new to mac, is there an dos xcopy equivalent?

[krmayo]

I know windows quite well and have moved recently to iMac. Still learning.

I have scripts text scripts I use to use to copy files from one machine to my home server, such as xcopy /d /e /q (/d newer date stamp /e copy all files and dirs /q quiet mode). My question is, does such a command exist on the mac os?

I've tried xcopy and copy from the terminal window with no luck.

Thanks, Kelly

 

[chas_m]

Is there some particular reason a simple backup ... using Carbon Copy Cloner for example ... of a specific folder wouldn't do the job?

Hint for Macs: they aren't PCs, so assuming they will work like PCs often hides a more obvious and simpler solution.

 

[krmayo]

I am sure there are apps out there, but I was trying to keep it simple, something I could write just a simple script file and execute when I wanted. I assumed there was an similar command in iOS and I just am not familiar with it. Would rather make better use of what I have instead of downloading and installing more stuff.

Thanks,
Kelly

 

[chscag]

There is no similar "Xcopy" command in OS X. The terminal commands you refer to are known as the command line or "bash". If you would like to learn more about them and practice a bit go here.

I assumed there was an similar command in iOS and I just am not familiar with it.

You're confusing iOS (Apple's mobile operating system) with OS X which is used on Apple computers. iOS is used on the iPhone and iPad.

And, Welcome to the Mac Forums.

 

[toMACsh]

Is there some particular reason a simple backup ... using Carbon Copy Cloner for example ... of a specific folder wouldn't do the job?

Would rather make better use of what I have instead of downloading and installing more stuff.

A recent switcher, so I assume you have a "modern" OS (less than a year old). Therefore, you have Time Machine for backups. The backup suggestion is a good one, but to use Time Machine, you'll need an external hard drive. That's more hardware instead of more software, but is a good investment. (says the advice giver without one)

 

[cradom]

And just to satisfy your curiosity the terminal command you're probably looking for is 'cp'.
Type 'man cp' (without the quotes) in Terminal for usage.
Also see ditto and rsync.

 

[krmayo]

A recent switcher, so I assume you have a "modern" OS (less than a year old). Therefore, you have Time Machine for backups. The backup suggestion is a good one, but to use Time Machine, you'll need an external hard drive. That's more hardware instead of more software, but is a good investment. (says the advice giver without one)

Thanks, but I am not using the time machine function since I would have had to purchase more hardware. Perhaps in the future.

As of now I am still running a windows home server for storage. In the past I would unload pictures from my camera onto my windows xp machine and run the script to copy new pictures to the home server.

Eventually I would like to learn more of what is under the hood of the mac (similar to DOS for windows) and not just the GUI. Or is there no basic 'DOS' under the mac?

Thanks,

 

[krmayo]

And just to satisfy your curiosity the terminal command you're probably looking for is 'cp'.
Type 'man cp' (without the quotes) in Terminal for usage.
Also see ditto and rsync.

Thank you. This cp command may be just what I was looking for!

 

[XJ-linux]

Unix is the "DOS" underpinning for Mac OS X. cp, sftp, rcp or scp may be your best bet. Were I to be copying over a network from a client to a server (without any NFS mounts in place) I'd opt for a passwordless-capable secure transfer like scp, rcp or sftp - depending upon which system I wanted to push/pull the data. They script easily enough and after you set up the initial RSA keys, you are good to go indefinitely for any other secure scripting. Heck, you could even cron it up on your Unix box so that any files you download to the Mac get sent to the Windows server at regular intervals, even if you forget to send them to the Windows server manually!