{"id":59100,"date":"2023-08-15T15:01:19","date_gmt":"2023-08-15T07:01:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/?p=59100"},"modified":"2023-08-24T17:12:05","modified_gmt":"2023-08-24T09:12:05","slug":"linux-command-cp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hongkiat.com\/blog\/linux-command-cp\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Copy Files and Folders in Linux"},"content":{"rendered":"

The cp<\/code> command in Linux stands for \u201ccopy.\u201d It is a command-line utility used to copy files and directories from one location to another within the file system. By using the cp command, users can create duplicates of files or directories, preserving the original content.<\/p>\n

source<\/code> is the file or directory you want to copy, and destination<\/code> is the location where you want to place the copy. Various options can be added to modify the behavior of the copy, such as preserving file attributes or providing verbose output. It\u2019s a fundamental and widely-used command in Linux for managing files and directories.<\/p>\n

In this post, we will look at some common ways the cp<\/code> command is used to copy files and folders in Linux.<\/p>\n

Syntax:<\/strong><\/p>\n

cp [options] source destination<\/pre>\n
\n
1. Duplicating a file<\/h3>\n
cp foo.txt bar.txt<\/pre>\n
This command will copy the contents of the file foo.txt<\/code> into a file named bar.txt<\/code>.<\/p>\n
Example:<\/strong><\/p>\n
Let\u2019s say you have a file named foo.txt<\/code> with the following content:<\/p>\n
Hello, World!<\/pre>\n
If you run the command cp foo.txt bar.txt<\/code>, it will create a new file named bar.txt<\/code> with the exact same content as foo.txt<\/code>:<\/p>\n
Hello, World!<\/pre>\n
If bar.txt<\/code> already exists, its content will be overwritten with the content of foo.txt<\/code>. If bar.txt does not exist, it will be created.<\/p>\n
\n
2. Duplicating a directory (and its contents)<\/h3>\n
cp -R foo-folder bar-folder<\/pre>\n
The -R<\/code> option stands for \u201crecursive,\u201d and it\u2019s used to copy directories and their contents, including subdirectories.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s what the command cp -R foo-folder bar-folder<\/code> does:<\/p>\n