By the end of this lesson you will be able to
- Tell copy and move apart, and choose the right one.
- Create folders and rename files and folders on Ubuntu and Windows.
- Delete a file to the Trash or Recycle Bin and restore it.
- Explain when deletion is permanent.
- Sort, filter and search for files by name.
Once you can read names and paths, you will spend most of your file time doing a handful of actions: copying, moving, renaming, deleting and searching. Doing them with care keeps your work tidy and protects you from the most common accident, deleting something you still needed. Here you will learn each action, how to undo it, and when undoing is no longer possible.
Copy or move?
Copying makes a second version of a file in a new place and leaves the original where it is. It is like photocopying a letter. Moving takes the file from one folder and puts it in another, so there is still only one. It is like carrying the letter to another drawer. If you copy by accident when you meant to move, you end up with duplicates. If you move when you meant to copy, the original is gone from its old place.
| Copy | Move | |
|---|---|---|
| Original stays? | Yes | No: it is relocated |
| Keyboard (both systems) | Ctrl+C, then Ctrl+V in the destination | Ctrl+X, then Ctrl+V in the destination |
| Mouse | Drag while holding Ctrl (Ubuntu) or right-drag and choose Copy here (Windows) | Drag the file into the folder |
| Uses extra space? | Yes: a second copy | No |
| Use it for | Backups, sharing, trying something out | Tidying, organising |
- Before: report.docx in Documents
- After: report.docx in Documents AND in Backup
- Two files exist
The original stays.
- Before: report.docx in Documents
- After: report.docx only in Backup
- One file exists
The original is relocated.
Read this figure as text
Two columns comparing what happens to the original file when you copy it and when you move it.
Copy: before, the file report.docx is in Documents. After copying to the Backup folder, report.docx is in Documents and also in Backup, so there are two files and the original stays. Move: before, report.docx is in Documents. After moving to the Backup folder, it is only in Backup and Documents no longer has it. There is still one file, in a new place.
Creating folders and renaming
Make a folder for each project or topic and put related files inside. Both systems use the same shortcut for a new folder: Ctrl+Shift+N. To rename an item, click it once and press F2, type the new name and press Enter. When you rename a file, keep its extension unless you really mean to change it.
Create, copy, move and rename
On Ubuntu 24.04 (Files)
Step 1: Make a practice folder
Open Files, go to Documents and press Ctrl+Shift+N. Type
practiceand press Enter.You should see: A new folder called practice appears. Open it by double-clicking.
Step 2: Make a text file
Right-click the empty space in the folder. If you see New Document, choose Empty Document and name it
note.txt. If the option is missing, open Text Editor, type a few words and save the file asnote.txtin practice.You should see: A file named note.txt is in the practice folder. Ubuntu may not offer the New Document option until a template exists.
Step 3: Copy it
Click
note.txt, press Ctrl+C, press Ctrl+Shift+N and name a second foldercopies, open it and press Ctrl+V.You should see: note.txt appears in copies, and is still in practice.
Step 4: Rename it
Click the copy once and press F2. Type
note-copy.txtand press Enter.You should see: The copy has its new name.
On Windows 11 (File Explorer)
Step 1: Make a practice folder
Open File Explorer, go to Documents and press Ctrl+Shift+N. Type
practiceand press Enter.You should see: A new folder called practice appears. Open it by double-clicking.
Step 2: Make a text file
Right-click an empty space in the folder, choose New, then Text Document, and name it
note.txt.You should see: A file named note.txt is in the practice folder. If extensions are hidden it may appear as just note.
Step 3: Copy it
Click
note.txt, press Ctrl+C, create a folder namedcopieswith Ctrl+Shift+N, open it and press Ctrl+V.You should see: note.txt appears in copies, and is still in practice.
Step 4: Rename it
Click the copy once and press F2. Type
note-copyand press Enter, keeping the extension as it was.You should see: The copy has its new name.
Deleting and restoring
When you delete a file from your own drive in the normal way, it is not erased at once. It goes to the Trash (Ubuntu) or Recycle Bin (Windows), a holding area you can recover from. Think of it as a wastepaper basket that you have not yet emptied. Files stay there until you empty it, or the system clears old items.
- Step 1: File in folderSafe and visible
- Step 2: Press DeleteMoves to bin
- Step 3: In the binCan still be restored
- Step 4: Bin emptiedGone for good
Read this figure as text
A flow showing a file moving to the Trash, then either being restored to its folder or permanently deleted when the Trash is emptied.
Step 1: a file sits in its folder. Step 2: you press Delete, and the file moves to the Trash or Recycle Bin. Step 3, option A: you choose Restore, and the file returns to its original folder. Step 3, option B: you empty the Trash, and the file is permanently removed, so it cannot be restored by normal means.
Delete and restore a file
On Ubuntu 24.04
Step 1: Move to Trash
In your practice folder click
note-copy.txtand press Delete.You should see: The file disappears from the folder.
