GNU bug report logs - #17103
cp: "cp -al" doesn't copy symlinks, tries to link to them

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From: Paul Eggert <eggert <at> cs.ucla.edu>
To: Linda Walsh <coreutils <at> tlinx.org>
Cc: 17103 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: bug#17103: regression: cp -al doesn't copy symlinks, but tries to link to them (fail)
Date: Wed, 26 Mar 2014 17:57:57 -0700

Linda Walsh wrote:
> if for some reason a symlink
> cannot be linked to, then the symlink should be copied (not what
> the symlink is pointing to, but the actual contents of the symlink
> inode -- i.e. the redirection path).

Sure, but that's asking for different functionality than what's 
documented, and it's possible that others are relying on the documented 
behavior, so it's not clear how to proceed here.  Perhaps cp needs yet 
another option.  I hope not.

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