Copyright (c) 1989 The Regents of the University of California.
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@(#)cp.1 6.7 (Berkeley) 09/11/89

C 4 cp - copy files cp [ -fhip ] source_file target_file cp [ -fhipr ] source_file ... target_directory The cp utility copies source_file to target_file or, in the second form, one or more source_file s are copied into the target target_directory , retaining their original filenames. If cp detects an attempt to copy a file to itself, the copy will fail.

For each destination file that already exists, its contents are overwritten if permissions allow, but its mode, user ID, and group ID are unchanged.

If the destination file does not exist, the mode of the source file is used as modified by the file mode creation mask (umask). If the source file has its set user ID bit on, that bit is removed unless both the source file and the destination file are owned by the same user. If the source file has its set group ID bit on, that bit is removed unless both the source file and the destination file are in the same group and the user is a member of that group. If both the set user ID and set group ID bits are set, all of the above conditions must be fulfilled or both bits are removed.

Appropriate permissions are required for file creation or overwriting.

The following options are available:

-h Forces cp to follow symbolic links. Provided for the -r option which does not follow symbolic links by default.

-f Force existing destination pathnames to be truncated before copying, without prompting for confirmation. (The -i option is ignored if the -f option is specified.)

-i Causes cp to write a prompt to standard error before copying a file that would overwrite an existing file. If the response from the standard input begins with the character ``y'', the file is copied if permissions allow the copy.

-p Causes cp to preserve in the copy as many of the modification time, access time, and file mode as allowed by permissions.
file mode, user ID, and group ID as allowed by permissions.

If the user ID and group ID cannot be preserved, no error message is displayed and the exit value is not altered. If the source file has its set user ID bit on and the user ID cannot be preserved, the set user ID bit is not preserved in the copy's permissions. If the source file has its set group ID bit on and the group ID cannot be preserved, the set group ID bit is not preserved in the copy's permissions. If the source file has both the set user ID and set group ID bits on and either the user ID or group ID cannot be preserved, neither the set user ID or set group ID bits are preserved in the copy's permissions.

-r If source_file designates a directory, cp copies the directory and the entire subtree connected at that point. This option also causes symbolic links to be copied, rather than indirected through, and for cp to create special files rather than copying them as normal files. Created directories have the same mode as the corresponding source directory, unmodified by the process' umask.

Symbolic links are followed unless the -r option is specified, in which case the link itself is copied.

Cp exits 0 on success, >0 if an error occurred.

mv(1), rcp(1), umask(2)