Programming (generic chinese) Arduino Pro Mini boards using an FTDI 232 USB Mini board.

When programming and not using the USB power to power the Pro Mini, wire it as follows:

Pro Mini               FTDI232

DTR ------------------ DTR
 TX ------------------ RX
 RX ------------------ TX
VCC                    VCC
GND                    CTS
GND ------------------ GND

Settings in the Arduino IDE are:

COM6 ( Varies… please check Device Manager … Ports)
Arduino Pro Mini
ATmega328P (5V, 16MHz)