A symbolic link (symlink) is a special file on a file system that doesn’t contain any data but is actually a shortcut pointing to another object (file or folder). When accessing a symlink, the operating system thinks that it is an original file (folder) and works with it completely transparently.

Symbolic links are quite often used in Windows for system files and directories. You may use them when you need to move large files to another disk and Windows must consider that they are still located in the original directory (for example, when you want to save space on an SSD by moving some directories to a slower and larger HDD without disrupting programs). You can use symlinks on your SMB file server when directories located in different LUNs must be available in a single entry point.

The three types of file links available in Windows for NTFS volumes: hard links, soft links (symlinks), and Junction Points.

• Hard Links can only point to a local file, but not to a folder. A hard link is a file link to another file on the same volume without duplicating the file. It has the same size and properties as the source file (but it does not take up real space on the drive);
• Junction Points (Directory Hard Link) can only point to a directory (on the same or another volume);
• Symbolic Links (soft link, symlink) can point to a local file, folder, or network share on a remote computer (by the UNC path). Relative paths are supported.

In most cases, you can use a symlink for most tasks when you need to create a reference to an object.

How to Create a Symbolic Link in Windows?

To create symbolic or hard links in Windows, you can use the built-in mklink tool or PowerShell.

mklink has a simple syntax. To create a symbolic link to a file, specify the link name and the target object you want it to point to. You can set the link type: /D — a symbolic (soft) link to a directory, /H — a hard link, /J – a Junction point.

Create a symbolic link to the notepad.exe file in C:\PS:

mklink C:\PS\note.exe c:\Windows\System32\notepad.exe

You will see the following message:

symbolic link created for C:\PS\note.exe <<===>> c:\Windows\System32\notepad.exe

Now you can use the note.exe symlink to run notepad.exe.

Create a symlink to another folder on the same drive:

mklink /D "C:\PS\Downloads" "C:\Users\user\Downloads"

Now, when you open the C:\PS\Downloads folder you will see the contents of the directory it refers to.

Display the contents of C:\PS:

dir c:\ps

As you can see, the attributes of some files show that it is a symlink (simlinkd). The object they refer to is also displayed. In File Explorer, symlinks are displayed as shortcut icons, and the target object they point to is shown in their properties.

You can also create a symbolic link in Windows using PowerShell (in this example I use relative paths to create symlink):

New-Item -ItemType SymbolicLink -Path ".\test\tmpfiles" -Target "..\tmp\files"

You can create a symbolic link to a shared network folder on a remote computer or server. Specify the network share address in the UNC format.

mklink /D c:\ps\share \\hq-fs01\Share

The symbolic link cannot be followed because its type is disabled.

Local to local symbolic links are enabled.
Local to remote symbolic links are enabled.
Remote to local symbolic links are disabled.
Remote to remote symbolic links are disabled.