive fails. Turn off Passive Mode in the site, then reconnect.
- Ask your host to open the passive port range if you need passive mode — many shared hosts use a narrow range that must be allowed through their firewall.
3. Read the log
The log records every command sent and every reply received. When a transfer fails,
look for the last line beginning with > — that is the command MinoFTP
was on when things went wrong — and the server's reply just below it. If a passive
connection failed, both attempted endpoints and the reason are written out explicitly.
4. If the connection drops mid-transfer
MinoFTP sends a heartbeat to keep the session alive, and reconnects automatically if the link goes down — restoring the local and remote folders you were working in. Transfers can be paused and resumed from the queue. Note that a heartbeat can only detect a connection that closed cleanly; a link that silently disappears may take longer to notice, in which case use Reconnect in the toolbar.
Frequently asked questions
How do I connect to a server for the first time?
Use Quick Connect for a one-off session — enter the host, port, username and password and connect. For anything you'll use again, use Site Manager to save it as a site: from then on it appears on the start screen and opens with a single click. You can also give a site a starting local folder and remote folder, plus bookmarks to the folders you use most.
Does MinoFTP support SFTP, SCP or SSH?
No. MinoFTP speaks FTP and FTPS (FTP over TLS). SFTP and SCP run over SSH, which is a different protocol, and the app does not implement it. If your host only offers SFTP, this app is not the right tool.
Is my connection secure?
With FTPS enabled, your username, password and every file transfer are encrypted between your Mac and the server. Plain FTP sends credentials in the clear — avoid it on networks you do not trust.
One caveat we would rather state plainly than leave implied: the current version of MinoFTP connects to FTPS servers in a permissive mode, which means the server's certificate is not validated. That protects you from passive eavesdropping, but not from an attacker who can intercept the connection. On an untrusted network, use a trusted connection or a VPN.
Where are my saved sites and passwords stored?
Entirely on your Mac, in the app's own Application Support folder, in a file
called sites.json. They are never sent to us — MinoFTP
has no servers and no account system. See the
Privacy Policy for the full detail,
including the fact that saved passwords are stored in plain text inside that
file on your disk.
Why does the remote file list look empty or garbled?
Usually an encoding mismatch. Some servers — certain IIS installations, for
example — return directory listings in a legacy local encoding rather than
UTF-8. MinoFTP tolerates those replies instead of failing, but
filenames can still look wrong if the server never declares a character set.
Enabling UTF-8 on the server (OPTS UTF8 ON on most servers) fixes it.
An empty listing with a successful login usually means an empty directory — try the path field to move up a level.
Can I upload a whole folder?
Yes. Drag a folder across and MinoFTP creates the matching directory tree on the other side and transfers the contents. Transfers you no longer want can be paused, resumed, or removed from the queue.
Why can't MinoFTP see my whole hard disk?
The Mac App Store version runs inside Apple's App Sandbox, so it can only reach folders you explicitly grant it. The first time you connect, choose the folder you want to work in; MinoFTP remembers that permission. Use the Choose Folder button in the local pane to change or extend it.
How do I change the language?
Settings → Language, then choose English, Simplified Chinese or Traditional Chinese, or leave it on Follow System. Changing the language takes effect after you restart the app, because macOS loads a bundle's localisations only once at launch.
Is there an iPhone or iPad version?
No — MinoFTP is a Mac app only.
How do I report a crash?
Choose Open Crash Log Folder from the Help menu — that opens the folder where MinoFTP writes its crash reports, including a tail of the protocol log at the moment of the crash. Attach the newest report to your email and we will take it from there.
How do I get a refund?
All purchases are handled by Apple, so refunds go through them too: visit reportaproblem.apple.com, sign in with the Apple ID you bought with, and select the purchase. We cannot issue refunds on Apple's behalf.
Still stuck?
Email gavy417@gmail.com with the details listed above and we will help. You can also check the Terms of Use and the Privacy Policy.