17 Useful Rsync (Remote Sync) Command Examples in Linux

24/03/2023, 08:31 17 useful rsync (remote sync) Command Examples in Linux
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17 useful rsync (remote sync) Command Examples in

Linux
Last Updated: May 26, 2020 by Pradeep Kumar
As the name suggests, rsync command is used to sync (or copy) files and directories locally
and remotely. One of the important feature of rsync is that it works on “delta transfer
algorithm”, means it will only sync or copy the changes from source to destination instead
of copying the whole file which ultimately reduce amount of data sent over network. Linux
geeks generally use rsync command to manage day to day backup, mirroring, and
restoration activities. It uses remote shell like SSH while synchronizing the files from local
machine to remote machine and any user in the system can use rsync command as it does
not require root or sudo privileges..
In this article we will discuss 17 useful rsync command examples in Linux, these examples
will help specially Linux beginners to manage their sync, mirroring, and backup task more
efficiently.
Rsync command is available for all UNIX and Linux like operating systems. When we do 
minimal installation of CentOS & RHEL OS then rsync package is not part of default
https://www.linuxtechi.com/rsync-command-examples-linux/ 1/35
installation, so to install rsync on CentOS & RHEL, run the beneath yum command
~]# yum install rsync -y
In Debian Like operating Systems (Ubuntu & Linux Mint) use below apt command to install
rysnc tool,
~]# apt install rsync -y
Syntax of rsync command:
Local Sync: # rsync {options} {Source} {Destination}
Remote Sync pull: # rsync {options} <User_Name>@<Remote-Host>:<Source-File-Dir>

<Destination>
Remote Sync Push: # rsync <Options> <Source-Files-Dir> <User_Name>@<Remote-

Host>:<Destination>
Some of the commonly used options in rsync command are listed below:
-v, –verbose Verbose output

-q, –quiet suppress message output
-a, –archive archive files and directory while synchronizing ( -a equal
to following options -rlptgoD)
-r, –recursive sync files and directories recursively
-b, –backup take the backup during synchronization
-u, –update don’t copy the files from source to destination if
destination files are newer
-l, –links copy symlinks as symlinks during the sync
-n, –dry-run perform a trial run without synchronization
-e, –rsh=COMMAND mention the remote shell to use in rsync
-z, –compress compress file data during the transfer

-h, –human-readable display the output numbers in a human-readable format
–progress show the sync progress during transfer
Let’s jump into the useful examples of rsync command
Example:1) Copy or Sync files locally (rsync -zvh)

Let’s assume we want to copy a file from pkumar user’s home directory to /opt/back folder,
execute the below rsync command
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zvh /home/pkumar/OpenStack-Networking.pdf /opt

OpenStack-Networking.pdf
sent 4.09M bytes received 35 bytes 2.73M bytes/sec
total size is 6.15M speedup is 1.50
[root@gateway ~]#
In above we have used the options like -z for compression, -v for verbose output and -h for
human readable output.
Example:2) Copy or Sync directory locally (rsync -

zavh)
Let’s assume we want to copy or sync pkumar user’s home directory to /opt/backup folder,
execute the below rsync command with options -zavh, 
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zavh /home/pkumar /opt/backup

sending incremental file list
pkumar/
pkumar/.bash_logout
pkumar/.bash_profile
pkumar/.bashrc
pkumar/OpenStack-Networking.pdf
sent 4.09M bytes received 96 bytes 8.19M bytes/sec

[root@gateway ~]#
Let’s verify whether directory is copied or not, execute below command,
[root@gateway ~]# ls -ld /opt/backup/*

-rwx------. 1 root root 6153239 Apr 7 00:25 /opt/backup/OpenStack-
drwx------. 2 pkumar pkumar 90 Apr 7 00:25 /opt/backup/pkumar
[root@gateway ~]#
As we can see “pkumar” directory is created on destination folder and its contents are also
copied. In the above example if use trail / after source folder (/home/pkumar/) then rsync
command will not create pkumar directory on destination but it will copy the contents only.
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zavh /home/pkumar/ /opt/backup
Example:3) Copy files & directories recursively

locally (rsync -zrvh or rsync -zavh)
Let’s assume we have multiple files and directories inside pkumar user home directory, use
below rsync command to copy files and directories recursively, either use -a or -r option to
copy files and directories recursively.
Note : In rsync command -a option is used for archiving during the copy or sync and apart
from archiving -a option is also used for followings:
recursively copy files and directory

