File is too big to be downloaded by FTP?

server backup

[newbies]

I want to download a backup file of my site by FTP to my local disk. Because the file is over 2G, FTP programs simply won't even list the file, so it is invisible in FTP. How can I download the big file?

Thank you for your advice.

[txbakers]

You might have to zip it first, or do a transfer with a different program.

You might even have to do with the shell FTP program rather than a nice visual client.

[Leosghost]

Acronis

[newbies]

Yes I gzipped the file after tar.

I tried shell FTP, it makes no difference.

I will try Acronis.

...have a look at Acronis. It seems not to be what I need. I don't need a disk image program. I have my server backed up, I only need to transfer the big file onto my local disk.

[Romeo]

2 GB is a magical limit to some software, still even in these modern days (2 GB is the max number of bytes to be addressed by 32 bit signed integer value).

The easiest way to circumvent this is to make smaller backups resulting in 2 files each below 2 GB.

Otherwise you have to check if there ...
-- is a file size limitation on the client file system,
-- if your FTP server is capable to handle the 2 GB,
-- if there is an alternate FTP client software (64bit software should handle this easily, but I suppose you are not on a 64bit Linux). [be aware that the FTP server and client components are 2 different things]
-- if wget
-- or rsync may have these limits, too, or not.

Kind regards,
R.

[txbakers]

I eventually had to do smaller backup files for the DB as well, just for sanity sakes.