Rsync Cheatsheet

Last updated on 16 Dec 2021 1 min read cheatsheet, programming

Syntax

rsync [OPTION] <src>[/] <dest>
  • rsync automatically creates destination directories
  • Adding a slash (/) after <src> transfers only contents of <src>.
  • Use --delete to remove extraneous files

Common Options

flag description
-a archive mode (recursive + preserve symlink, permissions, ownerships, timestamps)
-e remote shell
-h human-readable format
-n dry run
-P show progress
-u update (skip files newer on <dest>)
-v verbose
-z compress file data (during transfer)

Examples

Local Transfer

rsync -avhzP <folder1> <folder2>

SSH Transfer

rsync -avhzP <username>@<host>:<path> <folder2>
  • <path> must be absolute (can use ~/... though)
  • use -e to specify ssh options (e.g. -e 'ssh -p 31415')

Other Options

  • Exclusion
    • --exclude <file or folder or pattern> (use multiple --exclude flags or --exclude {"<pattern1>", "<pattern2>"})
    • --exclude-from <txt_file> (again can use list syntax)
  • Size Limits
    • --max-size or --min-size: specify size in mb or gb (e.g. 500m)
  • Bandwidth Limits
    • --bwlimit: specify in kB or mB/s (e.g. 100K)
linux cli bash
Peter Yuen
Peter Yuen
A kinda nerdy person

Someone who knows something about many things but everything about nothing 😐

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