copy symlinks as symlinks
preserve permissions
preserve group
preserve modification time
preserve ownership
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zrvh /home/pkumar /opt/backup

or
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zavh /home/pkumar /opt/backup
Example:4) Copy or sync files and directories from

local to remote system
Let’s suppose we want to copy the folder “/home/pkumar/techi” from local machine to
remote machine (192.168.1.29) under the /opt
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zarvh /home/pkumar/techi root@192.168.1.29:/op

root@192.168.1.29's password:
…………………………………………………………
techi/OTRS/ 
techi/OTRS/Database-Selection-OTRS-Installation-CentOS7.jpg
techi/OTRS/Install-OTRS-Accept-License.png
techi/OTRS/Install-OTRS-CentOS7-RHEL7.jpg
techi/OTRS/mysql-secure-installation-centos7-part2.jpg
sent 34.85M bytes received 2.65K bytes 6.34M bytes/sec

……………………………………………………………
[root@gateway ~]#
Example:5) Copy or Sync files and directories from

remote machine to local system
Let’s suppose we want to copy files and directories from remote machine(192.168.1.29) to
our local system, in the below example I am copying remote folder “/opt/rpms_db” in my
local machine under /tmp folder
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zarvh root@192.168.1.29:/opt/rpms_db /tmp

receiving incremental file list
……………………………………………………………
rpms_db/
rpms_db/httpd-2.4.6-88.el7.centos.x86_64.rpm
rpms_db/httpd-tools-2.4.6-88.el7.centos.x86_64.rpm
rpms_db/postfix-2.10.1-7.el7.x86_64.rpm
rpms_db/pytalloc-2.1.13-1.el7.x86_64.rpm
rpms_db/samba-4.8.3-4.el7.x86_64.rpm
rpms_db/samba-client-libs-4.8.3-4.el7.x86_64.rpm
rpms_db/samba-common-4.8.3-4.el7.noarch.rpm
rpms_db/samba-common-libs-4.8.3-4.el7.x86_64.rpm
rpms_db/samba-common-tools-4.8.3-4.el7.x86_64.rpm

rpms_db/samba-libs-4.8.3-4.el7.x86_64.rpm
sent 484 bytes received 15.45M bytes 1.07M bytes/sec
[root@gateway ~]#
Above command will automatically create a folder “rpms_db” under the /tmp folder in our
local machine.
[root@gateway ~]# ls -l /tmp/

total 8
-rwx------. 1 root root 827 Apr 6 12:54 ks-script-avmuxw
drwxr-xr-x. 2 root root 4096 Apr 7 01:42 rpms_db
-rw-------. 1 root root 0 Apr 6 12:35 yum.log
[root@gateway ~]# ls -l /tmp/rpms_db/
total 16028
……………………………………
-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 2844028 Nov 12 09:28 httpd-2.4.6-88.el7.centos.
-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 92504 Nov 12 09:28 httpd-tools-2.4.6-88.el7.c
-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 2558136 Nov 12 09:44 postfix-2.10.1-7.el7.x86_6
-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 17404 Nov 12 09:44 pytalloc-2.1.13-1.el7.x86_
-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 696472 Nov 12 09:46 samba-4.8.3-4.el7.x86_64.r
-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 5070800 Nov 12 09:46 samba-client-libs-4.8.3-4.
-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 210984 Nov 12 10:19 samba-common-4.8.3-4.el7.n
-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 167512 Nov 12 09:46 samba-common-libs-4.8.3-4.
-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 458380 Nov 12 09:46 samba-common-tools-4.8.3-4
-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 282332 Nov 12 09:46 samba-libs-4.8.3-4.el7.x86
……………………………………
[root@gateway ~]#
Example:6) Specify remote shell during

synchronization (rsync -e ssh)
In rsync command we can specify the remote shell like ssh during synchronization, let’s
assume we want to use secure communication between source to destination machine via
rsync then we should use ssh as remote shell, example is shown below
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zarvh -e ssh root@192.168.1.29:/opt/rpms_db

………………………………………………………………………………
rpms_db/
rpms_db/pytalloc-2.1.13-1.el7.x86_64.rpm

[root@gateway ~]#
Example:7) Display Synchronization progress in

rsync command output
If you want to see the sync or copy progress in rsync command then use “–progress“,
example is shown below
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avh --progress root@192.168.1.29:/opt/rpms_db

