Copying, Moving and Renaming Files

mv - Move or Rename

The mv command is used for both moving and renaming files.

Rename a File

When the destination is a new filename in the same directory, mv renames the file:

mv old_name.txt new_name.txt

The file is now called new_name.txt.

No separate rename command is required in Linux.

Move a File

You can also move a file into another directory:

mv notes.txt /home/ubuntu/documents/

The file is removed from its original location and placed inside the destination directory.

How Does mv Know the Difference?

Linux determines the operation from the destination:

mv file.txt new_name.txt

Here, new_name.txt is treated as the new filename.

mv file.txt documents/

Here, documents/ is an existing directory, so the file is moved into it.

Moving and Renaming at the Same Time

You can do both operations with one command:

mv notes.txt documents/linux-notes.txt

This moves notes.txt into documents/ and gives it the new name linux-notes.txt.

cp - Copy a File

The cp command creates a copy of a file.

cp aliens.txt jenkins.txt

This creates jenkins.txt as a copy of aliens.txt.

If jenkins.txt doesn't exist, it is created.

If it already exists, its contents are normally overwritten by the source file.

Important: cp copies; it does not move the original file.

After:

cp aliens.txt jenkins.txt

both files exist independently.

Copy a File to Another Directory

cp notes.txt documents/

The original notes.txt remains in the current directory, while a copy is created inside documents/.

Combining Files with cat

The cat command can also combine the contents of multiple files into a new file.

cat ansible.txt telusko.txt > shell.txt

The contents are written in this order:

ansible.txt
     ↓
telusko.txt
     ↓
shell.txt

So the content of ansible.txt appears first, followed by the content of telusko.txt.

If shell.txt already exists, > replaces its existing content.

To append the combined content instead:

cat ansible.txt telusko.txt >> shell.txt

This adds the output to the end of the existing file.

history - Review Previous Commands

The history command displays commands previously entered in the shell.

history

Example:

  101  pwd
  102  ls
  103  cd projects
  104  touch notes.txt
  105  ls

This is useful when you want to:

• Review commands you've already run.
• Find a command you used earlier.
• Troubleshoot what you did during a session.
• Reuse a previous command.

Note: The exact history available depends on the shell and its configuration. Shell history can also be stored for use across sessions.