On Windows 11 and 10, you can use the built-in “mklink” command to create symbolic links (symlinks) for files and folders. A symbolic link acts as a shortcut (very different from the regular desktop shortcut), linking to a file or folder in one location while the actual content remains stored elsewhere. For example, you can create a symlink to sync any folder with OneDrive without moving the actual folder. Simply put, creating symlinks not only saves space but is an efficient way to manage files and directories across different drives or storage locations.
In this tutorial, I’ll show you how to create symbolic links (symlinks) for files and folders. Let’s get started.
Before You Begin
- You need administrator rights to create symlinks on Windows.
What Are Symbolic Links (symlinks) and Hard Links?
Before diving in and learning the steps to create symlinks, you need to understand the difference between symbolic links and hard links.
Symbolic Link (Symlink): A symlink is like a shortcut that points to another file or folder on your system. When you open a symlink, it takes you to the actual location of the original file or folder. Any changes made to the original file will appear in the symlink. If you delete the original file, the symlink becomes empty or unusable.
Hard link: A hard link acts like a copy of the original file but points to the same data on the disk. Hard links only work with files (not folders) and must be on the same drive as the original file. Changes to either the hard link or the original file reflect in the other, as both point to the same data. Unlike symlinks, deleting the original file does not break the hard link, as the data remains accessible through the link.
Create a Symlink for a File or Folder
- Right-click on the Start button.
- Select the “Terminal (Admin)” option.
- Click the down arrow on the title bar.
- Select the “Command Prompt” option.
- Run the following command to create a symlink to a folder.
mklink /D "C:\path\to\LinkFolder" "D:\path\to\ActualFolder"
- Run the following command to create a symlink to a file.
mklink "C:\path\to\LinkFile.txt" "D:\path\to\ActualFile.txt"
- With that, you’ve created the symlink for a file or folder on Windows.
Detailed Steps (With Screenshots)
First, open the terminal window with administrative privileges. To do that, right-click the Start button on the taskbar and choose the “Terminal (Admin)” option.

In the terminal window, open the Command Prompt tab by clicking the dropdown icon on the title bar and selecting the “Command Prompt” option.
Note: The below command doesn’t work in the PowerShell tab.

run the following commands to create a symlink.
In the command, replace the first path with the path where you want the symlink to appear and the second path with the actual file or folder path that you are linking.
- Symlink to a file
mklink "C:\path\to\LinkFile.txt" "D:\path\to\ActualFile.txt"
- Symlink to a folder
mklink /D "C:\path\to\LinkFolder" "D:\path\to\ActualFolder"

That is it. As soon as you execute the above command, Windows creates a symlink in the location and name of your choice. If you open the File Explorer and go to the drive/folder where you saved the symlink, you will see it immediately.

Wrapping Up — Creating Symlinks on Windows
As you can see, thanks to the built-in mklink command, you can easily create a symlink to any file or folder with just a single-line command. Do keep in mind that, any changes you make to the symlink will reflect in the original file or folder. Also, if you delete the original file or folder, the symlink will no longer work.
If you have any questions or need help, comment below. I’ll be happy to assist.