command: docker cp
short: Copy files/folders between a container and the local filesystem
long: |-
  The `docker cp` utility copies the contents of `SRC_PATH` to the `DEST_PATH`.
  You can copy from the container's file system to the local machine or the
  reverse, from the local filesystem to the container. If `-` is specified for
  either the `SRC_PATH` or `DEST_PATH`, you can also stream a tar archive from
  `STDIN` or to `STDOUT`. The `CONTAINER` can be a running or stopped container.
  The `SRC_PATH` or `DEST_PATH` can be a file or directory.

  The `docker cp` command assumes container paths are relative to the container's
  `/` (root) directory. This means supplying the initial forward slash is optional;
  The command sees `compassionate_darwin:/tmp/foo/myfile.txt` and
  `compassionate_darwin:tmp/foo/myfile.txt` as identical. Local machine paths can
  be an absolute or relative value. The command interprets a local machine's
  relative paths as relative to the current working directory where `docker cp` is
  run.

  The `cp` command behaves like the Unix `cp -a` command in that directories are
  copied recursively with permissions preserved if possible. Ownership is set to
  the user and primary group at the destination. For example, files copied to a
  container are created with `UID:GID` of the root user. Files copied to the local
  machine are created with the `UID:GID` of the user which invoked the `docker cp`
  command. However, if you specify the `-a` option, `docker cp` sets the ownership
  to the user and primary group at the source.
  If you specify the `-L` option, `docker cp` follows any symbolic link
  in the `SRC_PATH`.  `docker cp` does *not* create parent directories for
  `DEST_PATH` if they do not exist.

  Assuming a path separator of `/`, a first argument of `SRC_PATH` and second
  argument of `DEST_PATH`, the behavior is as follows:

  - `SRC_PATH` specifies a file
      - `DEST_PATH` does not exist
          - the file is saved to a file created at `DEST_PATH`
      - `DEST_PATH` does not exist and ends with `/`
          - Error condition: the destination directory must exist.
      - `DEST_PATH` exists and is a file
          - the destination is overwritten with the source file's contents
      - `DEST_PATH` exists and is a directory
          - the file is copied into this directory using the basename from
            `SRC_PATH`
  - `SRC_PATH` specifies a directory
      - `DEST_PATH` does not exist
          - `DEST_PATH` is created as a directory and the *contents* of the source
             directory are copied into this directory
      - `DEST_PATH` exists and is a file
          - Error condition: cannot copy a directory to a file
      - `DEST_PATH` exists and is a directory
          - `SRC_PATH` does not end with `/.` (that is: _slash_ followed by _dot_)
              - the source directory is copied into this directory
          - `SRC_PATH` does end with `/.` (that is: _slash_ followed by _dot_)
              - the *content* of the source directory is copied into this
                directory

  The command requires `SRC_PATH` and `DEST_PATH` to exist according to the above
  rules. If `SRC_PATH` is local and is a symbolic link, the symbolic link, not
  the target, is copied by default. To copy the link target and not the link, specify
  the `-L` option.

  A colon (`:`) is used as a delimiter between `CONTAINER` and its path. You can
  also use `:` when specifying paths to a `SRC_PATH` or `DEST_PATH` on a local
  machine, for example  `file:name.txt`. If you use a `:` in a local machine path,
  you must be explicit with a relative or absolute path, for example:

      `/path/to/file:name.txt` or `./file:name.txt`

  It is not possible to copy certain system files such as resources under
  `/proc`, `/sys`, `/dev`, [tmpfs](run.md#mount-tmpfs---tmpfs), and mounts created by
  the user in the container. However, you can still copy such files by manually
  running `tar` in `docker exec`. Both of the following examples do the same thing
  in different ways (consider `SRC_PATH` and `DEST_PATH` are directories):

  ```bash
  $ docker exec CONTAINER tar Ccf $(dirname SRC_PATH) - $(basename SRC_PATH) | tar Cxf DEST_PATH -
  ```

  ```bash
  $ tar Ccf $(dirname SRC_PATH) - $(basename SRC_PATH) | docker exec -i CONTAINER tar Cxf DEST_PATH -
  ```

  Using `-` as the `SRC_PATH` streams the contents of `STDIN` as a tar archive.
  The command extracts the content of the tar to the `DEST_PATH` in container's
  filesystem. In this case, `DEST_PATH` must specify a directory. Using `-` as
  the `DEST_PATH` streams the contents of the resource as a tar archive to `STDOUT`.
usage: "docker cp [OPTIONS] CONTAINER:SRC_PATH DEST_PATH|-\n\tdocker cp [OPTIONS]
  SRC_PATH|- CONTAINER:DEST_PATH"
pname: docker
plink: docker.yaml
options:
- option: archive
  shorthand: a
  value_type: bool
  default_value: "false"
  description: Archive mode (copy all uid/gid information)
  deprecated: false
  experimental: false
  experimentalcli: false
  kubernetes: false
  swarm: false
- option: follow-link
  shorthand: L
  value_type: bool
  default_value: "false"
  description: Always follow symbol link in SRC_PATH
  deprecated: false
  experimental: false
  experimentalcli: false
  kubernetes: false
  swarm: false
deprecated: false
experimental: false
experimentalcli: false
kubernetes: false
swarm: false

