ln(C)                           19 June 1992                           ln(C)


 Name

    ln - make a link to a file

 Syntax

    ln [ -s ] [ -f ] sourcename  targetname

    ln [ -s ] [ -f ] sourcename1 sourcename2 [ sourcename3 ... ]
    targetdirectory

 Description

    A link is a directory entry referring to a file; a single file (together
    with its size, all its protection information, etc.)  may have several
    links to it.  There are two kinds of link: hard links and symbolic links.

    By default ln makes hard links.  A hard link to a file is indistinguish-
    able from the original directory entry; any changes to a file are effec-
    tive independent of the name used to reference the file.  Hard links may
    not span file systems and may not refer to directories.

    The -s option causes ln to create symbolic links.  A symbolic link con-
    tains the name of the file to which it is linked; this file does not need
    to exist prior to the symbolic link. The referenced file is used when an
    open(S) operation is performed on the link.  A stat(S) on a symbolic link
    will return the linked-to file; a stat(S) must be performed to obtain in-
    formation about the link.  The readlink(S) call may be used to read the
    contents of a symbolic link.  Symbolic links may span file systems and
    may refer to directories.

    Given two arguments, ln creates a link to a file sourcename.  If target-
    name is a file, the link has that name; targetname may also be a direc-
    tory in which to place the link; otherwise it is placed in the current
    directory.  If only the directory is specified, the link will be made to
    the last component of sourcename.

    Given more than two arguments, ln makes links in targetdirectory to all
    the named source files.  The links made will have the same names as the
    files being linked to.  If ln determines that the mode of target forbids
    writing, it will print the mode (see chmod(C)), ask for a response, and
    read the standard input for one line.

    If the line begins with y, the ln occurs, if permissible; if not, the
    command exits.

    When the -f option is used or if the standard input is not a terminal, no
    questions are asked and the ln is performed.

 See also

    cp(C), mv(C), rm(C)

 Standards conformance

    ln is conformant with:

    AT&T SVID Issue 2;
    and X/Open Portability Guide, Issue 3, 1989.