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Dreamweaver 9/CS3 is no longer able to make ftp connections to specific servers.
To be clear: It was working, then stopped working.
I can still connect to the servers with filezilla, so the problem is not on the server end, and not with the credentials.
I can connect to other servers with dreamweaver, so the problem is not with my computer, router, firewall, etc.
I have a couple site definitions which point to the same host but different subdirectories. Both do not work. I created a test to an anonymous ftp site and it worked.
It seems like somehow some dreamweaver file specific to the host in question got corrupted.
I have tried many potential solutions, everything I found online, other than reinstalling DW as this does not seem to fix the problem for anyone else that tried it.
Tried deleting the dreamweaver preferences folder and registry entries.
Tried exporting the site definition, deleting, and importing.
Tried creating new site definition.
Tried deleting the ssh_hosts file.
Tried using the IP address in place of domain name for ftp host.
Tried appending host sftp port number :22 to right side of ftp host name.
Tried unchecking Use FTP performance optimization in Server Compatibility
Upload design notes is turned off.
Am using a wired connection, not wifi.
The site definition > advanced settings > remote info has Use passive FTP checked although it and Use Firewall are greyed out due to Use Secure FTP (SFTP) being checked. It had been working with those settings. I have tried every combination of each of those boxes checked and unchecked. I have also tried modifying the Firewall Settings: FTP time out 10 seconds, 60 seconds, 120 seconds; FTP connection unchecked disconnect after 30 minutes idle.
I get different results with each setting. E.g.:
With Secure FTP (which used to work in dw and still works in filezilla) it fails in about a half second.
It pops up a dialog box that says: "An FTP error occurred - cannot make connection to host. Your login or password is incorrect. Please check your connection information."
(Remember, the credentials are correct and work in filezilla.)
The ftp log shows nothing new but a new blank line.
I noticed that the ssh_hosts file does not get re-created, which seems to indicate its not even getting to that point.
With Use Firewall it delays for several seconds and I click cancel because it would connect much quicker if it was going to. FTP log shows nothing.
With Use passive FTP only it seems to connect. Then gives a dialog box that says: An FTP error occurred - cannot get remote folder information. Dreamweaver encountered a network or file system error. Please try the operation again, and contact the administrator if the error continues to occur.
FTP log shows:
< 220 FTP Server ready.
> USER (username)
< 331 Password required for (username)
> PASS
< 230 User (username) logged in
> PWD
< 257 "/" is the current directory
> PWD
< 257 "/" is the current directory
> CWD /host_directory
< 250 CWD command successful
> PWD
< 257 "/host_directory" is the current directory
However it was working not with passive ftp only but with sftp which shows passive greyed out.
So in summary, filezilla works, so it's not the host, it's not my hardware or firewall, it's not the credentials, it is specific to DW and specific to a certain host. It adds nothing but a blank line to the ftp log. The ssh_hosts file does not get created. It gives the error message: "An FTP error occurred - cannot make connection to host. Your login or password is incorrect. Please check your connection information." (But again it's not the login credentials as they work in filezilla.)
So what could that be? A certain file related to a specific host that got corrupted?
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Assuming that you have deleted the cache file, try renaming the configuration folder (in case you need it again) as per Deleting a corrupted cache file (last paragraph)
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Thanks.
I have already tried both of those.
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Have you contacted your hosting company admin (like the error mentions)?
DW9 hasn't changed in over a decade while Filezilla enjoys regular updates. The hosting server may simply have been updated past the old FTP module's capabilities in DW9. It's possible some "newer" technology (though it could be nearly a decade old and still newer than anything DW9 was designed to encounter) is confusing the old girl when she tries to shake hands with the server.
Given the extensive troubleshooting you've already done, my bet is on DW9 showing its age.
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Who knows, this could be correct. It may be that the web host installed an os update which included an ftp update and that broke it. I've tried so many things and nothing fixes this. Gonna give up and stop using dreamweaver. It was convenient to have integrated ftp and I like the ftp layout better than filezilla. Maybe I can find another ftp client with a better layout. Not worth paying the high price of a new dreamweaver. Thanks all for your ideas.
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Sorry that the troubleshooting wasn't of much help. You can continue using Dreamweaver for your design requirements and Filezilla to upload your files.
Preran
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I completely forgot Brackets. Yes, Nancy's solution is probably more viable for you.
Thanks,
Preran
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In addition to all the advice that has been provided so far, also have a look at the solutions in this doc
Troubleshoot FTP issues in Adobe Dreamweaver
Thanks,
Preran
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Thanks. I have already tried going through that whole troubleshooting list.
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You could try Adobe Brackets with the FTP Extension.
Brackets - A modern, open source code editor that understands web design.
GitHub - timburgess/brackets-ftp-sync: FTP/SFTP for Adobe Brackets
Nancy
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Thanks Nancy.
Actually I've been using Brackets for editing more than Dreamweaver for quite a while.
The two things I did like better about DW was in built-in ftp client and the layout of said client.
(Note: Since I'm using a version that is several years old I can't comment on whether newer DW versions may be better.)
After the above posts, I found Filezilla's interface settings (Edit > Settings > Interface), played around with the layout, and got it to be as good as or better than DW's for my preferences.
Based on your recommendation I looked through Brackets' plugins and downloaded some I did not already have.
The ftp plugin recommended above seems to have gotten behind in development, so I decided to install this one:
GitHub - bigeyex/brackets-sftp-upload: SFTP upload plugin for brackets
Will try it and see how it is.
Thanks again all! Very nice of you to help!