Mac OS X in a Nutshell

Name

cp

Synopsis

cp [options] file1 filecp [options] files directory
                  

Copies file1 to file2, or copy one or more files to the same names under directory. If the destination is an existing file, the file is overwritten; if the destination is an existing directory, the file is copied into the directory (the directory is not overwritten). If one of the inputs is a directory, use the -R option.

cp does not preserve resource forks or HFS metadata when copying files that contain them. For such files, use CpMac or ditto instead.

Options

-f

Don’t prompt for confirmation before overwriting an existing file.

-H

If any of the pathnames given in the command line are symbolic links, follow only those links during recursive operation. Works only with the -R option.

-i

Prompt for confirmation (y for yes) before overwriting an existing file.

-L

Follow all symbolic links during recursive operation. Works only with the -R option.

-p

Preserve the modification time and permission modes for the copied file. (Normally cp supplies the permissions of the invoking user.)

-P

Follow no symbolic links during recursive operation. Works only with the -R option (the default).

-R

Recursively copy a directory, its files, and its subdirectories to a destination directory, duplicating the tree structure. (This option is used with the second command-line format when at least one of the source file arguments is a directory.)

Example

Copy two files to their parent directory (keep the same names):

                     cp outline memo ...