What is the difference between soft link and hard link in Linux?

What is the difference between soft link and hard link in Linux?

In Linux, there are two types of links that can be created for files: soft links (symbolic links) and hard links. The main difference between the two lies in how they reference the files.

Soft Link (Symbolic Link):

• A soft link is a pointer to the file's inode number, rather than the actual data of the file.
• It can span file systems and can link to directories.
• If the original file is moved or deleted, the soft link will become broken.
• Soft links can be created using the ln -s command.

Hard Link:

• A hard link is a direct reference to the file's data on the disk.
• It cannot span file systems and cannot link to directories.
• If the original file is moved or deleted, the hard link will still point to the file's data.
• Hard links can be created using the ln command without the -s option.

Overall, soft links provide more flexibility in linking files across different locations, while hard links offer a more direct connection to the file's data on the disk.