OSF

NAME

rcp − Copies files between a local and a remote host or between two remote hosts

SYNOPSIS

rcp [-pr] source destination

The remote copy command (rcp) is used to copy one or more files between the local host and a remote host, between two remote hosts, or between files at the same remote host. 

FLAGS

-pPreserves the modification times and modes of the source files in the copies sent to the destination.  Without this flag, the umask command at the destination modifies the mode of the destination file, and the modification time of the destination file is set to the time the file is received. 

-rCopies recursively, for directories only, each file and subdirectory in the source directory into the destination directory. 

DESCRIPTION

By default, the mode and owner of an existing destination file are preserved.  Normally, if a destination file does not exist, the mode of the destination file is equal to the mode of the source file as modified by the umask command at the destination host.  If the -p flag is set, the modification time and mode of source files are preserved at the destination host.  If a remote hostname is not specified for either the source or the destination, rcp is equivalent to the cp command. 

When copying files to or from a remote host, any remote filename or directory name must be prefixed by the name of the remote host and a : (colon).  Local filenames and directory names do not need to have a host specified.  However, since rcp assumes that a colon terminates a hostname, local filenames or directory names must have a \ (backslash) inserted before any colons embedded in the name. 

The username entered for the remote host determines the file access privileges rcp uses at that host.  Additionally, the username given to a destination host determines the ownership and access modes of the resulting destination file or files. If a hostname is not prefixed by user@, the local username is used at the remote host.  If a username is entered, that name is used.  In either case, the remote host allows access if one of the following conditions is satisfied:

       •The local host is included in the remote host’s /etc/hosts.equiv file and the remote user is not the superuser. 

       •The local host and username is included in a $HOME/.rhosts file in the home directory of the remote user account.  For security reasons, any $HOME/.rhosts file must be owned by either the remote user or the root user and should allow Write access only by the owner. 

In addition to the preceding conditions, rcp also allows access to the remote host if the remote user account does not have a password defined.  However, for security reasons, use of a password on all user accounts is recommended. 

If the path for a file or directory on a remote host is not specified or is not fully qualified, the path is interpreted as beginning at the home directory for the remote user account.  Additionally, any metacharacters that must be interpreted at a remote host must be quoted using \ (backslash), "" (double quotes), or ” (single quotes). 

EXAMPLES

     1.To copy a file named localfile from the local host to a remote host named host2, enter:

rcp localfile host2:/u/eng/fred

     2.To copy a remote file named newplan from one remote host, host1, to another remote host, host2, enter:

rcp host1:/u/eng/fred/newplan host2:/u/eng/mary

     3.To send a directory subtree report from the local host to the home directory of a user named fred at a remote host named host2, and preserve all modes and modification times, enter:

rcp -p -r report fred@host2:report

The remote file /u/fred/.rhosts includes an entry specifying the local host and username. 

FILES

/etc/hosts.equivSpecifies remote hosts from which users can execute commands on the local host (provided these users have an account on the local host). 

$HOME/.rhostsSpecifies remote users who can use a local user account. 

RELATED INFORMATION

Commands:  rsh(1), rlogin(1), rshd(8). 

Files:  rhosts(4).