A symbolic link (symlink or simlink) is a file that is just a link to another file with its full path. A simlink is also a special type of file, so they can differentiate between different programs.

The simlink is used to get to the referenced physical file. Because the simlink itself is a file, most instructions (eg delete, rename) refer to the symbolic link file itself, not to the physical file it points to. Lists the directory Ls -l for example, shows both the simlink and the destination file it references. When libraries are listed with the "-l" switch, they indicate the symbol type at the first character of the line with the letter "l".