TFTP or Trivial File Transfer Protocol allows you to transfer files to or from a remote PC. TFTP is disabled by default in Windows 11/10, but if you need this function, you can easily enable TFTP. It is possible to enable the TFTP client on Windows 11/10 PC using the Windows Features panel and Command Prompt or Terminal.
TFTP transfers files to and from a remote computer, typically a computer running UNIX, that is running the Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) service or daemon. TFTP is typically used by embedded devices or systems that retrieve firmware, configuration information, or a system image during the boot process from a TFTP server, says TechNet.
Enable TFTP client in Windows 11/10
To enable the TFTP client in Windows 11/10, from the WinX Menu, open Control Panel and click on the Programs & Features applet.
On the left side, you will see Turn Windows features On or Off. Click on it to open the Windows Features panel.
Scroll down till you see TFTP Client.
Check the box and click on OK.
Windows will start installing and activating the feature. It will take less than a minute.
Once the process is completed, you will be informed about it, and you will then be able to us TFTP.
TFTP is not considered secure nowadays – so use it only if you must.
Enable TFTP client in Windows 11/10 using Command Prompt
To enable TFTP client in Windows 11/10 using Command Prompt, follow these steps:
- Search for cmd in the Taskbar search box.
- Click on Run as administrator option.
- Click the Yes button on the UAC prompt.
- Enter this command: Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -FeatureName TFTP -Online
However, if you want to use TFTP client from a Windows Server, you need to run the following command:
Install-WindowsFeature TFTP-Client
Read: How to fix Start PXE over IPv4 in Windows
How to activate TFTP?
To activate TFTP client on Windows 11/10, you need to use the Windows Features panel or Command Prompt/Terminal. Open the Windows Features panel and find the TFTP Client checkbox. Tick the checkbox and click the OK button. Let it finish the installation.
How to check if a TFTP server is running in Windows?
To check if a TFTP server is running in Windows or not, you need to use this command: netstat -an|more. If you see something like udp 0 0 0.0.0.0:69, it means that TFTP is enabled and working. However, if you see anything else, you need to go through the aforementioned steps to enable or activate it correctly.
Also read: How to enable Telnet using CMD.
Most hosts these says support SFTP (which you can use with File Explorer or FTP Clients like WinSCP) as well as support for Web Disk, which allows you to add your server to File Explorer as a folder so you can just drag and drop and have access to your entire servers folder tree in a secure connection.
Typically a TFTP server (which is a completely different animal from FTP/SFTP) runs on the same subnet as the device you intend to put/get the file. A typical example is backing up the config from a Cisco IOS router. You wouldn’t use this protocol across the internet.