Summary

In this guide, you’ll learn how to use SSH to securely connect to a remote server and transfer files to your local machine using Git Bash. Whether you’re managing a DigitalOcean droplet or another remote server, these steps will help you efficiently transfer files to your local system using the scp command.

Steps to Download Files from a Remote Server

1. Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have the following:

• Git Bash installed on your Windows machine. (You can download it from Git Bash Downloads)
• The IP address of your remote server.
• Your username and password (or SSH key) to connect to the server.
• Path to the file you wish to download from the server.

2. Connect to the Server Using SSH

Before downloading files, it’s important to ensure that you can successfully SSH into your server. Here’s how to do it:

SSH Command Example:

ssh username@your_server_ip

For instance, if your server’s IP is 192.0.2.0 and your username is root:

ssh root@192.0.2.0

If you’re using an SSH key for authentication, you can specify the private key file like this:

ssh -i /path/to/your/private_key username@your_server_ip

3. Download Files Using scp

Once connected, you can use the scp command to download files from your remote server to your local machine.

Command Format:

scp username@your_server_ip:/path/to/remote/file /path/to/local/destination

Here’s an example that downloads a file from /var/www/ on the server to a folder D:/Downloads/ on your local machine:

scp root@192.0.2.0:/var/www/www_backup.tar.gz /d/Downloads/www_backup.tar.gz

Explanation:

• root@192.0.2.0: Your server's SSH login credentials.
• /var/www/www_backup.tar.gz: The remote file path on the server.
• /d/Downloads/www_backup.tar.gz: The path where you want to save the file on your local machine.

4. (Optional) Use Compression for Faster Transfer

You can speed up the file transfer by compressing the data on-the-fly using the -C option:

scp -C root@192.0.2.0:/var/www/www_backup.tar.gz /d/Downloads/www_backup.tar.gz

This tells scp to compress the file during transfer, which may save time, especially on slower networks.

5. (Optional) Verify File Integrity

To ensure the file was not corrupted during the transfer, you can generate and compare checksums before and after the transfer.

On the server:

sha256sum /var/www/www_backup.tar.gz

On your local machine:

sha256sum /d/Downloads/www_backup.tar.gz

If the checksums match, your file was transferred successfully.

Conclusion

Using Git Bash, you can easily SSH into remote servers and securely download files with the scp command. This method is efficient and secure, and adding compression or verifying file integrity ensures that your files are transferred accurately. Whether you’re backing up server files or just moving data, this guide should help you get started quickly.

Summary of Commands:

1. SSH into the server:

ssh username@your_server_ip

2. Download file using ** scp:**

scp username@your_server_ip:/path/to/remote/file /path/to/local/destination

3. Download with compression:

scp -C username@your_server_ip:/path/to/remote/file /path/to/local/destination

4. Verify file integrity with sha256sum:

sha256sum /path/to/file

By following these steps, you’ll have no trouble securely transferring files from your remote server to your local machine.