yiisoft/yii2 · error · InvalidArgumentException

Trying to copy a directory to itself or a subdirectory.

Error message

Trying to copy a directory to itself or a subdirectory.

What it means

Error "Trying to copy a directory to itself or a subdirectory." thrown in yiisoft/yii2.

Source

Thrown at framework/helpers/BaseFileHelper.php:382

     *   If the callback returns false, the copy operation for the sub-directory or file will be cancelled.
     *   The signature of the callback should be: `function ($from, $to)`, where `$from` is the sub-directory or
     *   file to be copied from, while `$to` is the copy target.
     * - afterCopy: callback, a PHP callback that is called after each sub-directory or file is successfully copied.
     *   The signature of the callback should be: `function ($from, $to)`, where `$from` is the sub-directory or
     *   file copied from, while `$to` is the copy target.
     * - copyEmptyDirectories: boolean, whether to copy empty directories. Set this to false to avoid creating directories
     *   that do not contain files. This affects directories that do not contain files initially as well as directories that
     *   do not contain files at the target destination because files have been filtered via `only` or `except`.
     *   Defaults to true. This option is available since version 2.0.12. Before 2.0.12 empty directories are always copied.
     * @throws InvalidArgumentException if unable to open directory
     */
    public static function copyDirectory($src, $dst, $options = [])
    {
        $src = static::normalizePath($src);
        $dst = static::normalizePath($dst);

        if ($src === $dst || strpos($dst, $src . DIRECTORY_SEPARATOR) === 0) {
            throw new InvalidArgumentException('Trying to copy a directory to itself or a subdirectory.');
        }
        $dstExists = is_dir($dst);
        if (!$dstExists && (!isset($options['copyEmptyDirectories']) || $options['copyEmptyDirectories'])) {
            static::createDirectory($dst, isset($options['dirMode']) ? $options['dirMode'] : 0775, true);
            $dstExists = true;
        }

        $handle = opendir($src);
        if ($handle === false) {
            throw new InvalidArgumentException("Unable to open directory: $src");
        }
        if (!isset($options['basePath'])) {
            // this should be done only once
            $options['basePath'] = realpath($src);
            $options = static::normalizeOptions($options);
        }
        while (($file = readdir($handle)) !== false) {
            if ($file === '.' || $file === '..') {

View on GitHub (pinned to 66f00d18a2)

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at framework/helpers/BaseFileHelper.php:382 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of yiisoft/yii2@66f00d18a2 (2026-08-17). Data as JSON: /api/errors/de7cef66d0b63377. Report an issue: GitHub.