Feature challenge - File manager tied to a remote server - Webmaster General forum at WebmasterWorld

Forum Moderators: phranque

Message Too Old, No Replies

Feature challenge - File manager tied to a remote server

TalkingMonkey

3:35 pm on Apr 1, 2014 (gmt 0)

Greetings!

I have a client with a special need for which I am trying to solve. The client currently has an antiquated website running on a local windows 2003 server. This site serves as a file upload mechanism for their clients. Users upload pdf files which then the client can access and print. (Blueprinting company)

The client wishes to redesign and update their site to WordPress, which I will host on a shared Linux hosting solution. The issue is keeping this user/file upload functionality tied to a remote Window's server. The client would like users to be able to login to the WordPres site and upload files directly to the client's office server.

I've been through the free and paid plugins for WordPress with no luck.

TL;DR. Need a solution for a WordPress site that will allow for user/file upload functionality, which is hosted on a remote windows 2003 server.

Any ideas or suggestions are highly appreciated.

lammert

5:33 am on Apr 10, 2014 (gmt 0)

Hi TalkingMonkey, first of all welcome to WebmasterWorld!

I don't know of any WordPress extension which does what you want out of the box, but one option could be that you set up a periodic file transfer process which transfers the files over the FTP protocol from the linux server to the Windows server. You have to realize though that FTP is an unencrypted protocol where data, username and password are transferred without encryption and that you must be sure that the full PDF file has been uploaded by a client before the transfer is initiated. My experience with blueprinting PDFs is that their size can get quite large. SFTP and SCP are more secure options to transfer files because their communication is encrypted, but they are not available in standard Windows distributions and have to be bought as separate applications.

TalkingMonkey

1:34 pm on Apr 10, 2014 (gmt 0)

Thanks for the reply. I did a bunch of research and decided against taking on the project. It was going to be a hackjob either way, plus the risk of a remote server in an office. Thanks again.