mvx - Enhanced File and Directory Move Utility

mvx is a command-line utility for moving files and directories with progress bars and enhanced features. It's designed to be a more user-friendly alternative to the standard mv command, providing visual feedback during operations and handling cross-device moves gracefully.

Features

• Move files with visual progress bars
• Merge directories intelligently
• Handle cross-device moves automatically
• Create destination directories as needed
• Quiet mode for scripting

Usage

mvx [OPTIONS] <SOURCE> <DESTINATION>

Options

• -q, --quiet: Suppress progress bars and messages
• -h, --help: Print help information
• -V, --version: Print version information

Examples

Move a file to a new location:

mvx file.txt /path/to/destination/

Move a file and rename it:

mvx file.txt /path/to/destination/newname.txt

Move a directory and merge with an existing directory:

mvx source_dir/ destination_dir/

Move in quiet mode (no progress bars):

mvx -q large_file.iso /media/backup/

Behavior Documentation

File Moves

1. Basic File Move: When moving a file to a destination that doesn't exist, the behavior depends on whether the path ends with "/".

   • If the destination path ends with "/", mvx will create the directory and place the file inside it.
   • If the destination path doesn't end with "/", mvx will create all necessary parent directories and move the file to that exact path.

2. Move to Directory: When moving a file to an existing directory, the file is placed inside that directory with its original filename.

3. Overwriting Files: If the destination file already exists, it will be overwritten by the source file.

4. Cross-device Moves: When moving files between different filesystems/devices, mvx will automatically copy the file and delete the original, showing progress during the operation.

Directory Moves

1. Directory Merge: When moving a directory to an existing directory, mvx will merge the contents, preserving files in the destination that don't conflict with files from the source.

2. Overwriting Files in Directory Merge: During a directory merge, if files with the same name exist in both source and destination, the source files will overwrite the destination files.

3. Preserving Directory Structure: When merging directories, the entire directory structure from the source is preserved in the destination.

Error Handling

1. Nonexistent Source: If the source file or directory doesn't exist, mvx will display an error message and exit without making any changes.

2. Cannot Create Parent Directory: If a parent directory cannot be created (e.g., because an intermediate path component is an existing file), mvx will display an error message and exit without moving the file.

MIT License