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Copy, Sync, and Move

Rclone's three core transfer commands look similar but behave very differently.

Learning Focus

Use this lesson to choose the correct transfer command for the job and to learn a safe execution pattern for production.

Concept Overview​

Think of these commands as three policies:

  • copy is "upload what I have" (non-destructive).
  • sync is "make destination match source" (can be destructive).
  • move is "transfer then remove source" (operationally risky if misused).

Behavior Summary​

CommandAdds new filesUpdates changed filesDeletes destination extrasRemoves source files
copyYesYesNoNo
syncYesYesYesNo
moveYesYesOptional by modeYes
warning

sync mirrors source to destination and can delete remote files. Run --dry-run before real execution.

Basic Syntax​

rclone copy SRC DST [flags]
rclone sync SRC DST [flags]
rclone move SRC DST [flags]

Direction Matters (Push vs Pull)​

PatternDirection
rclone sync /local remote:pathPush
rclone sync remote:path /localPull
rclone sync remoteA:path remoteB:pathRemote to remote

Canonical Examples​

copy-example.sh
rclone copy /srv/media remote-prod:archives/media --progress
sync-example.sh
rclone sync /srv/media remote-prod:archives/media --dry-run
rclone sync /srv/media remote-prod:archives/media --progress
move-example.sh
rclone move /srv/export remote-prod:dropzone/export --progress

Production-Safe Execution Pattern​

Step 1: Preflight (Prevent Empty-Source Incidents)​

preflight.sh
test -d /srv/media || { echo "missing source"; exit 1; }
test "$(ls -A /srv/media | wc -l)" -gt 0 || { echo "source empty"; exit 1; }
rclone lsd remote-prod:archives >/dev/null

Step 2: Dry Run (Preview What Will Change)​

rclone sync /srv/media remote-prod:archives/media --dry-run -vv --log-file /var/log/rclone-dryrun.log

Step 3: Execute With Logs​

rclone sync /srv/media remote-prod:archives/media --progress --log-level INFO --log-file /var/log/rclone-sync.log

Step 4: Verify​

rclone check /srv/media remote-prod:archives/media --one-way --log-file /var/log/rclone-check.log

Safe Execution Pattern​

  1. Start with --dry-run.
  2. Enable logging (--log-file, --log-level INFO).
  3. Only then run without --dry-run.
info

If you need rollback for destructive syncs, learn --backup-dir in the next module: Delete Modes and Backup Dir.

Validation Commands​

rclone lsl remote-prod:archives/media
rclone check /srv/media remote-prod:archives/media --size-only

Choosing the Right Command​

GoalUseNotes
Upload artifacts without removing anythingcopyBest default for "publish" workflows
Keep a destination mirror of a sourcesyncUse dry-run + logs + rollback
Drain a staging directorymovePrefer copy + verify + delete if you need audit

Common Pitfalls​

PitfallConsequencePrevention
Using sync for archival copyRemote files disappearUse copy for append-only archive paths
Using move with unstable networkPartial job complexityUse copy + verify + explicit cleanup
Skipping post-transfer checkSilent mismatchRun rclone check after critical transfers

Hands-On Practice​

  1. Create a test directory with a few files.
  2. Run copy to a test prefix.
  3. Modify/delete a file locally.
  4. Run sync --dry-run and confirm you understand the planned changes.
practice.sh
mkdir -p /tmp/rclone-lab && echo "hello" > /tmp/rclone-lab/a.txt
rclone copy /tmp/rclone-lab remote-prod:labs/rclone-lab --progress
rm /tmp/rclone-lab/a.txt
rclone sync /tmp/rclone-lab remote-prod:labs/rclone-lab --dry-run -vv

What's Next​