docs/_data/engine-cli/docker_container_cp.yaml

command: docker container cp
short: Copy files/folders between a container and the local filesystem
long: "The `docker container cp` utility copies the contents of `SRC_PATH` to the
  `DEST_PATH`.\nYou can copy from the container's file system to the local machine
  or the\nreverse, from the local filesystem to the container. If `-` is specified
  for\neither the `SRC_PATH` or `DEST_PATH`, you can also stream a tar archive from\n`STDIN`
  or to `STDOUT`. The `CONTAINER` can be a running or stopped container.\nThe `SRC_PATH`
  or `DEST_PATH` can be a file or directory.\n\nThe `docker container cp` command
  assumes container paths are relative to the container's \n`/` (root) directory.
  This means supplying the initial forward slash is optional; \nThe command sees `compassionate_darwin:/tmp/foo/myfile.txt`
  and\n`compassionate_darwin:tmp/foo/myfile.txt` as identical. Local machine paths
  can\nbe an absolute or relative value. The command interprets a local machine's\nrelative
  paths as relative to the current working directory where `docker container cp` is\nrun.\n\nThe
  `cp` command behaves like the Unix `cp -a` command in that directories are\ncopied
  recursively with permissions preserved if possible. Ownership is set to\nthe user
  and primary group at the destination. For example, files copied to a\ncontainer
  are created with `UID:GID` of the root user. Files copied to the local\nmachine
  are created with the `UID:GID` of the user which invoked the `docker container cp`\ncommand.
  \ If you specify the `-L` option, `docker container cp` follows any symbolic link\nin
  the `SRC_PATH`. `docker container cp` does *not* create parent directories for\n`DEST_PATH`
  if they do not exist.\n\nAssuming a path separator of `/`, a first argument of `SRC_PATH`
  and second\nargument of `DEST_PATH`, the behavior is as follows:\n\n- `SRC_PATH`
  specifies a file\n    - `DEST_PATH` does not exist\n        - the file is saved
  to a file created at `DEST_PATH`\n    - `DEST_PATH` does not exist and ends with
  `/`\n        - Error condition: the destination directory must exist.\n    - `DEST_PATH`
  exists and is a file\n        - the destination is overwritten with the source file's
  contents\n    - `DEST_PATH` exists and is a directory\n        - the file is copied
  into this directory using the basename from\n          `SRC_PATH`\n- `SRC_PATH`
  specifies a directory\n    - `DEST_PATH` does not exist\n        - `DEST_PATH` is
  created as a directory and the *contents* of the source\n           directory are
  copied into this directory\n    - `DEST_PATH` exists and is a file\n        - Error
  condition: cannot copy a directory to a file\n    - `DEST_PATH` exists and is a
  directory\n        - `SRC_PATH` does not end with `/.` (that is: _slash_ followed
  by _dot_)\n            - the source directory is copied into this directory\n        -
  `SRC_PATH` does end with `/.` (that is: _slash_ followed by _dot_)\n            -
  the *content* of the source directory is copied into this\n              directory\n\nThe
  command requires `SRC_PATH` and `DEST_PATH` to exist according to the above\nrules.
  If `SRC_PATH` is local and is a symbolic link, the symbolic link, not\nthe target,
  is copied by default. To copy the link target and not the link, \nspecify the `-L`
  option.\n\nA colon (`:`) is used as a delimiter between `CONTAINER` and its path.
