How do I copy user home directories from one system to another while preserving all attributes?
Try to ssh into one machine and use cp -avi -p.  -i = interactive, -p = preserve directory attributes , -v = verbose. I almost always use cp -avi which preservers structures and attributes of files being copied , with the exception of directory attributes.  From man cp

 -p: Cause cp to preserve the following attributes of each source
 file in the copy: modification time, access time, file flags,
 file mode, user ID, and group ID, as allowed by permissions.
 Access Control Lists (ACLs) and Extended Attributes (EAs),
 including resource forks, will also be preserved....


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