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HTTP MOVE Method

Moves or renames a resource to the URI given in the Destination header, in WebDAV.

SafetyUnsafe (State-Mutating)
IdempotencyIdempotent
CachingNon-Cacheable

What is the MOVE method?

The MOVE method is a WebDAV extension (RFC 4918) used by clients to relocate or rename a resource, moving it to the URI named in the Destination header.

API Usage & Best Practices

  • Set the Destination: Always supply the Destination header naming where the resource should end up.
  • Control overwrites: Use the Overwrite header to allow or forbid replacing an existing resource at the destination.
  • Atomic relocation: A MOVE removes the source and creates the destination together, which is the standard way to rename a resource.

Common Response Codes

  • 201 Created: The resource was moved to a previously empty destination.
  • 204 No Content: An existing destination resource was overwritten by the move.
  • 207 Multi-Status: Reports per-member results when moving a collection partially fails.

Common Response Status Codes

HTTP 201 — Created

The request has been fulfilled and has resulted in a new resource being created.

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HTTP 204 — No Content

The request was successful, but the response body is intentionally empty.

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HTTP 207 — Multi-Status

The response body contains multiple independent status codes for a batch of sub-operations.

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