Copy physical or logical files

To copy a physical or logical file (the from-file) on iSeries™ into another physical file (the to-file), which does not yet exist, you can use the CPYF command.

Below is an example:

    CPYF   FROMFILE(PERSONNEL/PAYROLL) 
       TOFILE(TESTPAY/PAYROLL)  MBROPT(*ADD) 
       CRTFILE(*YES)  ERRLVL(10)

Full-service copy support

A variety of copy commands that are modified by numerous parameters gives you a great deal of flexibility in the way you copy your data. For instance, you typically can copy your data into existing files (or to-files). As shown in the example above, you can use the CRTFILE parameter on the CPYF or CPYFRMQRYF commands to create the to-file during the copy operation. See Create the to-file (CRTFILE parameter) for details.

See Copy files: overview to learn about the basic functions relating to the iSeries copy commands.

Copy only the information you need

The copy function lets you specify selected records and members of your files:

Copy across different formats and servers

Copying between different database record formats (FMTOPT parameter). You can copy from a source file to a data file or from a data file to a source file. If the from-file or to-file is a device file, this function is automatic. If both files are database files, you must specify FMTOPT(CVTSRC). If either file is a device file or inline data file, the FMTOPT parameter does not apply.
Copy between different servers. This is especially important for when you are using Data Warehousing, and when you want to use existing export products from other platforms to move data to the iSeries server.

Make the copy function work for your particular needs

You can accomplish a wide variety of tasks with careful use of the options that are available to you through the copy function.