If there is one thing, we definitely like Windows 10, then it would definitely be the Windows Shell. However, it's not perfect, obviously, so how can we make it better for everyday use? Well, to answer this question, we will have to look closely HardLink Shell Extension. Using this tool makes it easy to create physical links, symbolic links, junctions and volume mount points. Just press the right mouse button to see all the interesting options. From there, select one of the available files, then continue.
What are hard links, symbolic links, junctions, volume mount points?
You may be wondering what is a Hard linkwell, this allows the user to keep a copy of a file, while making it appear in multiple folders or directories. To create one, you must use the POSIX command (portable open system interface for UNIX), available in the Windows Resource Kit.
- Symbolic links also called Symlinks or Soft links are shortcut files that refer to a physical file or folder located elsewhere. Symbolic links act as virtual files or folders, which can be used to link to individual files or folders, making them appear as if they were stored in the folder containing symbolic links, even if the symbolic links only point to their actual location.
- junctions are, according to the author, wormholes in a tree structure of an oriented graph. As it is, if you make changes to a junction file, the original will also undergo the same change. The same goes if you press the Delete button, expect the original to disappear as well.
- Volume mount points provides functionality to create complete local volumes on random disk locations. Volume mount points were not supported in NTFS version 4.0.
HardLink Shell Extension for Windows PC
Installation is fairly simple, but remember that before continuing, you must have administrator privileges, otherwise nothing will work as expected. Now, after running the installation file, follow the on-screen instructions to complete the task.
The default location of the file after installation is C: Program Files LinkShellExtension. Now, we have to point out that during file installation, Explorer.exe will restart only once, so don't be too surprised if your computer screen goes blank for a second or two.
You can improve Windows Shell Explorer now with Hardlink Shell Explorer. It is a great tool from our point of view, so check out its following features:
- Choose the source of the link
- Drop HardLink
- Cancel the choice of link
- Contextual submenu
1) Choose the source of the link
OK, so choosing the source of the link is a simple thing to do without any problems. Navigate to the file (s) for which you want to create a hard link, then right click and select the option that says Choose link source. The file should now be stored as the source of the hard link without problem.
2) Drop HardLink
In order to delete the HardLink, create a destination folder, then right click in the folder and hover over Drop As. From there, select Hardlink from the little menu that appears, and that's it. You can also create a symbolic link if that suits you, because the option is there.
In addition, we should point out that an overlay icon is created for Hardlink files in order to distinguish them from regular links.
3) Cancel the selection link
After choosing the link, you may feel the need to cancel before continuing with the task. This can be done by simply right clicking on the file, and from there select Cancel link creation, and it should do the job.
4) Contextual submenu
The tool supports junction, clones and symbolic links, but this can only be done when one or more folders are chosen as source links. In order to avoid filling the context menu with too many options.
Note that the Hardlink Shell extension supports drag and drop, which can be much easier than the typical copy and paste mechanism in some situations. You can download the Hardlink Shell extension from the Official page.