Commands
rm
Soft-delete a file to Archive, or permanently delete it from Archive.
poly rm deletes a file or folder. What that actually does depends on where the target already is.
Usage
poly rm <TARGET> [-f|--force]
TARGET accepts a local sync-folder path, a //-prefixed Poly path, a deep link, or a web URL — see How it Works.
- If the file is not already in Archive,
poly rmsoft-deletes it: the file moves to//Archiveand can be recovered later, either from there or via Recovering Files. - If the file is already in Archive,
poly rmpermanently deletes it. This is irreversible, and Poly asks for confirmation before doing it.
Flags
| Flag | Description |
|---|---|
-f, --force | Skip the confirmation prompt for a permanent delete. Required if stdin isn't a terminal (e.g. in scripts). |
The global --disallow-force flag refuses irreversible actions even if --force is passed — useful when running the CLI inside an agent harness.
Examples
# Soft-delete a file to Archive
poly rm //Home/docs/old-draft.md
# Soft-delete a folder and its contents
poly rm //Home/downloads/temp
# Permanently delete a file that's already in Archive (prompts for confirmation)
poly rm //Archive/old-draft.md
# Permanently delete without a confirmation prompt (e.g. in a script)
poly rm //Archive/old-draft.md --force
# Refuse the delete outright, even with --force
poly rm //Archive/old-draft.md --force --disallow-force
Related
mv— move a file instead of deleting it.cp— copy a file before deleting the original.- Recovering Files — restore soft-deleted files from Archive.