GNU logs - #15738, boring messages

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Subject: bug#15738: Inconsistency & bug cp -a A B doesn't reliably create 'B' as a copy of 'A' even w/--remove-destination
Resent-From: Linda Walsh <coreutils@HIDDEN>
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Date: Sun, 27 Oct 2013 12:23:48 -0700
From: Linda Walsh <coreutils@HIDDEN>
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with "--remove-destination", I think this a bug.  W/o it, it is
inconsistent with the requirement not to use "dirname/." to refer to
contents in 'rm'.

details:
	mkdir a
	touch a/file
	mkdir a/dir
	cp -a a b	#'ok'
	touch a/file2

now:
	cp -au a b	
(or)
	cp -a a b

Either form creates another complete copy of 'a' in directory 'b'.
(Note, this is historical behavior).

FWIW,
      cp -a a/ b/
behaves the same way.

However,
	cp -a a/. b/.
fails the 1st time, but not if 'b' is already created (by using a form
from above).

Technically, though, the above should fail, as it says
says to copy the dir-entry for '.' over the dot entry
in 'b'.

While using '.' as a shorthand for contents of a dir has been
normal, it no longer works in utils like 'rm'.

---!!!---

*More troublesome* is that:

	cp -a --remove-destination a b

doesn't work, but duplicates the behaviors of the above.

If 'b' is removed *before* the copy, as is documented,
then it should be no different than the case where 'a' is
copied to a non-existent 'b'.

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From: help-debbugs@HIDDEN (GNU bug Tracking System)
To: Linda Walsh <coreutils@HIDDEN>
Subject: bug#15738: Acknowledgement (Inconsistency & bug cp -a A B doesn't
 reliably create 'B' as a copy of 'A' even w/--remove-destination)
Message-ID: <handler.15738.B.13829018658053.ack <at> debbugs.gnu.org>
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Date: Sun, 27 Oct 2013 19:25:03 +0000

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15738: http://debbugs.gnu.org/cgi/bugreport.cgi?bug=3D15738
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 Content preview:  retitle 17138 cp: how to respect target symlinks? retitle
 17103 cp: "cp -al" doesn't copy symlinks, tries to link to them retitle 15738
 cp: "cp -a A B" doesn't reliably create 'B' as copy of A 
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retitle 17138 cp: how to respect target symlinks?

retitle 17103 cp: "cp -al" doesn't copy symlinks, tries to link to them

retitle 15738 cp: "cp -a A B" doesn't reliably create 'B' as copy of A

Last modified: Mon, 25 Nov 2019 12:00:02 UTC

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