gsutil
command-line tool for Google Cloud Storage
TLDR
SYNOPSIS
gsutil [options] command [args]
DESCRIPTION
gsutil is a command-line tool for interacting with Google Cloud Storage (GCS). It provides commands for creating and deleting buckets, uploading and downloading objects, synchronizing local directories with remote bucket paths, and managing access control lists (ACLs) and bucket policies. Objects are referenced using the `gs://bucket/path` URI scheme.For large-scale operations, the `-m` flag enables parallel, multi-threaded execution of commands like `cp`, `mv`, `rm`, and `rsync`, significantly improving throughput when working with many files or large datasets. Transfers are resumable by default -- interrupted uploads and downloads can be retried without starting over. gsutil also supports server-side features such as object versioning, lifecycle management, and cross-bucket replication, and it authenticates through the Google Cloud SDK's credential system.
PARAMETERS
ls
List buckets or objects.cp
Copy files/objects.mv
Move files/objects.rm
Remove objects.rsync
Synchronize directories.mb
Make bucket.rb
Remove bucket.acl
Manage access control.-m
Parallel operations.-r
Recursive operation.-n
Dry run (no changes).
CAVEATS
gsutil is a legacy tool: Google now recommends the newer gcloud storage commands (part of the Google Cloud CLI), which are faster and support features gsutil lacks, such as soft delete and managed folders. gsutil still ships with the Cloud CLI and works as before, but is only minimally maintained.Requires Google Cloud authentication. Large transfers may incur costs. ACL changes need careful consideration. Parallel operations use more resources.
HISTORY
gsutil was developed by Google as part of the Google Cloud SDK. It evolved from early Cloud Storage access tools to become the standard CLI for Cloud Storage operations, supporting Python 2 initially and later Python 3.