A soft link is an actual link to the original file. If you delete the original file, the soft link has no value. Because it points to a non-existent file. It has the characteristic below:

  • Can cross the file system.
  • Allows you to link between directory.
  • Has different inode number and file permissions than original file.
  • Has only the path of the original file, not the contents.

A hard link is a mirror copy of the original file. If you delete the original file, the hard link will still has the data of the original file. Because hard link acts as a mirror copy of the original file.

  • Can only work on the same filesystem.
  • Can’t link between directories.
  • Has the same inode number and permissions of orginal file.
  • Permissions will updated if we change the permissions of source file.
  • Has the actual contents of original file.

If you copy a file, it will just duplicate the content. The variation in the original file will not affect the copied one. Also, hard link will not cover extra space.

Ref

Explaining Soft Link And Hard Link In Linux With Examples