| Feature | Symlink (File) | Symlink (Dir) | Shortcut (.lnk) | Junction | Hard Link | |---------|---------------|---------------|-----------------|----------|------------| | Works across volumes | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | | Works across reboots | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | | Application-visible | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ (needs shell) | ✅ | ✅ | | Can point to remote targets | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | | Target can be deleted independently | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | | Own file system entry | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Example: New-Item -ItemType SymbolicLink -Path MyDocuments -Target C:\Users\Username\Documents
Use the directory removal command: rmdir "C:\Path\To\VirtualFolder" Use code with caution. 🚀 Practical Use Cases symlink in windows
By default, creating symlinks requires Administrator privileges. If you use symlinks often (e.g., for development or syncing specific game saves), you can enable them for standard users:
mklink /D C:\MyDocs D:\Documents\Work
You delete a symlink just like a normal file.
mklink /D "C:\Users\Name\Documents\MyProject" "C:\Users\Name\Source\Repos\MyProject" | Feature | Symlink (File) | Symlink (Dir) | Shortcut (
To point a virtual file to a real file, use the standard syntax: mklink "C:\Path\To\Link.txt" "D:\Actual\Target\File.txt" Use code with caution. 2. Create a Directory Symlink