mv(1)mv(1)NAMEmv - Moves files and directories
SYNOPSISmv [-i | -f] [--] file1 file2
mv [-i | -f] [--] file1... directory
mv [-i | -f] [--] directory1... destination_directory
The mv command moves files from one directory to another or renames
files and directories.
STANDARDS
Interfaces documented on this reference page conform to industry stan‐
dards as follows:
mv: XCU5.0
Refer to the standards(5) reference page for more information about
industry standards and associated tags.
OPTIONS
Overrides the -i option and any mode restrictions. (If both -f and -i
are specified--for example, because an alias includes one of
them--whichever appears last overrides the other.) Prompts you with
the name of the file followed by a question mark whenever a move is to
supersede an existing file. If the answer begins with y, or the
locale's equivalent of a y, the move continues. Any other reply pre‐
vents the move from occurring. (If both -f and -i are specified--for
example, because an alias includes one of them--whichever appears last
overrides the other.) Interprets all following arguments to mv as file
names. This allows file names to start with a - (dash).
DESCRIPTION
If you move a file to a new directory, mv retains the original file
name. When you move a file, all other links to the file remain intact.
In the second form, one or more files are moved to directory with their
original file names. In the third form, one or more directories are
moved to the destination directory with their original names.
The mv command does not move a file onto itself.
When you use mv to rename a file, the target file can be either a new
file name or a new directory path name. If moving the file would over‐
write an existing file that does not have write permission set and if
standard input is a terminal, mv displays the permission code of the
file to be overwritten and reads one line from standard input. If the
line begins with y, or the locale's equivalent of a y, the move takes
place and the file is overwritten. If not, mv does nothing with the
file.
When you use mv to move a directory into an existing directory, the
directory and its contents are added under the existing directory.
The LC_MESSAGES variable determines the locale's equivalent of y or n
(for yes/no queries).
If a mv operation fails, mv generally writes a diagnostic message to
standard error, does nothing more with the current source file, and
goes on to process any remaining source files.
If the copying or removal of a file is prematurely terminated by a sig‐
nal or error, mv might leave a partial copy of the file at either the
source or the target path name. The mv program does not modify the
source and target path names simultaneously; therefore, program termi‐
nation at any point always leaves either the source file or the target
file complete.
NOTES
[Tru64 UNIX] If the source is on a different file system than the des‐
tination, mv must copy the source to the destination's file system and
then delete the source. The effect is equivalent to the following: rm
-f destination && cp -pr source destination && rm -rf source The mv
command might overwrite existing files. Specify the -i option last on
the command line to cause the mv command to prompt you before it moves
a file.
EXIT STATUS
The following exit values are returned: All files were moved success‐
fully. An error occurred.
EXAMPLES
To rename a file, enter: mv file1 file2
This renames file1 to file2. If a file named file2 already
exists, its old contents are replaced with those of file1. To
move a directory, enter: mv dir1 dir2
This moves dir1 to dir2. It moves dir1 and all files and direc‐
tories under dir1 to the directory named dir2, if the second
directory exists. Otherwise, the directory dir1 gets renamed
dir2. To move a file to another directory and give it a new
name, enter: mv file1 dir1/file2
This moves file1 to dir1/file2. The name file1 is removed from
the current directory, and the same file appears as file2 in the
directory dir1. To move a file to another directory, keeping
the same name, enter: mv file1 dir1
This moves file1 to dir1/file1. To move several files into
another directory, enter: mv file1 dir1/file2 /u/dir2
This moves file1 to /u/dir2/file1 and dir1/file2 to
/u/dir2/file2. To use mv with pattern-matching characters,
enter: mv dir1/* .
This moves all files in the directory dir1 into the current
directory (.), giving them the same names they had in dir1. This
also empties dir1. Note that you must type a space between the
* (asterisk) and the (dot).
ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
The following environment variables affect the execution of mv: Pro‐
vides a default value for the internationalization variables that are
unset or null. If LANG is unset or null, the corresponding value from
the default locale is used. If any of the internationalization vari‐
ables contain an invalid setting, the utility behaves as if none of the
variables had been defined. If set to a non-empty string value, over‐
rides the values of all the other internationalization variables.
Determines the locale for the interpretation of sequences of bytes of
text data as characters (for example, single-byte as opposed to multi‐
byte characters in arguments). Determines the locale for the format
and contents of diagnostic messages written to standard error. Deter‐
mines the location of message catalogues for the processing of LC_MES‐
SAGES.
SEE ALSO
Commands: cp(1), ln(1), rm(1)
Functions: rename(2)
Standards: standards(5)mv(1)
