Blue about the New Queue

I came looking for help on the subject of turning off the queue transfer "feature" with drag-n-drop transfers. I noted quickly that several of the topics that cover this issue are closed! Not sure why this is, but I wish they weren't so, as I'd like some more info on the issue. Oh well, I can start a new topic.

Please do not blow this off, as I think it's worth noting that if many people are having trouble, it's probably worth taking note. I LOVE SmartFTP, and you can't make me stop using it!

As noted in the admin post here, there are some possible solutions, most of which allude to the idea of getting used to the hassle, moving to a new product, or going back to an older version. None of these solutions are favorable.

The problem may be so simple for many people, but it is serious for those of us transferring to servers with limited connections. Explanation:

• I routinely use HTML-Kit for editing text files, and keep it open via FTP while working. That's one or two connections to the given site.

• In addition, I may open SmartFTP at the same time and connect via FTP to access the same site at the same time. SmartFTP makes another connection to the same site at that point.

• Finally, I want to then transfer some new files to the site, say GIF files which can't be handled by HTML-Kit. I open the desktop window in SmartFTP to find the files, then drag them over to the site window. The files are added to the Queue. This would be fine except that now the queue wants to open another connection. Only it can't because I'm out of possible connections! I now have to close something else in order for the queue to successfully connect again.

You can say that this is my host's problem because they should give me more connections. Or you can say that it's my problem because I shouldn't have so much going on. But I've been working this way with SmartFTP for many years, and it's never been a problem before. The new version of SmartFTP changed all of that. I like it, and I'd like to keep it, but it's a problem - not an annoyance, a problem.

Can anything be done about this? Please help us. Seems like an option to "transfer without queue", with a default value of "false" would do the trick, no? Or maybe an option to "transfer using existing connection" would work? I realize it's easy to talk about such functions and probably not so easy to implement, but I really do hope these sorts of ideas are being considered for development of this otherwise tremendous software.

Thanks for a great product.

Dear Bill ..

I read your concerns and I cannot disagree with you, you have valid points. Version 3.0 of SmartFTP is a major "upgrade" compared to version 2.x. By incrementing the major version number it was subtly implied that there were going to be significant improvements and the user should expect changes. Changes that we think, enhance the product and improve the experience for the great majority of users. But with every change there are users who are overwhelmed or are afraid to adapt.

Specifically in version 3.0 the direct transfer method has been replaced with a new transfer method which solves a lot of problems users have been facing in version 2.0. For example there were many users which suffered from incomplete or broken transfers because transfers were required to be verified and restarted manually. Also users were confused by the different methods (Transfer Queue vers Direct). This and other reasons contributed to our decision to introduce the Transfer Queue as the only transfer method in version 3.0.

I would like to give you some ideas how you can solve the problems you are having with the latest version of SmartFTP:

1. The most straight forward solution and most convenient for you is to contact your web hosting provider and ask them to increase your connection limit. Since you are on a paid hosting plan your provider shouldn't have a problem giving you more than 2 concurrent connections.
2. The next option is to control the number of connections you have to the server:
   Close or disconnect the Remote Browser in SmartFTP when it is not needed.
   Why does the HTML-Kit product keep the connection alive when there is nothing to transfer?
3. You can use SmartFTP's remote edit feature with HTML-Kit. This way all transfers will be handled in one central place and only 2 concurrent connections are required.

I hope you can consider one the options above as a solution to your problem.

Regards,
Mat

Hi, Mat -

Thanks so much for your detailed reply.

It sounds very much like the latest version solves some problems that may outweigh or outnumber the problems caused for me by the new transfer queue function. I can accept this with the hope that some day in the future we can solve both problems.

