How to Copy a Folder in SharePoint Online using PowerShell?

Requirement: Copy a Folder in SharePoint Online using PowerShell.

How to Copy Folder in SharePoint Online?

Copying a folder in SharePoint Online can be a useful way to quickly duplicate content and save time when creating new sites or libraries. If you need to copy a folder in SharePoint Online, PowerShell can make the process much easier than using the standard SharePoint user interface. In this article, we will show you how to use PowerShell to copy folders between SharePoint sites and within site.

Copying a folder in SharePoint Online modern experience is simple:

1. Navigate to your SharePoint Online Document Library >> Select the Folder to copy.
2. From the Toolbar, click on the “Copy to” button.

   

3. Select the destination location you want to copy the folder. You can either choose the same document library/site or choose a different site collection or subsite. Use “Browse Sites” to see a full list of sites that you can copy to.
4. Click on “New Folder” and provide a name to the copy and then click on the “Copy here” button to start copying the folder.

   

This copies the folder with all its files & sub-folders to the selected destination. Please note, the “Copy To” is not available in the SharePoint Online classic experience. While the above method to copy folders in SharePoint Online is simple, using PowerShell is the most efficient and flexible method in many cases.

SharePoint Online: Copy Folder using PowerShell

If you need to copy a folder in SharePoint Online, PowerShell provides an easy way to do it. Let’s copy a folder in SharePoint Online using PowerShell (Keep in mind that you’ll need permission to both sites to copy the folder):

#Load SharePoint CSOM Assemblies
Add-Type -Path "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Web Server Extensions\16\ISAPI\Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.dll"
Add-Type -Path "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Web Server Extensions\16\ISAPI\Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.Runtime.dll"
 
#Function to Copy a Folder
Function Copy-SPOFolder([String]$SiteURL, [String]$SourceFolderURL, [String]$TargetFolderURL)
{
    Try{
        #Setup the context
        $Ctx = New-Object Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.ClientContext($SiteURL)
        $Ctx.Credentials = New-Object Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.SharePointOnlineCredentials($Cred.Username, $Cred.Password)
     
        #Copy the Folder
        $MoveCopyOpt = New-Object Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.MoveCopyOptions
        [Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.MoveCopyUtil]::CopyFolder($Ctx, $SourceFolderURL, $TargetFolderURL, $MoveCopyOpt)
        $Ctx.ExecuteQuery()
 
        Write-host -f Green "Folder Copied Successfully!"
    }
    Catch {
    write-host -f Red "Error Copying the Folder!" $_.Exception.Message
    }
}
 
#Set Config Parameters
$SiteURL="https://Crescent.sharepoint.com/sites/Marketing"
$SourceFolderURL="https://Crescent.sharepoint.com/sites/Marketing/Shared Documents/2017"
$TargetFolderURL="https://Crescent.sharepoint.com/sites/Marketing/Shared Documents/2019"
 
#Get Credentials to connect
$Cred= Get-Credential
 
#Call the function to Copy the Folder
Copy-SPOFolder $SiteURL $SourceFolderURL $TargetFolderURL

We can also use this script to copy a folder to another library SharePoint Online. Here is another article to move a folder in SharePoint Online: SharePoint Online PowerShell to Move Folder

Copy a Folder in SharePoint Online using PnP PowerShell

Let’s copy a folder from one folder to another in SharePoint Online using PnP PowerShell:

#Config Variables
$SiteURL = "https://Crescent.sharepoint.com/sites/marketing"
$SourceFolderURL= "Shared Documents/2017"
$TargetFolderURL = "Shared Documents/2018"

#Connect to PnP Online
Connect-PnPOnline -Url $SiteURL -Interactive

#Copy Folder to same library
Copy-PnPFile -SourceUrl $SourceFolderURL -TargetUrl $TargetFolderURL -Force

This PowerShell script copies the given folder with its sub-folders and files to the destination. Similarly, you can use this method to copy a folder to a different site collection, even!

#Config Variables
$SiteURL = "https://Crescent.sharepoint.com/sites/marketing"
$SourceFolderURL= "Shared Documents/2017"
$TargetFolderURL = "/Sites/Sales/Shared Documents/2017"

#Connect to PnP Online
Connect-PnPOnline -Url $SiteURL -Credentials (Get-Credential)

#Copy Folder to different site collection
Copy-PnPFile -SourceUrl $SourceFolderURL -TargetUrl $TargetFolderURL -Force 

The “Copy-PnPFolder” cmdlet also does the same thing. If you want to copy a folder to SharePoint Online from your local machine, use: How to Upload a Folder to SharePoint Online using PowerShell?