Here are just a few reasons:
- FTP Today's servers are accessible through redundant connections to the Internet, whereas your own server would likely have a single point of failure.
- FTP Today's servers are dedicated file transfer systems that are tuned for high performance file transfer, whereas an in-house server would likely be multi-purpose.
- There are significant costs associated with managing your own server, including the ISP cost for a dedicated Internet circuit (usually $500 per month and up for a 1.5 Mbps T1 circuit, or twice that for redundant connections) and the necessity to devote hardware and personnel to managing that server. Compare this to the small costs of FTP Today.
- FTP sites generally take up lots of bandwidth, so if your single internet connection is bogged down with file transfers, your transfer rates may suffer. Your other use of your internet connection (for browsing and e-mail) would also suffer from this bottleneck.
- For multiple simultaneous connections, you simply can't afford to provide the bandwidth to match FTP Today without spending thousands of dollars per month.
- Putting a server on your own network potentially opens your entire network up to security issues, hacker attacks, etc.
