Operating System Questions Medium
In a file system, a hard link and a symbolic link are two different types of links that can be created to reference a file or directory. The main difference between them lies in how they function and the level of indirection they provide.
1. Hard Link:
- A hard link is a direct reference to the physical location of a file or directory on the disk.
- It creates a new entry in the file system's directory structure, pointing to the same inode (data structure representing a file or directory) as the original file.
- All hard links to a file are essentially equal, and there is no concept of a "main" or "original" file.
- Deleting any hard link does not affect the other hard links or the original file, as long as at least one hard link remains.
- Hard links can only be created for files within the same file system.
2. Symbolic Link (Soft Link):
- A symbolic link, also known as a soft link, is a special type of file that acts as a pointer or reference to another file or directory.
- It contains the path or location of the target file or directory, rather than directly pointing to the physical location.
- Symbolic links can span across different file systems or even different machines, as they are not tied to the physical location.
- If the target file or directory is moved or renamed, the symbolic link will still point to the original target, which can lead to a broken link.
- Deleting the target file or directory renders the symbolic link useless or broken.
- Symbolic links can be created for both files and directories.
In summary, the key difference between a hard link and a symbolic link is that a hard link directly references the physical location of a file or directory, while a symbolic link acts as a pointer or reference to the target file or directory's path. Hard links are tied to the same file system and do not break if the target is moved, while symbolic links can span across file systems and can become broken if the target is deleted or moved.