# Symbolic link support

**URL:** <https://help.nextcloud.com/t/symbolic-link-support/220>\
**Category:** ℹ️ Support\
**Tags:** feature\
**Created:** [June 3, 2016, 7:10am UTC](https://help.nextcloud.com/t/symbolic-link-support/220 "2016-06-03T07:10:33Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 18

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**Author:** ![callegar](https://help.nextcloud.com/letter_avatar/callegar/32/6_22734026db12803ebb3e059622ac3534.png) [@callegar](https://help.nextcloud.com/u/callegar)\
**Post date:** [May 22, 2017, 1:34pm UTC](https://help.nextcloud.com/t/symbolic-link-support/220/18 "2017-05-22T13:34:01Z")

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Hi, thanks for Nextcloud!

I would like to know if there is any news on the state of symlink support wrt the sync client.

Beforehand, I would like to clarify:

1. In talking about symlinks, I am **not** interested in them in view of using nextcloud as a backup strategy.

2. I am interested in storing symlinks “as they are”, with no dereferencing what so ever. With no dereferencing, symlinks cannot be a security risk.

3. I know that not all platform support symlinks equally well. To me, it would be OK to have the sync client

**Rationale**

1. To me symlinks support is critical to the storing and sharing of stuff in next cloud, because they are a part of how data is made accessible and searchable in large directory structures. Furthermore, when certain LaTeX documents are stored in a directory structure, they are functional to assure that LaTeX then finds things where it expects them to be, without having to duplicate files. When certain spreadsheets are stored in a directory structure, they assure that linked spreadsheets are found where they are expected to be without duplicating files on the client. When some code is stored in a directory structure, symlinks may be used to assure that the makefile finds things where they are expected to be.

2. The behaviour described in point 3 above: is not disruptive; it can be made switchable on/off per client; does not require any support in the server (just in the sync client); can be acceptable for clients running on OSs that do not support symlinks; is compatible with webdav; lets the existence of symlinks be discovered and explored easily with the web interface since they are stored as regular files, but easily recognizable by their content for having a special function; by having no dereferencing neither in the server, nor in the sync software does not pose any security issue.

3. The behaviour described in point 3 above is consistent with the symlink support provided in other pieces of software (e.g. `git` for windows, aka `msysgit`) on platforms that do not have good support for symlinks.

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_[View the full topic](https://help.nextcloud.com/t/symbolic-link-support/220)._