Links
Just as on POSIX, links come in two flavours: hard links and soft links. Neither is superior; they are suited to different use cases. Each may contain the other; the major difference is if the reference is mutable or immutable.
Hard links are "merely" CIDs. They point directly to the exact bits that the CID represents. If these bits originate on a different account, they are copied into the linking file system.
Soft links are URLs. They are relative to a mutable pointer, such as a DNSlink. They have the advantage of updating along with versions, but are more liable to break.
| Hard Links | Soft Links |
Type | CID | URL |
Mechanism | Copy | Reference |
Mutability | Immutable | Mutable |
Availability Guarantee | ❌ | ❌ |
Self-validating | ✅ | ❌ |
Subpaths | ✅ | ✅ |
Cycles | ❌ | ✅ |
Auto-update | ❌ | ✅ |
Web 2 Compatible | ❌ | ✅ |
Last modified 1yr ago