Robocopy

Robocopy.exe
Robust File Copy Utility
Version XP010
Robocopy is a 32-bit command-line tool used for file replication. This tool helps maintain identical copies of a directory structure on a single computer or in separate network locations. Robocopy is included in the Microsoft® Windows® Resource Kit.


Important
Robocopy version XP010 requires Microsoft® Windows® Server 2003, Microsoft®Windows® XP, Microsoft® Windows® 2000, or Microsoft® Windows NT® version 4.0.


Using Robocopy, you can copy a single directory, or you can recursively copy a directory and its subdirectories. The tool classifies files by whether they exist in the source directory, in the destination directory, or in both. In the latter case, the tool further classifies files by comparing time stamps and filesizes between the source file and the corresponding destination file. You control which classes of files are copied.
If a file exists in both the source and destination locations, by default Robocopy copies the file only if the two versions have different time stamps or different sizes. This saves time if the source and destination are connected by a slow network link. You can also specify thatcopies are restarted in the event of a failure, which saves even more time when your network links are unreliable.
Robocopy allows you to do the following:
( Use file names, wildcard characters, paths, or file attributes to include or exclude source files as candidates for copying.
( Exclude directories by name or by path.
( Delete source files and directories after copying (that is, move ratherthan copy them).
( Delete destination files and directories that no longer exist in the source.
( Control the number of times the program retries an operation after encountering a recoverable network error.
( Schedule copy jobs to run automatically.
( Specify when copying is to be performed.
( Monitor a directory tree for changes.
( Selectively copy file data.

Contents

New Features inRobocopy Version XP010 3
Command-line Reference 7
Usage Notes 11
Backwards Compatibility 11
Using Robocopy Within a UNIX Shell 11
Processing a Directory Tree 11
Retrying After a Failed Copy 12
Specifying File and Directory Names 13
Using Robocopy File Classes 14
Using Precise File Times and Long File Names 15
Working with File Attributes 16Maintaining True Replication 17
Selectively Copying File Data 18
Copying NTFS Security Information 18
Moving Files 19
Minimizing Directory Fragmentation 20
Robocopy Job Files 20
Scheduling Robocopy Jobs 23
Monitoring a Directory Tree 24
Controlling Bandwidth Usage 25
Output Log 26
Text Tags 27
Run Summary 30
Return Code 31Feedback 32


New Features in Robocopy Version XP010

Robocopy version XP010 includes a number of enhancements. For example, you can now do the following:

( Copy Junctions – Volume Mount Points and Directory Links. By default these are copied as normal directories, as it may not be possible to create an equivalent Junction in the destination, especially if the source and destinationreside on different machines. Copying a tree that contains a Volume Mount Point can result in unexpectedly large volumes of data being copied.
Use /XJ if you would prefer Robocopy to skip Junctions.

( Act on and modify more file attributes.
In addition to support for the R, A, S, and H attributes:
/XA and /IA now also accept and select on the following addition file attributes:
C– Compressed files
N – files Not content indexed
E – Encrypted files
T – Temporary files
O – Offline files
/A+ and /A- now also accept and modify the following additional attribute type:
N – files Not content indexed
T – Temporary files

( Select files based on their Last Accessed Dates.
/MAXLAD:n excludes files with a Last Access Date older...