Difference between Soft Link and Hard Link in Unix/Linux

Soft Link (Symbolic Link):

• Soft links are similar to shortcuts in Windows.
• Soft links are simply pointers to the original file or directory.
• Deleting the original file does not affect the soft link, but the soft link becomes a dangling link.
• Soft links can point to files/directories on different file systems.
• Symbolic links display the target file or directory when viewed using ls -l command.

Hard Link:

• Hard links are references to the inode of the original file on the disk.
• Deleting the original file does not affect the hard link as the data is still accessible through the hard link.
• Hard links cannot point to directories or files on different file systems.
• When you create a hard link, it shares the same inode number as the original file.
• Hard links do not show the target file when viewed using the ls -l command.

It is important to note the distinction between soft links and hard links when managing files in Unix/Linux systems for efficient file organization and maintenance.