What is the root directory?
The root directory on your account is the folder where web files for your primary website reside.
The root directory is the public_html folder, and it’s located in the home directory of your account.
If your account username is skystra, for example, the root directory path is: /home/skystra/public_html
If you upload the test.html file to your public_html directory, it will be available on https://yourdomain.com/test.html URL.
This is why it’s called the root directory – it’s the primary web file location for your main website.
How to upload files to your root directory using file manager
To upload files to your root directory, log in to your cPanel control panel, and click File Manager under Files section:
The File Manager will open a new tab, and you can see a directory structure of your home folder:
To access the root directory, click on the public_html folder in the left frame:
The folders and files in the right frame will load content from the public_html directory, and you can now click the Upload button in the top menu bar to upload your file:
Select the file on your computer, and the File Manager will automatically upload it to your root directory.
How to upload files to your root directory using FTP (FileZilla)
To upload files to your root directory, you’ll need to use a File Transfer program, FileZilla is recommended as it’s fairly straightforward and free.
Use our guide to download FileZilla and connect to FTP.
Once in FileZilla, open head to File -> Site Manager.
Click New site to create a new FTP connection:
Fill in the following details:
Host: Your domain name
Port: 21
User: Your cPanel username (click here to learn how to find it)
Password: Set your secure cPanel password (click here for instructions)
When ready, click Connect to connect to your account via FTP, and accept the server’s certificate:
Once connected, double-click the public_html directory in the right panel:
Drag and drop the file from your computer (left panel) to your hosting package (right panel) to upload it to the root directory.