mv command: how to short directory location

Question

I need to rename a file in a multi-nested directory, that's very long location; I'll use mv command.
I'd like to save time by typing only once the full location.

Is there a way to shorten the destination directory when moving a file?

I'll explain it better with an example:
mv /dir1/dir2/dir3/dir4/dir5/file.txt /dir1/dir2/dir3/dir4/dir5/moved_file.txt ---> mv /dir1/dir2/dir3/dir4/dir5/file.txt moved_file.txt

if you cd to the destination directory, you don't need to provide the full path of the destination file. — aviro, Nov 03 '22 at 17:15
See How can I rename a file in a nested path "in place," i.e. without re-typing the full path? — steeldriver, Nov 03 '22 at 17:16

score 0 · Answer 1 · edited Nov 03 '22 at 18:41

0

In the absence of a programmatic method of identifying the path and the filename....

SRC=/dir1/dir2/dir3/dir4/dir5
DEST=/dirA/dirB/dirC/dirD
mv "$SRC"/file.txt "$DEST"/moved_file.txt

Or, for just a rename...

mv "$SRC"/file.txt "$SRC"/moved_file.txt

edited Nov 03 '22 at 18:41

Kusalananda

333,661

answered Nov 03 '22 at 17:29

symcbean

5,540

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Nov 03 '22 at 18:36

Use cd to change the working directory to /dir1/dir2/dir3/dir4/dir5, then call mv. Do it in a sub-shell to avoid having to cd back to the original directory (the change of working directory is local to the (...) sub-shell).

( cd /dir1/dir2/dir3/dir4/dir5 && mv file.txt moved_file.txt )

The && additionally causes the mv not to be performed if the cd fails for whatever reason.

mv command: how to short directory location

2 Answers2