Copying files with SCP

SCP (Secure Copy) is a fast, secure command-line tool for transferring files and directories between your local machine and a remote server — or even between two remote servers — over an encrypted SSH connection. It's perfect for moving backups, website files, databases, or configs on your VPS or dedicated server.

SCP uses the same authentication as SSH: password or (much better) SSH keys.

Basic syntax

scp [options] source destination

• source — what you're copying (file or folder)
• destination — where to put it

Either source or destination can be:

• Local path: /home/user/backup.zip
• Remote path: user@server-ip:/path/to/destination/

Most useful SCP options

• -r — recursive (copy directories and all contents)
• -P port — specify non-standard SSH port (e.g., -P 2222)
• -p — preserve modification times, permissions, and ownership
• -v — verbose mode (shows detailed progress and errors)
• -C — enable compression (speeds up transfer on slow connections)
• -i keyfile — use specific private SSH key
• -l limit — limit bandwidth (in Kbit/s), e.g., -l 800 = ~100 KB/s

Practical examples

1. Download a single file from server to local machine

scp user@192.168.1.100:/var/www/site.ru/wp-config.php ~/Downloads/

2. Download file from server to local machine

scp -r user@192.168.1.100:/var/www/site.ru/uploads ~/backup/

3. Upload a folder from local to server

scp -r ./public_html user@192.168.1.100:/home/user/

4. Copy between two remote servers

scp -r user1@server1.example.com:/var/www/site user2@server2.example.com:/backup/

5. Use non-standard SSH port

scp -P 2222 important.sql user@server-ip:/home/user/

6. Use a specific SSH private key

scp -i ~/.ssh/my_special_key backup.tar.gz user@server-ip:/home/user/

Quick tips for everyday use

• Always add -r when copying directories — otherwise subfolders are ignored
• Use -v when troubleshooting — it shows exactly where things go wrong
• For large transfers or slow connections — add -C to enable compression
• For resuming interrupted transfers or syncing only changes — switch to rsync (much smarter than SCP)
• Prefer SSH keys over passwords for automation — they're far more secure and convenient
• SCP requires a working SSH connection — if SSH fails, SCP will too

Common real-world tasks

• Download full website files (public_html):

scp -r user@your-server:/home/user/public_html ~/local-backup/

• Upload full website to server:

scp -r ./public_html user@your-server:/home/user/

• Transfer a database dump:

scp mydb.sql user@your-server:/home/user/