Copy a single file from the local machine to a remote machine: This tutorial is aimed at new Linux users, so I will keep things as simple as possible. Unlike Rsync, you don’t have to log into any of the servers to transfer data from one machine to another. In that case you need usernames and passwords for both servers.

Another advantage is that with SCP you can move files between two remote servers, from your local machine in addition to transferring data between local and remote machines. The scp tool relies on SSH (Secure Shell) to transfer files, so all you need is the username and password for the source and target systems. With scp you don’t have to start an FTP session or log into the system. In this article, we talk about scp (secure copy command) that encrypts the transferred file and password so no one can snoop. If you run a live or home server, moving files between local machines or two remote machines is a basic requirement. For more great SysAdmin tips and techniques check out our free intro to Linux course. This is a classic article written by Swapnil Bhartiya from the archives.

Copy file one server to another linux