Why I cannot connect/transfer using script, when I can using GUI (or vice versa)?

There are two common reasons why a script does not work, when a connectivity is otherwise possible:

• You run script from a different environment (under a different account/service; with a different configuration) than the GUI.
  See another FAQ: My script works fine when executed manually, but fails or hangs when run by Windows Scheduler, SSIS or other automation service. What am I doing wrong?1
• You have your session configured differently in the script and in the GUI.
  • Use a Generate Session URL/Code command to avoid common mistakes in manually typed URL’s or code; and to make sure all the settings from your GUI configuration is used in the script.
    A common problem is special characters in some part of the session URL (typically a password or a username).
  • Passphrase to an SSH private key is not a password, you need to specify it using -passphrase switch, not in a password part of the session URL.
  • With WebDAV and S3 protocols, it is possible that you do not have an access to the root folder (bucket list in S3).

You can also enable a session logging both in the GUI (on Logging page of Preferences dialog) and the script (using a command-line parameter /log) and compare the logs to find out what is different. Use a command-line parameter /loglevel=* to enable a password logging and check if a correct password is used.

If you decide to seek a help, make sure you provide both complete logs, when describing your issue.

• More generic article on making WinSCP work in a new environment (operating system, machine, user account, network).
• Debugging transfer task running in Windows Scheduler, SSIS, or another automation service.