……………………………………………………………………………………………………..
rpms_db/ 
2.84M 100% 35.22MB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#6, to-chk=18/25)
92.50K 100% 1.13MB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#7, to-chk=17/25)
2.56M 100% 14.44MB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#17, to-chk=7/25)
696.47K 100% 3.71MB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#19, to-chk=5/25)
5.07M 100% 19.90MB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#20, to-chk=4/25)
210.98K 100% 844.42kB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#21, to-chk=3/25)
167.51K 100% 667.70kB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#22, to-chk=2/25)
458.38K 100% 1.77MB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#23, to-chk=1/25)
282.33K 100% 1.09MB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#24, to-chk=0/25)

[root@gateway ~]#
Read Also : 14 SCP Command Examples to Securely Transfer Files in Linux
Example:8) Copy the directory structure without

copying files
There are some scenarios where we want to copy the directory structure skiping files only
from local machine to remote or vice versa.
Let’s suppose we want to copy the directory structure of “/home/pkumar” from local
machine to remote machine (192.168.1.29) under /opt folder. 
root@gateway ~]# rsync -av -f"+ */" -f"- *" /home/pkumar root@192.168.1
building file list ... done
………………………………………………
pkumar/
sent 43 bytes received 19 bytes 17.71 bytes/sec

total size is 0 speedup is 0.00
[root@gateway ~]#
Example:9) Resume large file transfer after getting

failed in scp
There are some scenarios in linux admin profile where we have started copying a larger file
using scp command, but it got terminated in the middle and we can’t afford to start copying
it again using scp because of its large size and time consumption.
So in this situation rsync command can used as it can start copying the file from where it
left off or terminated, or in other words rsync can transfer the files which are partially
copied using scp command. Example is shown below,
[root@gateway ~]# scp root@192.168.1.29:/root/ubuntu-18.04-desktop-amd6

ubuntu-18.04-desktop-amd64.iso 28% 526MB 61.5MB/s
^CKilled by signal 2.
[root@gateway ~]#
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -P --rsh=ssh root@192.168.1.29:/root/ubuntu-18.
ubuntu-18.04-desktop-amd64.iso

1,921,843,200 100% 18.47MB/s 0:01:39 (xfr#1, to-chk=0/1)
[root@gateway ~]#
Example:10) Delete files at destination if it is not

present in source (–delete)
If you have already synced files from source to destination and from source you have
deleted the files then you can force rsync command to delete the files on destination using
the –delete option, example is shown below
[root@app ~]# rsync -avz --delete /opt/rpms_db root@192.168.1.28:/tmp/r

deleting rpms_db/apr-util-1.5.2-6.el7.x86_64.rpm
deleting rpms_db/apr-1.4.8-3.el7_4.1.x86_64.rpm
rpms_db/

total size is 15,947,152 speedup is 16,491.37
[root@app ~]#
Example:11) Put limit on file transfer size (–max-

size)
If you don’t want to transfer or copy the large files using rsync then use the option ‘–max-
size={specify-size-here}’, let’s assume we don’t we don’t want to transfer the files whose
size is more than 500K,
Note: To specify the size in MB use M and for GB use G.
[root@app ~]# rsync -avz --max-size='500K' /opt/rpms_db root@192.168.1.
Example:12) Do not sync/copy the modified file at

destination

There are some scenarios where we modified the files at destination and we don’t want to
overwrite the modified files from source while syncing, so this can be easily achieved using
-u option in rsync command
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avzu root@192.168.1.29:/opt/techi /home/pkumar

sent 37 bytes received 4,960 bytes 1,427.71 bytes/sec

[root@gateway ~]#
Example:13) Remove files from source after

synchronization (–remove-source-files)
Let’s suppose you want to delete files from source once the synchronization is completed
using rsync command. In the below example, folder from local system
“/home/pkumar/techi.tgz” is synced to remote system (192.168.1.29), once the
synchronization is completed, it will delete the file from source.
[root@gateway ~]# rsync --remove-source-files -zvh /home/pkumar/techi.t

techi.tgz
total size is 518 speedup is 0.81
[root@gateway ~]#
[root@gateway ~]# ls -l /home/pkumar/techi.tgz
ls: cannot access /home/pkumar/techi.tgz: No such file or directory
[root@gateway ~]#
Example:14) Dry run rsync command before actual

synchronization
There can be some situations where we are not about behavior of rsync command so in
such cases it is better to do dry run of rsync

