FileZilla Bridge

FileZilla is the most downloaded FTP client in the world. If you have accumulated sites over the years, AeroFTP can import them directly from your sitemanager.xml and export back when needed.

What this does

AeroFTP and FileZilla are fully interoperable. Import and export server profiles freely between the two tools through the shared sitemanager.xml format.

Import (FileZilla to AeroFTP)

• Reads your sitemanager.xml directly (auto-detected or manually selected)
• Maps FileZilla protocol values to AeroFTP protocols
• Upgrades credential security: FileZilla stores passwords as plain base64 (not encrypted at all). AeroFTP decodes them and stores them in an AES-256-GCM encrypted vault with Argon2id key derivation
• Duplicate detection: Sites that match existing profiles are flagged with an "Already exists" badge. You can re-import them to update credentials
• Available in the GUI (Settings > Export/Import > Bridge > FileZilla) and CLI (aeroftp-cli import filezilla)

Export (AeroFTP to FileZilla)

• Exports your server profiles to a standard sitemanager.xml file
• Passwords are base64-encoded for FileZilla compatibility
• Use it to set up FileZilla on another machine or share configurations
• Available in the GUI (Settings > Export/Import > Bridge > FileZilla)

Supported protocols

FileZilla Protocol	AeroFTP protocol	Credentials	Notes
0 (FTP)	FTP	Password (decoded + vault stored)	Plain FTP
1 (SFTP)	SFTP	Password (decoded + vault stored)	SSH file transfer
3 (FTPS implicit)	FTPS	Password (decoded + vault stored)	Port 990 by default
4 (FTPS explicit)	FTPS	Password (decoded + vault stored)	Explicit TLS negotiation
6 (S3)	S3	Access Key + Secret (vault stored)	Amazon S3 compatible

5 protocol types covering all FileZilla connection modes. The mapping works in both directions.

What is preserved

• Hostname, port, username
• Remote directory
• Passwords (decoded from base64 on import, re-encoded on export)
• FTPS mode (implicit vs explicit)
• Site display names
• Folder hierarchy structure

What requires manual setup

• SSH key authentication (key file paths are not portable)
• FileZilla master password protected configurations
• Proxy and transfer settings
• Bookmarks and synchronized browsing pairs

Security comparison

FileZilla stores passwords as plain base64 in an XML file. Anyone with read access to sitemanager.xml can decode every password instantly.

Aspect	FileZilla	AeroFTP
Password storage	Base64 encoding (trivially reversible)	AES-256-GCM + Argon2id vault
Config file protection	User responsibility	Encrypted at rest
Master password	Available since 3.26.0 (optional)	Argon2id-protected vault lock
Memory zeroization	Not guaranteed	Passwords cleared from RAM after use

When you import from FileZilla, your credentials are automatically upgraded to the stronger security model.

GUI usage

Import

1. Open Settings > Export/Import
2. Click Import from another app in the Bridge section
3. Select FileZilla
4. AeroFTP auto-detects sitemanager.xml on all platforms. Or click Browse to select manually
5. Review the list of detected sites - servers already in your list are marked "Already exists"
6. Click Import - new servers are added, existing ones are updated

Export

1. Open Settings > Export/Import
2. Click Export to another app in the Bridge section
3. Select FileZilla
4. Choose which servers to include and whether to include credentials
5. Save the .xml file

CLI usage

# Auto-detect sitemanager.xml and scan
aeroftp-cli import filezilla

# Specify path explicitly
aeroftp-cli import filezilla /path/to/sitemanager.xml

# JSON output for scripting (credentials are redacted)
aeroftp-cli import filezilla --json

Where FileZilla stores its configuration

Platform	Default path
Linux	~/.config/filezilla/sitemanager.xml
macOS	~/.config/filezilla/sitemanager.xml
Windows	%APPDATA%\FileZilla\sitemanager.xml

Frequently asked questions

Can I import FileZilla sites protected with a master password? Not currently. Master password protected configurations use additional encryption. Export without master password protection first, or re-enter credentials manually.

What about FileZilla Server configurations? This bridge handles FileZilla Client site manager only, not FileZilla Server user/group configurations.

Can I round-trip profiles between AeroFTP and FileZilla? Yes. Import from FileZilla, work in AeroFTP, and export back whenever you need.

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FileZilla is a trademark of Tim Kosse. AeroFTP is not affiliated with or endorsed by the FileZilla project.