How to use the Plesk File Manager

This guide will show you how to use the Plesk File Manager. Here you can learn how to upload and download files, change permissions of your files, edit a file, or create an archive.

If you host your own server, ensure that your web hosting control panel is Plesk version 11 or higher before proceeding.

Access the File Manager

1. Start by logging in to Plesk. Here’s how if you’re hosted with us.
2. Choose “Files” from the Plesk main menu

That’s it! You’re in the file manager.

How to find your Web Root

Unless you’ve explicitly overridden the defaults (or you have your own Canadian VPS and migrated your sites from a cPanel server where the primary domain web root is typically public_html), your web root folder(s) will be as follows:

• Primary domain: httpdocs
• Additional domains: a folder with the same name as the domain name

When in doubt, look under the Websites & Domains tab in Plesk — it will show you the web root folder for each domain there.

How to create a new file or folder

• Navigate to the folder you wish to create the new file or folder within
• Choose the + button and select file or folder, depending on the type you’d like to create
• Give it a name
• If it’s a folder, you’re all set! If it’s a file, you can now enter whatever contents you’d like within the file and press Save.

How to upload a file or folder from your device

No matter what you’re uploading, you’ll need to navigate to the folder where you’d like to upload the file first. Then proceed as below:

Single or Multiple Files: Drag and drop the file from your computer into the web folder

Folders: If you have a folder filled with files and/or additional folders, it’s best to zip the contents on your computer, then drag and drop the zip file to upload it, then extract it on the server. Here’s how:

1. On your computer, right/context click on the folder and select the “Compress […]” option on macOS, or choose “Send to > Compressed (zipped) folder” on Windows.
2. Drag and drop the resulting zip file from your computer into the Plesk File Manager
3. Select the file in the Plesk file manager, then select Unzip.

Folder Upload Warning: if you attempt to drag and drop a folder without zipping it first, the folder’s contents will be flattened, meaning any folders within that folder will cease to exist and the files within will be brought to the ‘root’ level. This is very very rarely what people expect, and therefore should be prevented. Ensure you zip folders before uploading.

How to Download a File or Folder

1. Navigate to the folder that contains the files
2. Folder only: select the folder(s) you’d like to download.
3. Folder only: choose the “Add to Archive” button at the top of the file listing, then look for the archive file in the file listing
4. Click the button on the far right, then choose “Download”
5. The file will be downloaded to your computer
6. Folder only: Use your computer’s unzip function to extract it simply by double clicking on it.

How to Change Permissions of a File

1. Navigate to the folder or file you wish to adjust.
2. Click the button on the far right and choose “Change Permissions”
3. Specify your permissions of choice and click OK.

If you’ve been provided numeric permissions to set, Plesk File Manager doesn’t use this representation of permissions, so you will need to use a permissions calculator to convert the numeric representation (like 755) into its more expansive version.

How to Edit a File

While Plesk’s code editor has taken years to mature, by the time they reached Plesk Onyx (17+) it’s a well fleshed out feature. You can simply click on any text file to edit it in the code editor directly on the server without having to download it, edit it, then re-upload it.

How to Rename a File or Folder

Navigate to the file or folder that you wish to change, then click the button on the far right (with three horizontal lines) and choose “Rename” — enter your new name and click OK.

Renaming a WordPress plugin folder will disable that plugin in WordPress. Navigate to the web root > wp-content > plugins folder, where you should see the plugin you wish to disable in the directory list. Use the steps above to rename the folder to disable the plugin.