•Arnošt Havelka
Copying Files and Directories
Master cp to copy files and recursive directory structures.
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The cp command copies files and directories. It's essential for backing up and duplicating your work.
Copy a Single File
Use cp source destination to copy a file.
Try the command
Copy a file!
Build the command
cpsourcedestination
Choose a command
Terminal
C:\Users\User>cp file.txt file_backup.txt
Duplicate a file:
Command Prompt
original.txt
C:\Users\User>ls
Recursive Copy: cp -r
The -r flag copies entire directories with all their contents.
Try the command
Copy entire directories!
Build the command
cp-rsource_dirdest_dir
Choose a command
Terminal
C:\Users\User>cp -r Documents Documents_backup
Duplicate folder structures:
Command Prompt
project/
C:\Users\User>ls
Copy to Directory
Copy a file into an existing directory by using the directory as the destination.
Try the command
Copy file into a folder!
Build the command
cpfile.txtdirectory/
Choose a command
Terminal
C:\Users\User>cp file.txt ~/Documents/
Place file in folder:
Command Prompt
file.txt
Archive/
ls Archive/
C:\Users\User>ls
Knowledge Check
1 / 3What does cp do?
References
These documentation links provide authoritative details for the commands used in this article.
Up Next
Moving and Renaming Files
Use mv to move files between directories and rename them.