problem with mv and cp

pgb205 · 11-23-2009, 12:57 PM

when I try to do mv *.txt /some/directory/
I get

mv: invalid option -- 'd'
Try `mv --help' for more information.

Then when I try cp *.txt /some/directory/
I get

cp: invalid option -- 'e'
Try `cp --help' for more information.

I tried this with zsh and bash with the same result.
Not sure what's changed but doesn't seem like anything wrong
with my syntax.

I'm running 64bit gentoo.

rweaver · 11-23-2009, 01:00 PM

Try:

Code:

alias mv
alias cp

If they show up as having an alias you can unalias them via:

Code:

unalias mv
unalias cp

Edit: Might also want to run rkhunter and chkrootkit to be on the safe side.

pgb205 · 11-23-2009, 01:03 PM

No, I don't believe either one of those commands is aliased:
alias<ENTER> gives:

alias grep='grep --colour=auto'
alias ll='ls -lh'
alias ls='ls --color=auto'

Quote:

Originally Posted by rweaver

Try:

Code:

alias mv
alias cp

If they show up as having an alias you can unalias them via:

Code:

unalias mv
unalias cp

Edit: Might also want to run rkhunter and chkrootkit to be on the safe side.

pixellany · 11-23-2009, 01:07 PM

what is in the source directory? It seems that something is being substituted for "*" that mv and cp read as option flags.

pgb205 · 11-23-2009, 01:11 PM

I'm trying to move several files that share the same extension and are located in my home directory(~/*.txt). The destination is the ~/Desktop

Quote:

Originally Posted by pixellany

what is in the source directory? It seems that something is being substituted for "*" that mv and cp read as option flags.

AlucardZero · 11-23-2009, 01:13 PM

what does

Code:

echo *.txt

return?

pixellany · 11-23-2009, 01:14 PM

Move a few of them to a new directory, then cd into that directory and run the mv command from there. This will tell us if a file in /home is causing the problem.

<edit>
PS: Also, post a few of the file names. Do any have spaces or other special characters?

pgb205 · 11-23-2009, 01:18 PM

ahhh. there it is.

One of the files was starting with a dash in its name.
specifically -ddfasdfa.txt thats why it was complaining.

After rename was able to move without issues.

thanks all

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlucardZero

what does

Code:

echo *.txt

return?

pixellany · 11-23-2009, 01:26 PM

Code:

[mherring@mystical stuff]$ echo "hello" > "-d words.txt"
[mherring@mystical stuff]$ ls
-d words.txt
[mherring@mystical stuff]$ mv *txt ..
mv: invalid option -- 'd'
Try `mv --help' for more information.
[mherring@mystical stuff]$

Just one example of a filename that mv will choke on. (as will many utilities)

pixellany · 11-23-2009, 01:27 PM

Sorry---I was typing and testing while you were posting.

Good to see a happy ending

i92guboj · 11-23-2009, 03:54 PM

Check the mv and cp man page, look for "--". It's designed specifically for this purpose, you don't need to rename files.

Code:

mv -- * /dest/

pixellany · 11-23-2009, 04:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by i92guboj

Check the mv and cp man page, look for "--". It's designed specifically for this purpose, you don't need to rename files.

Code:

mv -- * /dest/

This works, but it is not discussed on the man page.

I did find this (which I had seen before and forgotten):
http://www.gnu.org/software/coreutil...Common-options

i92guboj · 11-23-2009, 04:38 PM

It truly depends on the man page you look at. It is in mine. If you just search on the net you probably are going to hit some standard posix man page first, which will not include this extension. This is GNU extension, so it's more than probable that it's not present in any non-GNU OS.

kmchen · 11-02-2022, 06:11 AM

I solved this pb using find command:

find . -name "*.ext" -exec mv {} some_folder/ \;

MadeInGermany · 11-03-2022, 05:49 AM

The -- is most elegant and works for all commands.
mv -- * /dest/
Another workaround for file names is a ./ prefix
mv ./* /dest/