[root@gateway ~]# rsync --dry-run --remove-source-files -zvh /home/pkum

projects.tar

total size is 981.24M speedup is 14,017,682.29 (DRY RUN)
[root@gateway ~]#
Example:15) Include and Exclude files during

synchronization with rsync
There are some situations where we want to copy or sync files & directories of specific type
and want to exclude files or directories of specific type. Rsync command supports both
include and exclude options.
In the below example want to copy the files of type pdf and rpm and exclude png file types.
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avz -e ssh --include '*.pdf *.rpm' --exclude

techi/
techi/OpenStack-Networking.pdf
techi/httpd-2.4.6-88.el7.centos.x86_64.rpm
techi/httpd-tools-2.4.6-88.el7.centos.x86_64.rpm
techi/postfix-2.10.1-7.el7.x86_64.rpm
sent 9,469,912 bytes received 96 bytes 2,705,716.57 bytes/sec

total size is 11,647,907 speedup is 1.23
[root@gateway ~]#
Example:16) Put restriction on data transfer speed

in rsync (–bwlimit=<KB/s>)
In rsync command we can set the bandwidth limit for data transfer from one machine to
another, use ‘–bwlimit=<KB/S>‘ option in rsync command to put limit on data transfer

speed.
Let’s assume we want to set maximum data transfer rate (speed) is 600 KB/s with rsync,
example is shown below
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avz --progress --bwlimit=600 /home/pkumar/tech

techi/
techi/OpenStack-Networking.pdf
6,153,239 100% 910.02kB/s 0:00:06 (xfr#1, to-chk=6/8)
techi/httpd-2.4.6-88.el7.centos.x86_64.rpm
2,844,028 100% 615.28kB/s 0:00:04 (xfr#2, to-chk=5/8)
techi/httpd-tools-2.4.6-88.el7.centos.x86_64.rpm
92,504 100% 507.51kB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#3, to-chk=4/8)
techi/pkumar-2.png
0 100% 0.00kB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#4, to-chk=3/8)
techi/pkumar-3.png
0 100% 0.00kB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#5, to-chk=2/8)
techi/pkumar.png
0 100% 0.00kB/s 0:00:00 (xfr#6, to-chk=1/8)
techi/postfix-2.10.1-7.el7.x86_64.rpm
2,558,136 100% 594.80kB/s 0:00:04 (xfr#7, to-chk=0/8)
sent 9,470,087 bytes received 153 bytes 485,653.33 bytes/sec

total size is 11,647,907 speedup is 1.23
[root@gateway ~]#
Example:17) View the difference in files &

directories between source and destination
Use “-i” option in rsync command to list the difference in files and directories between
source and destination. Example is shown below
[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avzi /home/pkumar/techi root@192.168.1.29:/opt

.d..t...... techi/
<f.st...... techi/projects.txt


[root@gateway ~]#
As per above command output, there is difference in file called “projects.txt” on destination.
Following are the meaning of the keywords in above output,
d: indicates change in destination file

f: indicates a file
t: indicates change in timestamps
s: indicates change in size
That’s all from this tutorial, in case these examples you to understand rsync command more
efficiently then please do share your feedback and comments
Also Read : Tar Command in Linux with Practical Examples
Also Read: How to Rotate and Compress Log Files in Linux with Logrotate
9 thoughts on “17 useful rsync (remote sync)

Command Examples in Linux”
Harry
November 20, 2019 at 5:19 pm
very helpful.
thanks
Reply
Vignesh
December 22, 2019 at 3:22 am
I was looking for a way to copy a folder with files worth 155 GB in Linux. This is
exactly what I was looking for. Thanks for taking the time to write this article with
detailed examples.
Reply
Tom
April 7, 2020 at 6:13 am
Thanks, using this article I create a simple script to copy my data from Unraid
server to a Synology NAS.
Reply
KRS
July 7, 2020 at 8:37 am
Please be advised that the -z flag for compression only compresses the files during
the transfer and then uncompresses them at the destination, so it’s totally
unnecessary when using rsync locally or even inside a gigabit network.
Reply
Zoran Miljkovic
November 21, 2020 at 9:36 am 
Hi, could you explain the use of “p” in “-a equal to following options -rlptgoD”?
Reply
Zoran Miljkovic
November 21, 2020 at 9:56 am
Found it: -p, –perms preserve the permissions.
Reply
Jacob L
March 18, 2021 at 4:37 pm
I have used rsync for years and always avoided using -z for copies on the same
system.
I have assumed compressing it then uncompressing it would only add CPU
overhead since the limiting factors would be the read and write speeds of the disk(-
s) involved. Am I missing something?
Reply
Pradeep Kumar
March 19, 2021 at 2:39 am
Hi Jacob,
You are correct when we are dealing with large file or huge file.Rsync with -z
option can add CPU overhead.