  You can\nalso use `:` when specifying paths to a `SRC_PATH` or `DEST_PATH` on a
  local\nmachine, for example  `file:name.txt`. If you use a `:` in a local machine
  path,\nyou must be explicit with a relative or absolute path, for example:\n\n    `/path/to/file:name.txt`
  or `./file:name.txt`\n\nIt is not possible to copy certain system files such as
  resources under\n`/proc`, `/sys`, `/dev`, tmpfs, and mounts created by the user
  in the container.\nHowever, you can still copy such files by manually running `tar`
  in `docker exec`.\nFor example (consider `SRC_PATH` and `DEST_PATH` are directories):\n\n
  \   $ docker exec foo tar Ccf $(dirname SRC_PATH) - $(basename SRC_PATH) | tar Cxf
  DEST_PATH -\n\nor\n\n    $ tar Ccf $(dirname SRC_PATH) - $(basename SRC_PATH) |
  docker exec -i foo tar Cxf DEST_PATH -\n\n\nUsing `-` as the `SRC_PATH` streams
  the contents of `STDIN` as a tar archive.\nThe command extracts the content of the
  tar to the `DEST_PATH` in container's\nfilesystem. In this case, `DEST_PATH` must
  specify a directory. Using `-` as\nthe `DEST_PATH` streams the contents of the resource
  as a tar archive to `STDOUT`.\n\n# EXAMPLES\n\nSuppose a container has finished
  producing some output as a file it saves\nto somewhere in its filesystem. This could
  be the output of a build job or\nsome other computation. You can copy these outputs
  from the container to a\nlocation on your local host.\n\nIf you want to copy the
  `/tmp/foo` directory from a container to the\nexisting `/tmp` directory on your
  host. If you run `docker container cp` in your `~`\n(home) directory on the local
  host:\n\n    $ docker container cp compassionate_darwin:tmp/foo /tmp\n\nDocker creates
  a `/tmp/foo` directory on your host. Alternatively, you can omit\nthe leading slash
  in the command. If you execute this command from your home\ndirectory:\n\n    $
  docker container cp compassionate_darwin:tmp/foo tmp\n\nIf `~/tmp` does not exist,
  Docker will create it and copy the contents of\n`/tmp/foo` from the container into
  this new directory. If `~/tmp` already\nexists as a directory, then Docker will
  copy the contents of `/tmp/foo` from\nthe container into a directory at `~/tmp/foo`.\n\nWhen
  copying a single file to an existing `LOCALPATH`, the `docker container cp` command\nwill
  either overwrite the contents of `LOCALPATH` if it is a file or place it\ninto `LOCALPATH`
  if it is a directory, overwriting an existing file of the same\nname if one exists.
  For example, this command:\n\n    $ docker container cp sharp_ptolemy:/tmp/foo/myfile.txt
  /test\n\nIf `/test` does not exist on the local machine, it will be created as a
  file\nwith the contents of `/tmp/foo/myfile.txt` from the container. If `/test`\nexists
  as a file, it will be overwritten. Lastly, if `/test` exists as a\ndirectory, the
  file will be copied to `/test/myfile.txt`.\n\nNext, suppose you want to copy a file
  or folder into a container. For example,\nthis could be a configuration file or
  some other input to a long running\ncomputation that you would like to place into
  a created container before it\nstarts. This is useful because it does not require
  the configuration file or\nother input to exist in the container image.\n\nIf you
  have a file, `config.yml`, in the current directory on your local host\nand wish
  to copy it to an existing directory at `/etc/my-app.d` in a container,\nthis command
  can be used:\n\n    $ docker container cp config.yml myappcontainer:/etc/my-app.d\n\nIf
  you have several files in a local directory `/config` which you need to copy\nto
  a directory `/etc/my-app.d` in a container:\n\n    $ docker container cp /config/.
  myappcontainer:/etc/my-app.d\n\nThe above command will copy the contents of the
  local `/config` directory into\nthe directory `/etc/my-app.d` in the container.\n\nFinally,
  if you want to copy a symbolic link into a container, you typically\nwant to  copy
  the linked target and not the link itself. To copy the target, use\nthe `-L` option,
  for example:\n\n    $ ln -s /tmp/somefile /tmp/somefile.ln\n    $ docker container
  cp -L /tmp/somefile.ln myappcontainer:/tmp/\n\nThis command copies content of the
  local `/tmp/somefile` into the file\n`/tmp/somefile.ln` in the container. Without
  `-L` option, the `/tmp/somefile.ln`\npreserves its symbolic link but not its content.\n"
usage: "docker container cp [OPTIONS] CONTAINER:SRC_PATH DEST_PATH|-\n\tdocker cp
  [OPTIONS] SRC_PATH|- CONTAINER:DEST_PATH"
pname: docker container
plink: docker_container.yaml
options:
- option: follow-link
  shorthand: L
  default_value: "false"
  description: Always follow symbol link in SRC_PATH