When you create a shortcut for a file or folder, all you are doing is pointing it to that specific file or folder, nothing more. Symbolic links are much more than a simple shortcut. They act as a virtual file or folder that links to the actual file or folder. When you create a symlink for a file, it appears as if it is the actual file, when in reality, it is redirecting you toward the real file in the background. Besides files, you can also create symlinks for folders. Simply put, a symlink is nothing more than a build of the text string, which lets the operating system know that it is just a path for another file or folder. For instance, most cloud service apps you install will only sync files and folders located in their own folder. But there may be times when you have a folder in some other drive you want to sync with the cloud storage service. However, you don’t want to move the folder from its actual location or don’t want to create a copy of the folder. In those situations, you can simply create a symlink in the cloud service folder so that you can sync the contents of the target folder without actually moving or copying the real folder. Since a symlink is just a virtual folder that just acts as a path to the real folder, you don’t have to worry about the symlink consuming your disk space.

If you don’t want to faff around in the Command Prompt and are prepared to faff around a little bit by installing a tool that lets you create symlinks to an existing file or directory using the right-click context menu, then try the following. Link Shell Extension is a tool that lets you create hard links and symbolic links by right-clicking whatever folder you want to create a link to. There are a few hoops with the installation. You’ll get a warning that it can’t be downloaded securely, and Windows Defender may warn you that it’s “unsigned.” We can assure you that the tool is safe. Go ahead and install it. During installation, explorer.exe will restart, so make sure you have important stuff backed up. Note: in Windows 11, you’ll have to click “Show more options” first before you will see “Pick Link Source” or any of the other right-click menu options below.

Note: although these instructions are shown using Windows 11, the commands shown here are applicable for Windows Vista and later. The first path you see in the above command is where you will create your symlink. This path is called a “Link.” The second path belongs to the actual file on your disk and is called “Target.” Along with individual files, you can create symlinks for entire directories. Image credit: Pexels. All screenshots by Sydney Butler.