How to copy into with cp if destination folder already exists?
Solution 1
Rsync was invented for this kind of thing.
rsync -av --update /source/ /destination
NB: Notice that /source/ has a trailing "/" which picks up file1, file2 and not the folder it is in. /destination doesnt have a trailing. So your solution looks like this:
rsync -av --update /tmp/a/ /tmp/b
Solution 2
The -T
flag (AKA --no-target-directory
) does what you want:
$ cp -R --verbose -T /tmp/a /tmp/b
`/tmp/a/file1' -> `/tmp/b/file1'
`/tmp/a/file2' -> `/tmp/b/file2'
Solution 3
Assuming Bash you can do
( shopt -s dotglob; cp -f -R --verbose /tmp/a/* /tmp/b/ )
What this does is:
- it will make sure globs (the
*
) catch files with a dot in front. They are considered "hidden" by convention. *
will expand beforecp
gets to see the command. So if there are two files as in your question the expanded command line will becp -f -R --verbose /tmp/a/file1 /tmp/a/file1 /tmp/b/
- finally the trailing backslash on the destination makes sure that it copies into that folder
/tmp/b/
.
This method also makes sure you don't have to reset the shell option, because it's being run in a subshell. You can achieve similar results by putting it into a script file instead of executing from the command line.
Solution 4
$ cp -r --verbose a/. b
`a/.' -> `b'
`a/./zzz' -> `b/zzz'
$ cp -r --verbose a/. b
`a/./zzz' -> `b/./zzz'
I don't think I've seen this described anywhere; I was just trying different possibilities and found one that worked. For all I know it's a natural consequence of how /.
and cp
work. (As opposed to the syntax for rsync
, mentioned in another answer, which is explicitly documented as a special case).
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James Mitch
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Updated on September 18, 2022Comments
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James Mitch almost 2 years
Example...
This is what I want.
/tmp $ cp -f -R --verbose /tmp/a /tmp/b `/tmp/a' -> `/tmp/b' `/tmp/a/file2' -> `/tmp/b/file2' `/tmp/a/file1' -> `/tmp/b/file1'
This is what I do not want.
/tmp $ cp -f -R --verbose /tmp/a /tmp/b `/tmp/a' -> `/tmp/b/a' `/tmp/a/file2' -> `/tmp/b/a/file2' `/tmp/a/file1' -> `/tmp/b/a/file1'
How can I let cp behave as if the folder didn't already exist?
(I don't want to delete it beforehand. Just some files from /tmp/a to get copied into /tmp/b without creating a sub folder a inside /tmp/b. So it looks like /tmp/b/file1 /tmp/b/file2 and so on.)
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James Mitch over 11 yearsIf this is the real James Mitch who posted this please say so in this accounts profile ;)
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James Mitch over 11 yearsWhat happens if I or whoever else is using this account will never accept a answer? Will "I" still lose those 100 reputation points?
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0xC0000022L over 11 yearsyes you would. See this: askubuntu.com/users/72629/james-mitch?tab=reputation the rep gets deducted immediately when placing a bounty.
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sourcejedi over 11 yearsPeople use it that way, but it was invented for network transfer. If you're copying gigabytes of files locally, it's a few times slower it could be. Some measurements here: lwn.net/Articles/400489
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muru about 9 yearsUsing
-W
will tellrsync
to skip checking for differences, it might improve performance.