Software⏱️ 3 min read📅 2026-06-11

How to Fix: How to get around 'rmdir invalid option -r' error?

Error removing directory due to invalid option -r in rmdir command.

Quick Answer: Use the -f flag with rm instead, e.g. rm -rf phoneBackup

📋 Table of Contents

  1. 💡 Why You Are Getting This Error
  2. ✅ Best Solutions to Fix It
  3. ✨ Wrapping Up

The 'rmdir -r' error occurs when attempting to remove a directory that contains files or subdirectories, causing the command to fail. This issue affects users who try to delete directories containing multiple files without properly emptying them first.

This error can be frustrating for users who need to quickly remove directories, especially when dealing with large amounts of data. In this guide, we will walk you through the steps to resolve this issue on Elementary OS Luna, which is built off of Ubuntu 12.04.

💡 Why You Are Getting This Error

  • The primary reason for this error is that the 'rmdir -r' command does not support deleting directories with subdirectories containing files. The '-r' option only works when the directory to be deleted is empty.
  • An alternative reason could be that the system's configuration or permissions do not allow the user to delete certain directories or files.

✅ Best Solutions to Fix It

Using the 'rm' command with the '-rf' option

  1. Step 1: Open a terminal and navigate to the parent directory of the 'phoneBackup' directory.
  2. Step 2: Use the 'rm -rf phoneBackup' command, where 'rm' stands for 'remove', and '-r' is used to force the removal of all contents in the specified directory, including subdirectories. The '-f' option forces the action without prompting for confirmation.
  3. Step 3: Press Enter to execute the command and remove the 'phoneBackup' directory.

Using a graphical file manager

  1. Step 1: Open the File Manager application in Elementary OS Luna.
  2. Step 2: Navigate to the parent directory of the 'phoneBackup' directory and select it.
  3. Step 3: Right-click on the 'phoneBackup' directory and choose 'Delete'.

✨ Wrapping Up

To resolve the 'rmdir -r' error, you can use either the 'rm -rf' command in the terminal or a graphical file manager. Remember to be cautious when deleting directories containing large amounts of data, as it is irreversible.

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