Automating File Uploads and Cleanup with Python and FTP

Keeping your FTP server organized can be a chore, especially if you frequently upload files. This blog post will guide you through creating a Python script that automates pushing files, keeps your “uploaded” folder clean, and removes any files older than 30 days.

Prerequisites:

Basic understanding of Python
FTP server access (host, username, password)

The Script:

We’ll use the ftplib module to interact with the FTP server and the os module for file operations. Here’s the script breakdown:

import ftplib
import os
from datetime import datetime, timedelta

# Define your FTP server details
ftp_host = "your_ftp_server"
ftp_user = "your_username"
ftp_password = "your_password"

# Local file path and destination directory on the server
local_file = "path/to/your/file.txt"
remote_dir = "/uploaded"

# Function to upload a file
def upload_file(ftp, local_file, remote_dir):
  with open(local_file, "rb") as file:
    ftp.cwd(remote_dir)  # Change directory to "uploaded"
    ftp.storbinary(f"STOR {os.path.basename(local_file)}", file)
    print(f"File {local_file} uploaded successfully!")

# Function to clean up old files (more than 30 days)
def cleanup_old_files(ftp, remote_dir, days_old=30):
  ftp.cwd(remote_dir)
  now = datetime.utcnow()
  for filename in ftp.nlst():
    file_date = ftp.mtime(filename)  # Get file modification time
    if (now - file_date) > timedelta(days=days_old):
      ftp.delete(filename)
      print(f"Deleted old file: {filename}")

# Connect to FTP server
ftp = ftplib.FTP(ftp_host)
ftp.login(ftp_user, ftp_password)

# Upload the file
upload_file(ftp, local_file, remote_dir)

# Clean up old files
cleanup_old_files(ftp, remote_dir)

# Close the connection
ftp.quit()

import ftplib

import os

from datetime import datetime, timedelta

# Define your FTP server details

ftp_host = "your_ftp_server"

ftp_user = "your_username"

ftp_password = "your_password"

# Local file path and destination directory on the server

local_file = "path/to/your/file.txt"

remote_dir = "/uploaded"

# Function to upload a file

def upload_file(ftp, local_file, remote_dir):

with open(local_file, "rb") as file:

ftp.cwd(remote_dir) # Change directory to "uploaded"

ftp.storbinary(f"STOR {os.path.basename(local_file)}", file)

print(f"File {local_file} uploaded successfully!")

# Function to clean up old files (more than 30 days)

def cleanup_old_files(ftp, remote_dir, days_old=30):

ftp.cwd(remote_dir)

now = datetime.utcnow()

for filename in ftp.nlst():

file_date = ftp.mtime(filename) # Get file modification time

if (now - file_date) > timedelta(days=days_old):

ftp.delete(filename)

print(f"Deleted old file: {filename}")

# Connect to FTP server

ftp = ftplib.FTP(ftp_host)

ftp.login(ftp_user, ftp_password)

# Upload the file

upload_file(ftp, local_file, remote_dir)

# Clean up old files

cleanup_old_files(ftp, remote_dir)

# Close the connection

ftp.quit()

Explanation:

Import Libraries: We import ftplib for FTP interaction, os for file paths, and datetime for managing file age.
Define Variables: Replace placeholders with your FTP server details, local file path, and desired remote directory for uploads.
Upload Function: This function opens the local file in binary mode, changes the working directory on the server to remote_dir, and uploads the file using STORBINARY.
Cleanup Function: This function iterates through files in remote_dir, retrieves their modification time using MTIME, and compares it with the current date minus the specified number of days (defaults to 30). If a file is older than the threshold, it’s deleted using DELETE.
Main Script: We connect to the FTP server, upload the file using our function, clean up old files, and close the connection.

Running the Script:

Save the script as ftp_upload.py and run it from your terminal using python ftp_upload.py. Remember to update the script with your specific information.

Security Note:

This script stores credentials directly in the code. For production use, consider environment variables or secure credential management techniques.

Further Enhancements:

Error handling for upload failures or connection issues.
Logging for successful uploads and deletions.
Uploading entire directories with recursive functions (refer to online resources).

This Python script automates your FTP file uploads and keeps your server organized. With a little customization, you can adapt it to fit your specific needs!

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