# File copy using SCP

***Copyright © Quectel Wireless Solutions Co., Ltd. 2026. All rights reserved.***

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**SCP** (**Secure Copy Protocol**) is a secure file transfer tool based on **SSH**, used for encrypting and transferring files and directories between local and remote hosts.

# Common scenarios

All commands are executed in the local command-line terminal.

- Transfer files between a local host and a remote host (Local → Remote):

```bash
scp /local/file.txt username@remote_IP:/target path/
```

Example:

```bash
scp ~/test.zip pi@192.168.2.xxx:/home/pi/  # Copy to the remote host's home directory.
```

- Transfer files between two remote hosts (Remote → Remote):

```bash
scp user1@host1:/path/to/file user2@host2:/path/to/dest/
```

Example:

```bash
scp alice@server1:/data/report.txt bob@server2:/backups/
```

- Transfer files from a remote host to a local host (Remote → Local):

```bash
scp username@remote_IP:/remote/file.txt /local/path/
```

Example:

```bash
scp root@192.168.2.xxx:/var/log/app.log ./downloads/  # Download a remote file to a local host.
```

# Recursively copy directories

Copy an entire folder (including subfiles and subdirectories):

```bash
scp -r /local/directory/ user@host:/target path/
```

Example:

```bash
scp -r ~/my_project/ root@192.168.2.xxx:/home/pi/
```