Step 2: Open the Trash
In the Files sidebar click Trash.
You should see: You see note-copy.txt with the date it was deleted.
Step 3: Restore it
Right-click the file and choose Restore From Trash.
You should see: The file reappears in its original folder, practice or copies.
On Windows 11
Step 1: Move to Recycle Bin
In your practice folder click
note-copy.txtand press Delete.You should see: The file disappears from the folder.
Step 2: Open the Recycle Bin
Double-click the Recycle Bin icon on the desktop. If the desktop icon is not there, type
Recycle Bininto the Start search.You should see: You see note-copy.txt.
Step 3: Restore it
Right-click the file and choose Restore.
You should see: The file reappears in its original folder.
Sorting, filtering and searching
Do not scroll through hundreds of files. In list view, click a column heading such as Name, Size or Modified to sort by it. Click again to reverse the order. To find a file by its name, use the search of the file manager: press Ctrl+F in Files on Ubuntu, or click the Search box at the top right of File Explorer on Windows 11, and type part of the name. Searching covers the current folder and the folders inside it, so start in the folder that is most likely to hold the file.
Useful tricks: search for an extension such as .pdf to find all PDFs in the folder. Sort by Modified to find what you worked on today. Sort by Size to find the largest files when space is running low.
Practise creating folders, moving and renaming files in a simulated file manager, and solve a realistic tidy-up challenge. Nothing on your real computer changes.
Loading lab…
- Marker 1: Type part of the name here
- Marker 2: Matching files from all sub-folders
- Marker 3: Sort by date to see the newest first
- Marker 4: Where the search is looking
Read this figure as text
A simulated file manager showing search results for the word bill, with numbered markers on the search box, the sort column and the results.
A file manager window titled Search results. The toolbar has a search box containing the word bill (marker 1). Three results are listed: Electricity-bill-2026-03.pdf, Water-bill-2026-02.pdf and Bill-of-sale.docx (marker 2). The Modified column is the sort order (marker 3), with the newest first. The address bar shows that the search covers the Documents folder and folders inside it (marker 4).
Common mistakes
✖ Instead of: Cutting a file and then not pasting it before copying something else.
✔ Do this: Cut and paste in one go. Until you paste, the file stays where it was, but doing other work in between invites mistakes.
✖ Instead of: Emptying the bin 'to make space' without looking at it.
✔ Do this: Open the bin and check first. Empty it only when you are sure nothing in it is needed.
✖ Instead of: Using Shift+Delete for convenience.
✔ Do this: Use plain Delete so that you have a safety net. Keep Shift+Delete for files you are certain about.
If something goes wrong
- I cannot find the file I deleted in the Trash or Recycle Bin.
- It may have been deleted from a USB drive or network folder, which skip the bin, or the bin was emptied. Check any backups. Stop saving new files to that drive until you have tried recovery.
- The file manager says the name already exists.
- Each folder can hold only one item with a given name. Choose a different name, or let the computer keep both if offered.
- The search finds nothing, although I know the file exists.
- Search covers the folder you are in and folders below it. Go up to a higher folder, check your spelling, and try part of the name instead of the whole name.
Key terms
- Trash (Recycle Bin)
- A holding place for deleted files, from which you can restore them until you empty it.
- File
- A named chunk of stored data, such as a document, photo or song.
- Folder
- A container for organising files and other folders.
Practise it for real
Reading is not the same as being able to do it. Complete these on your own computer, then tick only what you have actually done. These ticks are your own honest record: nothing checks them for you.
A full cycle in your practice folder
Using only your practice folder, create a text file called plan.txt. Make a folder called archive. Copy plan.txt into archive, rename the copy plan-old.txt, then move the original into a new folder called current. Delete plan-old.txt to the bin, restore it, and finally search your practice folder for the word plan.
Challenge: tidy a messy Downloads folder
Open your Downloads folder. Without deleting anything, decide on three folders that would sort what is there (for example Documents, Pictures, Installers). Create them inside Documents, and move at least five files into the right ones. Sort the rest by Size and note the three largest. Do not empty the bin.
Knowledge check
6 questions. You need 80% to pass. Mistakes here are part of learning, and you can retry as often as you like.
Summary
- Copy makes a second file; move relocates the only one.
- Ctrl+C, Ctrl+X, Ctrl+V, F2 and Ctrl+Shift+N work on both Ubuntu and Windows.
- Delete sends files to the Trash or Recycle Bin, where Restore brings them back.
- Shift+Delete and emptying the bin are permanent, so use them with great care.
- Sort by a column heading and search from a suitable folder to find files fast.
Checklist: can you do these?
Marking a lesson as read does not prove you can do it. Skills count as demonstrated when you pass the quiz (not yet) and complete the practical tasks (not yet).
Related lessons
References and further reading
Official sources for details that can change between versions.
- Files: Ubuntu Desktop guide (Ubuntu)
- Windows File Explorer: support (Microsoft)