cp(1)                 UNIX System V(Essential Utilities)                  cp(1)


NAME
      cp - copy files

SYNOPSIS
      cp [ -i ] [ -p ] [ -r ] file1 [ file2 ...] target

DESCRIPTION
      The cp command copies filen to target.  filen and target may not have the
      same name.  (Care must be taken when using sh(1) metacharacters.)  If
      target is not a directory, only one file may be specified before it; if
      it is a directory, more than one file may be specified.  If target does
      not exist, cp creates a file named target.  If target exists and is not a
      directory, its contents are overwritten.  If target is a directory, the
      file(s) are copied to that directory.

      The following options are recognized:

      -i    cp will prompt for confirmation whenever the copy would overwrite
            an existing target.  A y answer means that the copy should proceed.
            Any other answer prevents cp from overwriting target.

      -p    cp will duplicate not only the contents of filen, but also
            preserves the modification time and permission modes.

      -r    If filen is a directory, cp will copy the directory and all its
            files, including any subdirectories and their files; target must be
            a directory.

      If filen is a directory, target must be a directory in the same physical
      file system.  target and filen do not have to share the same parent
      directory.

      If filen is a file and target is a link to another file with links, the
      other links remain and target becomes a new file.

      If target does not exist, cp creates a new file named target which has
      the same mode as filen except that the sticky bit is not set unless the
      user is a privileged user; the owner and group of target are those of the
      user.

      If target is a file, its contents are overwritten, but the mode, owner,
      and group associated with it are not changed.  The last modification time
      of target and the last access time of filen are set to the time the copy
      was made.

      If target is a directory, then for each file named, a new file with the
      same mode is created in the target directory; the owner and the group are
      those of the user making the copy.

NOTES
      A -- permits the user to mark the end of any command line options
      explicitly, thus allowing cp to recognize filename arguments that begin


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cp(1)                 UNIX System V(Essential Utilities)                  cp(1)


      with a -.  If a -- and a - both appear on the same command line, the
      second will be interpreted as a filename.

SEE ALSO
      chmod(1), cpio(1), ln(1), mv(1), rm(1).

















































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