How to remove a symbolic link without deleting the file

rhbegin · 10-09-2007, 07:22 PM

What linux command will enable you to remove a symbolic link without deleting the original file. I used the unlink and it deleted the original file leaving me with a broken symbolic link to clean up.

Basically I need to know how to unlink a symbolic link without removing the original file.

Second, how to clean up the broken symbolic links to free the inodes.

Thanks any help would be greatly appreciated.

jailbait · 10-09-2007, 07:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rhbegin

What linux command will enable you to remove a symbolic link without deleting the original file. I used the unlink and it deleted the original file leaving me with a broken symbolic link to clean up.

Basically I need to know how to unlink a symbolic link without removing the original file.

Second, how to clean up the broken symbolic links to free the inodes.

Thanks any help would be greatly appreciated.

Use the rm command to delete the symbolic link without disturbing the original file. See:

man rm

Second: Use the rm command to remove the broken symbolic links.

-------------
Steve Stites

rhbegin · 10-09-2007, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jailbait

Use the rm command to delete the symbolic link without disturbing the original file. See:

man rm

Second: Use the rm command to remove the broken symbolic links.

-------------
Steve Stites

Thanks for the quick reply Steve, what has happened is that I had created some ssh keys linked the private one to another file I created for another server. In process I used the wrong command deleting my private key for the system.

Take this example, I am really confused on how to remove the symlink, like if you had file1 ---> file2 how do you go about removing the link without deleting the file this is what happens with the rm command???

I am just not understanding the main concept.

Thanks,
Scott

AtomicAmish · 10-09-2007, 09:29 PM

Unlink should do it.

See this thread, post #8.

shafty023 · 10-10-2007, 10:38 AM

If you have a symbolic link ALINK that pointed to AFILE as follows:

ALINK -> AFILE

then you'd simply run this command to remove ALINK
rm ALINK

This will leave AFILE intact.