Unable to CHMOD 777...

When right clicking the file that I'm trying to CHMOD from my FTP client, I select and receive the correct window to set permissions.
I set it with 777 and click enter. My active window then shuts down and I receive this error:

FTP Cmd : site chmod /www/wbboard/images/smilies 777
: 550 Could not change perms on 777: No such file or directory

What am I missing? Is there a 777 file I need to upload?
Thanks in advance for any advice you can give me on this frustrating problem.

... you need (at least in WS_FTP) to right click on the file itself and select CHMOD , and check the appropriate permissions (eg all of them !))

if thats what you are doing and it still does not work , note that depening on your host's setup you may not actually be allowed to CHMOD.

1 other possiblity is that you may have created the file via a CGI/PHP script , in that case the script is owned by (usually) 'nobody' and you no longer have permission to CHMOD that script.

If that is the case , get your script to CHMOD or CHOWN (CHOWN is disabled on almost all virtual hosting accounts) the file with the appropriate permissions , then you can alter it via FTP.

eg in PHP , a file created via script and now 'owned' by apache/nobody can be made available again by ..<? chmod( 'filename.file' , 0777 );?>

...Sorry...but do you think you could explain that better...I'm using Crystal FTP Pro.