diff --git a/tools/ctl/linux/aws-otel-collector-ctl.sh b/tools/ctl/linux/aws-otel-collector-ctl.sh
index fb38780efe..2a9c0e0b84 100644
--- a/tools/ctl/linux/aws-otel-collector-ctl.sh
+++ b/tools/ctl/linux/aws-otel-collector-ctl.sh
@@ -84,7 +84,7 @@ aoc_config_local_uri() {
 # Safe to run as this will not overwrite a file if one exists in default location already.
 aoc_ensure_default_config() {
     if [ ! -f $CONFDIR/config.yaml ]; then
-        cp $DFT_CONFDIR/.config.yaml $CONFDIR/config.yaml
+        cp -p $DFT_CONFDIR/.config.yaml $CONFDIR/config.yaml
     fi
 }