diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 04c913b..c009b48 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -110,7 +110,7 @@ leave its login and every other path alone.
 |---------|-----------|------------|
 | `workflow` | Yes | `insurance` if no patient files, `insurance+patient` if both |
 | `insurance_file_type` | No (defaults to `pdf`) | Set to `tif` for an entity whose imaging system exports the daily files as TIFs instead of PDFs (CAMBS, RMI, CONSENSIO, INLAND). Goes at the top level, next to `workflow` — NOT inside `ftps` |
-| `ftps.host` | Yes | FTP server address |
+| `ftps.host` | Yes | Server address. A plain name (`ftp.example.com`) uses FTP/FTPS per the `tls` setting. You can also paste a full URL — `sftp://server.com` sends these files over **SFTP** instead (some partners use SFTP for everything), and `ftps://server.com` forces FTPS |
 | `ftps.port` | No (defaults to 21) | FTP port, only if not 21 |
 | `ftps.tls` | Yes | `true` for FTPS (secure), `false` for plain FTP |
 | `ftps.username` | Yes | FTP username (shared across all practices) |
diff --git a/engine.ps1 b/engine.ps1
index c8f707c..69b0b67 100644
--- a/engine.ps1
+++ b/engine.ps1
@@ -168,16 +168,37 @@ function Get-ArchiveDir($parent, $name) {
     return $path
 }
 
+# Host values may be pasted as URLs, e.g. "SFTP://server.com/" - pull out the
+# scheme (decides the protocol) and the bare hostname.
+function Get-HostInfo($rawHost) {
+    $h = ([string]$rawHost).Trim()
+    $scheme = $null
+    if ($h -imatch '^(\w+)://') {
+        $scheme = $Matches[1].ToLower()
+        $h = $h -replace '^\w+://', ''
+    }
+    $h = $h.Split('/')[0]
+    return @{ Scheme = $scheme; HostName = $h }
+}
+
 # -- Upload via FTPS -----------------------------------------------------------
 function Invoke-FTPSUpload($ftpConfig, $files, $remotePath, $entity, $practice) {
+    $hostInfo = Get-HostInfo $ftpConfig.host
     $opts = New-Object WinSCP.SessionOptions
-    $opts.Protocol    = [WinSCP.Protocol]::Ftp
-    $opts.FtpSecure   = if ($ftpConfig.tls) { [WinSCP.FtpSecure]::Explicit } else { [WinSCP.FtpSecure]::None }
-    $opts.HostName    = $ftpConfig.host
-    $opts.PortNumber  = if ($ftpConfig.port) { [int]$ftpConfig.port } else { 21 }
+    if ($hostInfo.Scheme -eq "sftp") {
+        $opts.Protocol   = [WinSCP.Protocol]::Sftp
+        $opts.PortNumber = if ($ftpConfig.port) { [int]$ftpConfig.port } else { 22 }
+        $opts.GiveUpSecurityAndAcceptAnySshHostKey = $true
+    } else {
+        $useTls = ($ftpConfig.tls -eq $true) -or ($hostInfo.Scheme -eq "ftps")
+        $opts.Protocol   = [WinSCP.Protocol]::Ftp
+        $opts.FtpSecure  = if ($useTls) { [WinSCP.FtpSecure]::Explicit } else { [WinSCP.FtpSecure]::None }
+        $opts.PortNumber = if ($ftpConfig.port) { [int]$ftpConfig.port } else { 21 }
+        if ($useTls) { $opts.GiveUpSecurityAndAcceptAnyTlsHostCertificate = $true }
+    }
+    $opts.HostName    = $hostInfo.HostName
     $opts.UserName    = $ftpConfig.username
     $opts.Password    = $ftpConfig.password
-    $opts.GiveUpSecurityAndAcceptAnyTlsHostCertificate = $true
 
     $session = New-Object WinSCP.Session
     if ($logLevel -eq "debug") {
@@ -186,7 +207,7 @@ function Invoke-FTPSUpload($ftpConfig, $files, $remotePath, $entity, $practice)
 
     $ok = 0; $fail = 0
     try {
-        Write-Debug "FTPS connect: $($ftpConfig.host) user=$($ftpConfig.username) tls=$($ftpConfig.tls)"
+        Write-Debug "Connect: $($opts.Protocol) $($hostInfo.HostName):$($opts.PortNumber) user=$($ftpConfig.username)"
         $session.Open($opts)
         foreach ($file in $files) {
             $remote = $remotePath.TrimEnd("/") + "/" + $file.Name
@@ -216,9 +237,10 @@ function Invoke-FTPSUpload($ftpConfig, $files, $remotePath, $entity, $practice)
 
 # -- Upload via SFTP -----------------------------------------------------------
 function Invoke-SFTPUpload($sftpConfig, $files, $remotePath, $entity, $practice) {
+    $hostInfo = Get-HostInfo $sftpConfig.host
     $opts = New-Object WinSCP.SessionOptions
     $opts.Protocol   = [WinSCP.Protocol]::Sftp
-    $opts.HostName   = $sftpConfig.host
+    $opts.HostName   = $hostInfo.HostName
     $opts.PortNumber = if ($sftpConfig.port) { [int]$sftpConfig.port } else { 22 }
     $opts.UserName   = $sftpConfig.username
     $opts.Password   = $sftpConfig.password