Of course it can, that's what I wrote above.
And that's what the link I've posted above shows too.

OK, please clarify: Can WinSCP do a remote "Duplicate" operation without having to put the remote files temporarily on my local machine (which takes forever) IF the server supports it? Cause if so, I'll get a new hosting service or plan that does.
And are you talking about "server" as in Apache or Nginx, or simply how the ISP configures your server?
Thanks for the tips!
Aloha, Tim

It can be "like a local directory-to-directory copy operation". But the server must support it. Yours most likely does not.

Apologies for wasting people's time. I read about the "duplicate" function in WinSCP for duplicating files from one directory to another directory on the server, it sounded great, and I assumed it would be just like a local directory-to-directory copy operation.

I didn't realize it copies EVERYTHING to a local directory, then back to the server. I can already do that, but it's a pain: it takes 4 hours on my internet connection. I was just looking for something fast.

Thanks for your responses!

Aloha, Tim

@Kaimana: Most FTP servers do not allow direct copying of files to another remote directory. Do you think yours does?

See https://winscp.net/eng/docs/protocols#duplicate

My ISP iPage doesn't offer SFTP on shared hostings like I've got, and I can't get at the FTP server on their side of things to set it so it does, because their support sucks and they don't respond to support requests.

If you are using non secure FTP servers you can try to enable File eXchange Protocol on both FTPs and use this protocol in WinSCP. This could work as you wish.
For SFTP servers you can try to connect to first server, open terminal in WinSCP and establish tunel to second SFTP like

Then to connect in WinSCP GUI to secondary SFTP using localhost and settled local_port.

I'm using Win 10 Home, Commander interface, FTP, WinSCP 6.1.2, no encryption, Port 21.

I am trying to duplicate directories from my remote server to another directory on the remote server so I have a working WP site backup immediately available and already on the server but under another directory name than public_html.

Eg: I'm copying my entire site to /Whole Site Backup/, ie all the WP directories under /Whole Site Backup/, and all the WP files in public_html into the /Whole Site Backup/ folder.

But WinSCP insists on involving a local directory to transfer temporary files for some reason, and this is slowing the process down to a crawl, even over my fiber-optic internet connection. It took four hours to copy the /wp-admin folder, for instance.

The next folder I try to copy, the process breaks and reconnects multiple times, then finally aborts due to timeouts. Didn't change anything in between. I'm technical, and don't understand why we need to involve a LOCAL machine in the duplication process. This is like mailing something to Hawaii, then mailing it back to where you live, when all you were trying to do was mail it to the other side of town.

I read that WinSCP could copy and duplicate files on the server. Well, it's NOT on the server. Please explain how I can do a remote directory-to-directory copy on the server without involving any local file transfers.

I'de LOVE to be a satisfied user of WinSCP, but so far it's got a fatal flaw and is no better than my current Stone-Age solution, which is downloading the entire site to my local machine, then uploading it again as a backup using FileZilla. Takes hours but doesn't abort and throw error messages.

With Warm Aloha, Tim