Add a Progress Bar to Linux cp and mv Commands

In Linux, copying and moving files with cp and mv normally provides no visual feedback. By applying the advcpmv patch to the coreutils source, the commands can display a progress bar.

First, verify the installed coreutils version to ensure compatibility with the patch: rpm -qa | grep coreutils Download the coreutils 8.32 source package and the advcpmv patch:

wget http://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/coreutils/coreutils-8.32.tar.xz

Extract the source archive, then apply the patch whose description mentions fixing missing progress bars for moving files and global progress:

tar -xf coreutils-8.32.tar.xz
cd coreutils-8.32
patch -p1 < advcpmv-8.32.patch

Install the required build dependencies, then compile and install the patched coreutils:

./configure && make && sudo make install

Replace the system cp and mv with the newly built binaries, backing up the originals and adding convenient aliases in /etc/profile for everyday use:

mv /usr/bin/cp /usr/bin/cp.orig
ln -s /usr/local/bin/cp /usr/bin/cp
mv /usr/bin/mv /usr/bin/mv.orig
ln -s /usr/local/bin/mv /usr/bin/mv
# edit /etc/profile to add aliases if desired

Finally, run a copy or move operation to verify that a progress bar appears, showing the operation’s total duration and transfer speed after completion.