In the mean time, I appreciate your suggestions. Some thoughts:

• We have been with the same host for ten years because they are well worth the loyalty. We host around sixty different sites with them, and although you would think that given this fact they might be willing to budge on the number of connections they give me, each time I've asked for more over the past ten years they say they cannot accommodate me as the change would need to be made server-wide, effecting all sites on the same server (in a shared environment). We are gradually moving all of our sites into a VPS environment over which we have more control. This may solve the problem in the end.
• I have been doing what you suggested re. disconnecting the SmartFTP remote browser. It's an extra step, but much of the time it seems to work. In short, I've adapted to the change. I'm not sure what's up with HTML-KIT, but when I use it to open projects sites, it holds the connection open for a period of time, refreshing the connection each time I edit and save the file up to the server.
• I've tried the remote edit feature of SmartFTP, and it's pretty nice. But again, it adds additional steps to the process as it requires confirmation of the save, and the window that sits in the background during that process isn't always friendly. Again, it's a great tool. But compared to simply opening a file in an editor and working on it directly it's a bit clumsy.

I'm not suggesting that the work you've done on the latest version of SmartFTP is bad. Obviously the new process has solved many problems for many people. That's the goal of software development, right? So nice job then. I only suggest that if it fits into your future development road map, now that you've got that great new transfer system in place, it might be good to offer some options about the way it works if possible. Maybe it isn't even possible based on the new architecture, maybe it is. Either way, I'm sure I'll find a way to adapt. There simply isn't a better tool on the planet for file transfer than SmartFTP, with or without the new transfer process.

Thanks again. Best of luck.

BH

Hi again -

I've done some testing and have found that an additional help in using the queue without maxing out my connections to a given site is to set the number of "Workers" from the default of 3 down to 1. 2 didn't work. Seems like once any one of the workers bumps up against the maximum connections error, they all fail and have to wait for a retry. And although the retry occurs relatively soon after the failure, if I don't set the number of workers to 1, transferring 20 or 30 small text files can take several minutes or more instead of 30 seconds or less.

Just a tip for anyone experiencing the same challenge.

Thanks,
Bill

Hello Bill ..

The default number of workers is 1. Increasing the number of workers doesn't really improve the transfer performance when dealing with just a few files. However it can significantly improve it when you are transferring big files.

Regards,
Mat

Hi Mat y buy Smart 3 license, but i need use direct an queque modes, and if i read good that is not posible in the new version, and never will be active.

Is posible you can send me a license to the version 2.5 and a url of the installer?

Thanks

Hello bregolas ..

You can version 2.5 from:
https://www.smartftp.com/support/kb/smar ... f2599.html

However I strongly recommend you to use version 3.0 with the Transfer Queue.

Regards,
Mat

My job requires the use of the system directly and queque, if this solution will not be implemented in the 3.0 I am afraid that I will not be able to upgrade to the new version.

And it's a shame because I have been using smart ftp since its inception and I have always been happy with and I have recommended to the community, and sincerely and without spirit of offending your magnificent job so far, I think we remove direct discharge and put all with tail download is a very serious mistake in the face of the various features of the program, there would be some way that this solution is change?

Thanks Food

A Greeting

There is no benefit of using the direct transfer method. You can do the same thing with version 3.0. That's the reason the direct transfer will not come back because there is need for it.

Regards,
Mat

There is no benefit of using the direct transfer method. You can do the same thing with version 3.0.

I think it may be hard for some of us to grasp how this might be true, since we have become so accustomed to the behavior of the previous versions. However, I can say that since I reduced the number of workers to 1 (not sure why it was set to 3!?) I rarely have any trouble, especially if I close the remote connection that is opened when I first connect to the server with which I am working. All in all, after working with v3 extensively for a few weeks now, I can't complain. It's quite a slick product, and the queue management system simply does it's thing and I ignore it. It CAN work out fine, even with limited FTP connex to your server. You just have to get used to it and find a new way of working. I kind of wish I hadn't had to adjust my process at all, but hey, change is a part of life, right?

I think it may be hard for some of us to grasp how this might be true, since we have become so accustomed to the behavior of the previous versions. However, I can say that since I reduced the number of workers to 1 (not sure why it was set to 3!?) I rarely have any trouble, especially if I close the remote connection that is opened when I first connect to the server with which I am working. All in all, after working with v3 extensively for a few weeks now, I can't complain. It's quite a slick product, and the queue management system simply does it's thing and I ignore it. It CAN work out fine, even with limited FTP connex to your server. You just have to get used to it and find a new way of working. I kind of wish I hadn't had to adjust my process at all, but hey, change is a part of life, right?