Reply
Paul Inglsmit
February 9, 2023 at 2:29 pm
If you want to sync your site on another server do this:

Notice the slash at the end of path
rsync -zarvh -P /var/www/sire.com root@{Remote-Server-IP-Address}:/var/www/
Reply
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24/03/2023, 08:31 17 useful rsync (remote sync) Command Examples in Linux

17 useful rsync (remote sync) Command Examples in

~]# yum install rsync -y

~]# apt install rsync -y

Syntax of rsync command:

Local Sync: # rsync {options} {Source} {Destination}

Remote Sync pull: # rsync {options} <User_Name>@<Remote-Host>:<Source-File-Dir>

Remote Sync Push: # rsync <Options> <Source-Files-Dir> <User_Name>@<Remote-

-v, –verbose Verbose output

Let’s jump into the useful examples of rsync command

Example:1) Copy or Sync files locally (rsync -zvh)

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zvh /home/pkumar/OpenStack-Networking.pdf /opt

Example:2) Copy or Sync directory locally (rsync -

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zavh /home/pkumar /opt/backup

sent 4.09M bytes received 96 bytes 8.19M bytes/sec

Let’s verify whether directory is copied or not, execute below command,

[root@gateway ~]# ls -ld /opt/backup/*

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zavh /home/pkumar/ /opt/backup

Example:3) Copy files & directories recursively

recursively copy files and directory

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zrvh /home/pkumar /opt/backup

Example:4) Copy or sync files and directories from

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zarvh /home/pkumar/techi root@192.168.1.29:/op

sent 34.85M bytes received 2.65K bytes 6.34M bytes/sec

Example:5) Copy or Sync files and directories from

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zarvh root@192.168.1.29:/opt/rpms_db /tmp

[root@gateway ~]# ls -l /tmp/

Example:6) Specify remote shell during

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -zarvh -e ssh root@192.168.1.29:/opt/rpms_db

sent 484 bytes received 15.45M bytes 1.82M bytes/sec

Example:7) Display Synchronization progress in

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avh --progress root@192.168.1.29:/opt/rpms_db

sent 484 bytes received 16.38M bytes 3.64M bytes/sec

Example:8) Copy the directory structure without

sent 43 bytes received 19 bytes 17.71 bytes/sec

Example:9) Resume large file transfer after getting

[root@gateway ~]# scp root@192.168.1.29:/root/ubuntu-18.04-desktop-amd6

Example:10) Delete files at destination if it is not

[root@app ~]# rsync -avz --delete /opt/rpms_db root@192.168.1.28:/tmp/r

sent 862 bytes received 105 bytes 276.29 bytes/sec

Example:11) Put limit on file transfer size (–max-

Note: To specify the size in MB use M and for GB use G.

[root@app ~]# rsync -avz --max-size='500K' /opt/rpms_db root@192.168.1.

Example:12) Do not sync/copy the modified file at

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avzu root@192.168.1.29:/opt/techi /home/pkumar

sent 37 bytes received 4,960 bytes 1,427.71 bytes/sec

Example:13) Remove files from source after

[root@gateway ~]# rsync --remove-source-files -zvh /home/pkumar/techi.t

Example:14) Dry run rsync command before actual

[root@gateway ~]# rsync --dry-run --remove-source-files -zvh /home/pkum

sent 51 bytes received 19 bytes 7.37 bytes/sec

Example:15) Include and Exclude files during

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avz -e ssh --include '*.pdf *.rpm' --exclude

sent 9,469,912 bytes received 96 bytes 2,705,716.57 bytes/sec

Example:16) Put restriction on data transfer speed

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avz --progress --bwlimit=600 /home/pkumar/tech

sent 9,470,087 bytes received 153 bytes 485,653.33 bytes/sec

Example:17) View the difference in files &

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avzi /home/pkumar/techi root@192.168.1.29:/opt

sent 438 bytes received 45 bytes 138.00 bytes/sec

d: indicates change in destination file

Also Read : Tar Command in Linux with Practical Examples

9 thoughts on “17 useful rsync (remote sync)

[root@gateway ~]# rsync -avz -e ssh --include '.pdf .rpm' --exclude