Copy, Move & Remove

cp — copy

cp source dest copies a file. Add -r to copy a directory recursively.

cp notes.txt notes-backup.txt
cp -r projects projects-backup

mv — move or rename

mv moves a file, or renames it if the destination is in the same directory.

mv notes.txt archive/
mv oldname.txt newname.txt

rm has no undo

rm file deletes permanently — no trash bin. rm -r dir deletes a directory and its contents. Use rm -i to confirm each deletion while you're still building confidence.