I totally disagree. The queue does not start automatically sometimes, it retries file transfers even if access is denied so I have to lose my time removing them from the queue, it takes a few seconds for file to go to the queue and then start transfer while previous versions did it immediately without any delays.

And version 3 has a ton of bugs from the process hanging in task manager and having to be shutdown manually to being unable to browse any remote folder as it gets stuck in the first one and I have to close SmartFTP and open again 2 or 3 times until it works again. It was less buggy on the first 3.0 version now I am having really a lot of problems using it and every new update is even worse! I think I will install version 2.5 again.

There should be a page with all the versions available so we can go back if the new version is even more buggier than the previous!

-> change is a part of life, right?
If the change is for worse and you don't have any options then it is part of life. If you have other options, you don't have to accept the change, you can just find another program that does what you want.

Bruno: Most problems you mention have been fixed already. Try the newest version from: https://www.smartftp.com/download

You can also get version 2.5 from:
https://www.smartftp.com/support/kb/smar ... f2599.html
This page has been there since version 3.0 has been released.

Also transfers start immediately and there is no delay. Maybe you have the impression it is like that but in reality it isn't.

Regards,
Mat

I wanted to post as well just to voice my opinion on the new queue. I too have uninstalled 3.0 and have had to go back to 2.5 since the new queue just does not meet my needs. I'm definitely open to change however, and I'm hoping that it is simply my overlooking some configuration options that can make the new queue work more like the "old". My scenario is likely different then most users of the client, since I am frequently uploading many thousands of files to 4-5 sites at a time, and the queue is the center of everything I do. What I would like is:

- if a queue is already running for an open site, I'd like to be able to upload/download "direct" and bypass the queue, by using the FTP connection that is open for the remote browser
- I want to disable the small popup window that "scans" the remote server for overwriting. I want the queue to just start up and use my overwrite preference as set in the favorite
- I define all worker counts in the favorite, and if I define 1 worker (such as with Godaddy servers), how do I prevent a second "queue" worker from starting up in the queue when I drag files over (this could be a misunderstanding on my part).
- How do I get the "connections" tab back in the queue? I often would use this in 2.5 to see when a queue connection for a site has become idle.

I'm hopeful that there are work arounds for these issues, as I would really like to gain the SFTP support - as it is right now I continue to use FileZilla for SFTP sites, and SmartFTP 2.5 for normal FTP sites.

Thanks!

- Brian

p.s. is 2.5.1008 the very latest 2.5 build? I swear I had a "newer" build then that before I installed 3.0 for the first time. If it is not, is there a download link for the very latest/last 2.5. build? Thanks!

Hello Brian ...

There are solutions for almost all your problems:
>- if a queue is already running for an open site, I'd like to be able to upload/download "direct" and bypass the queue, by using the FTP connection that is open for the remote browser
You can setup a "dual transfer environment". Please see https://www.smartftp.com/support/kb/how- ... f2600.html

>- I want to disable the small popup window that "scans" the remote server for overwriting. I want the queue to just start up and use my overwrite preference as set in the favorite
There is a "by default" option in the File Exist settings in the favorite. Set it to "Use Automatic Rules".

>- I define all worker counts in the favorite, and if I define 1 worker (such as with Godaddy servers), how do I prevent a second "queue" worker from starting up in the queue when I drag files over (this could be a misunderstanding on my part).
I'm not sure what you exactly mean. But might be related to the 1st point.

>- How do I get the "connections" tab back in the queue? I often would use this in 2.5 to see when a queue connection for a site has become idle.
The connections tab has been removed since all transfers go through the transfer queue all connections can be monitored there. The Remote Browser connections are not included but they are mostly idle anyway. Also some connections are kept open in the background to speed up things. It would confuse most users if they see the extra open connections.

The latest 2.5 version is available at:
https://www.smartftp.com/support/kb/smar ... f2599.html

Regards,
Mat