Upload
Uploading refers to transmitting data from one computer system to another through means of a network.[1] Common methods of uploading include: uploading via web browsers, FTP clients, and terminals (SCP/SFTP). Uploading can be used in the context of (potentially many) clients that send files to a central server. While uploading can also be defined in the context of sending files between distributed clients, such as with a peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing protocol like BitTorrent, the term file sharing is more often used in this case. Moving files within a computer system, as opposed to over a network, is called file copying.
Uploading directly contrasts with downloading, where data is received over a network. In the case of users uploading files over the internet, uploading is often slower than downloading as many internet service providers (ISPs) offer asymmetric connections, which offer more network bandwidth for downloading than uploading.
To transfer something (such as data or files), from a computer or other digital device to the memory of another device (such as a larger or remote computer) especially via the internet.[2]
Remote file sharing first came into fruition in January 1978, when Ward Christensen and Randy Suess, who were members of the Chicago Area Computer Hobbyists' Exchange (CACHE), created the Computerized Bulletin Board System (CBBS). This used an early file transfer protocol (MODEM, later XMODEM) to send binary files via a hardware modem, accessible by another modem via a telephone number.[3]
In the following years, new protocols such as Kermit were released,[4] until the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) was standardized 1985 (RFC 959). FTP is based on TCP/IP and gave rise to many FTP clients, which, in turn, gave users all around the world access to the same standard network protocol to transfer data between devices.
The transfer of data saw a significant increase in popularity after the release of the World Wide Web in 1991, which, for the first time, allowed users who were not computer hobbyists to easily share files, directly from their web browser over HTTP.[5]
