fscrypt_get_symlink(9)

💅 fscrypt_get_symlink(9) 💅

okay bestie, so this page lives in the Kernel API Manual and it's literally all about fscrypt_get_symlink — the function that goes and gets you the target of an encrypted symlink. yes, encrypted symlinks are a whole thing and yes, this is the vibe. 🎀

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✨ NAME ✨

fscrypt_get_symlink — get the target of an encrypted symlink 🦋

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🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

const char * fscrypt_get_symlink (struct inode *inode , const void
*caddr , unsigned int max_size , struct delayed_call *done );

like, that's the whole signature, no cap. four args, one const char * coming back at you ✨

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💖 ARGUMENTS 💖

• inode — the symlink inode, aka the main character here 👑
• caddr — the on-disk contents of the symlink. like, literally the raw bytes sitting on disk 🫶
• max_size — size of the caddr buffer, so we know how much we're working with 💅
• done — if it works out, this gets set up to free the returned target if needed. very "we'll handle cleanup later" of it 🙈

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⭐ DESCRIPTION ⭐

so here's the tea: if the symlink's encryption key is available, we decrypt its target. slay. 💜

otherwise? we encode its target for presentation. still iconic, just a different path.

⚠️ heads up bestie — this may sleep, so the filesystem must have dropped out of RCU mode already. not me stressing the RCU part, it's fr fr important 😭

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🔥 RETURN 🔥

the presentable symlink target, or an ERR_PTR. that's it, that's the deal ✨

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🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

Kernel file ./fs/crypto/hooks.c — go read it, iykyk 📖

• fscrypt_file_open(9)
• fscrypt_prepare_lookup_partial(9)
• fscrypt_prepare_setflags(9)
• fscrypt_prepare_symlink(9)
• fscrypt_symlink_getattr(9)

all the fscrypt besties, linked up 🫶

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and that's the page!! 🎀 this one came from ./fs/crypto and it's dated October 2026 — so like, future vibes only. drink water, check your RCU mode, bye bestie 💖✨