{"id":1866,"date":"2017-07-20T08:46:25","date_gmt":"2017-07-20T12:46:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pair.com\/support\/kb\/?p=1866"},"modified":"2019-02-05T12:30:09","modified_gmt":"2019-02-05T17:30:09","slug":"what-is-scp","status":"publish","type":"ht_kb","link":"https:\/\/www.pair.com\/support\/kb\/what-is-scp\/","title":{"rendered":"What is scp?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Shared<\/p><\/a>

VPS<\/p><\/a>

Dedicated<\/p><\/a>

WP Enthusiast<\/p><\/a>

WP Professional<\/p><\/a>

WP Professional Plus<\/p><\/a> <\/span><\/p>\n

What is scp<\/span>?<\/h3>\n

scp<\/span> stands for Secure Copy Protocol. It is a secure file transfer protocol that copies files to and from hosts. It uses Secure Shell (SSH) to keep the files protected while in transit. <\/span><\/p>\n

scp<\/span> is a command line utility, meaning you will have to use Terminal (Mac) or Command Prompt (Windows).<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Why use scp<\/span>?<\/h3>\n

Since scp<\/span> uses SSH, the transferred data will be encrypted. This keeps your information from being compromised during transit. <\/span><\/p>\n

scp<\/span> is operated by writing single commands into the command line, making it a good option for repeatedly updated files.<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Basic Syntax<\/h3>\n

The basic syntax of scp looks like this:<\/span><\/p>\n

$ scp source_file_path username@hostname:destination_file_path\r\n<\/span><\/pre>\n
And if you were moving <\/span>file.txt<\/span> in <\/span>folder1<\/span> on <\/span>host1<\/span> to <\/span>localFolder <\/span>in your local\u00a0<\/span>Documents<\/span>:<\/span><\/p>\n
$ scp folder1\/file.txt username@host1:Documents\/localFolder<\/span><\/pre>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
Common scp<\/span> Commands<\/h3>\n
<\/a>
\n-B\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>|Enables <\/span>batch mode<\/span><\/i>, which keeps scp<\/span> from asking for passwords.<\/span><\/p>\n
<\/a>
\n-C\u00a0<\/span><\/b>|Enables compression. See common use cases<\/a><\/span>. <\/span><\/p>\n    \t\t
\r\n    \t\t\t    \t\t\t    \t\t\t\t
\r\n    \t\t\t\t\tDo not confuse with <\/span>-c<\/span><\/i>, which is lowercase and has an alternate meaning.<\/span>    \t\t\t\t<\/p>\r\n    \t\t\t    \t\t\t\r\n    \t\t<\/div>\r\n    \t\t\n
<\/a>
\n-l\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>|Limits the bandwidth used. Uses Kbit\/s.<\/span><\/p>\n
<\/a>
\n-p\u00a0<\/span><\/b>|Maintains the access times, modification times, and modes of the original file. <\/span><\/p>\n
<\/a>
\n-q\u00a0<\/span><\/b>|Enables <\/span>quiet mode<\/span><\/i>, which prevents the progress meter, diagnostic messages, and warning messages from appearing.<\/span><\/p>\n
<\/a>
\n-r\u00a0<\/span><\/b>|Used to copy entire directories recursively. See common use cases<\/a><\/span>.<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/a>
\n-v\u00a0<\/span><\/b>|Enables <\/span>verbose mode<\/span><\/i>. See common use cases<\/a> .\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
Common Use Cases<\/h3>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
Verbose Output<\/h4>\n
This is used when a program is giving you problems, such as failing or not completing a request. <\/span><\/p>\n
The verbose output shows you all the processes going on in the background, thus allowing you to sift through and find where the program is running into a problem. <\/span><\/p>\n
Add <\/span>-v<\/span><\/i><\/a> when you want to see the verbose output.<\/span><\/p>\n
$ scp -v\/file.txt <\/span>username@host.com<\/span><\/a>:\/root\/file2.txt<\/span><\/pre>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
Transfer Multiple Files<\/h4>\n
You can transfer multiple files by putting file names at the beginning:<\/span><\/p>\n
$ scp file1.txt file2.txt username@remotehost:\/destination\/file\/path\/<\/span><\/pre>\n
Or putting them at the end:<\/span><\/p>\n
$ scp username@host:\/destination\/file\/path\/\\{file1.txt,file2.txt} .<\/span>\r\n\r\n$ scp root@123.456.7.8:~\/\\{file1.txt,file2.txt} .\r\n\r\n<\/span><\/pre>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
Copy Entire Directory<\/h4>\n
The <\/span>-r<\/span><\/i> <\/a>stands for \u201crecursive.\u201d This is used when you need the application to work as a whole and run through processes a number of times. <\/span><\/p>\n
This is needed when copying an entire directory. <\/span><\/p>\n
Add <\/span>-v<\/span><\/i><\/a>\u00a0if you would like to see the processes working in the background. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n
Local to remote:<\/span><\/p>\n
$ scp -r \/local\/file\/path username@host:\/remote\/file\/path<\/span><\/pre>\n
Remote to local:<\/span><\/p>\n
$ scp -r username@host:\/remote\/file\/path \/local\/file\/path<\/span><\/pre>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
Copy Files Across Two Remote Hosts<\/h4>\n
You can copy files to two remote hosts.<\/span><\/p>\n
$ scp username1@host1:\/remote\/file\/path\/file1.txt username2@host2:\/remote\/file\/path\/<\/span><\/pre>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
Speed Up the Transfer with Compression<\/h4>\n
The -vrC<\/span> stand for -v<\/span><\/a><\/span>, -r<\/a><\/span>, and -C<\/span><\/a><\/span>. \u00a0This option can speed up transfer time and save bandwidth. Use -C\u00a0<\/span><\/a><\/span>to enable compression. The files will be decompressed when they reach their destination. <\/span><\/p>\n
$ scp -vrC username@host:\/destination\/file\/path<\/span><\/pre>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
Preserve File Attributes<\/h4>\n
You can preserve the file\u2019s access times, modification times, and modes by using <\/span>-p<\/span><\/i><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n
$ scp -C -p ~\/file.txt username@host:\/file\/path\/file.txt<\/span><\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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