Skip to content

rsync: The Smart File Transfer Tool

rsync is your go-to solution for efficiently copying files and directories. Unlike regular copy commands, rsync only transfers the parts of files that have changed, making it incredibly fast for subsequent transfers.

rsync -ahrvP source/ destination/

Understanding Each Flag

The Perfect Combination: -ahrvP

  • -a (Archive): Preserves everything important
    • File permissions
    • Ownership
    • Timestamps
    • Symbolic links
    • Special and device files
  • -h (Human-readable): Shows sizes in KB, MB, GB
  • -r (Recursive): Copies directories and their contents
  • -v (Verbose): Shows what's happening
  • -P (Progress): Shows transfer progress and enables resume

Real-World Examples

Local Backups: 

# Backup Documents folder
rsync -ahrvP ~/Documents/ /media/backup/Documents/

# Backup multiple directories
rsync -ahrvP ~/Documents/ ~/Pictures/ ~/Videos/ /media/backup/

Remote Transfers: 

# Copy to remote server
rsync -ahrvP ~/local/files/ user@server:/remote/path/

# Copy from remote server
rsync -ahrvP user@server:/remote/files/ ~/local/path/

# Using custom SSH port
rsync -ahrvP -e "ssh -p 2222" ~/files/ user@server:/remote/path/

Smart Backups: 

# Sync and delete extra files in destination
rsync -ahrvP --delete ~/source/ /backup/

# Exclude certain files
rsync -ahrvP --exclude '*.tmp' --exclude 'cache/' ~/source/ /backup/

Pro Tips

Trailing Slashes Matter: 

# With trailing slash - copies contents of 'source'
rsync -ahrvP ~/source/ /destination/

# Without trailing slash - copies 'source' directory itself
rsync -ahrvP ~/source /destination/

Dry Run First: 

# Test what will happen without making changes
rsync -ahrvP --dry-run source/ destination/

Resume Interrupted Transfer: 

# -P flag allows resuming if connection drops
rsync -ahrvP user@server:/large/file ~/local/
# If interrupted, run the same command to resume

Common Use Cases

Maintaining a Mirror: 

rsync -ahrvP --delete source/ destination/

Daily Backup Script: 

#!/bin/bash
rsync -ahrvP \
  --exclude '*.tmp' \
  --exclude 'node_modules/' \
  ~/important-files/ \
  /backup/$(date +%Y-%m-%d)/

Remote Backup with Compression: 

rsync -ahrvPz ~/large-files/ user@server:/backup/
# -z adds compression for slow connections

Troubleshooting Tips

  • Use --dry-run before important transfers
  • Add extra v flags (-vv or -vvv) for more verbose output
  • Check permissions if transfers fail
  • Use --stats for detailed transfer statistics
  • Add --progress for individual file progress

Prerequisites:

  • rsync installed on both source and destination systems
  • SSH access for remote transfers
  • Sufficient disk space
  • Appropriate read/write permissions