How to set up an SFTP server in Windows using OpenSSH

[harlan4096]

Transferring data wireless over local network isn't something new, people have been doing that for a long time. You may be aware of what I'm talking about: an FTP connection. With an FTP client you can connect one device to another to transfer your data over a network.

But since the FTP protocol isn't safe in the first place you should consider ditching it in favor of something better.

For those unaware, a much better wireless transfer protocol exists and it's called SFTP. The S in SFTP, literally means secure. It encrypts the connection's login information and the data that is transferred. So nobody can tap in and tamper with the data transfer. FTP on the other hand is secure as anyone who gets to listen to the network traffic gets the information unprotected.

The good thing about SFTP is that you can use it for everything you used FTP for. So you get better security for free. What do you have to lose, right?

Now there's just one problem. Windows versions prior to Windows 10 don't come with SSH so you'll need to install OpenSSH (or something similar). This is an open source SSH implementation, and guess who recommends it? Microsoft. OpenSSH is included in Windows 10 and Windows Server 2019.

This tutorial is based on the original OpenSSH documentation. The official guide may look intimidating which is why we made one as user-friendly as possible. You can follow this method in any version of Windows, I tested in on Windows 7.

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