vfs_get_link(9)

💜 vfs_get_link(9) — the Kernel API Manual, bestie edition 🎀

okay so real talk, this is vfs_get_link from the Kernel API Manual (vfs_get_link(9), yes the name literally repeats, we love a consistent queen 👑). she's a little function with one job and honestly? she ate.

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✨ NAME ✨

vfs_get_link — get symlink body 🦋

like, that's it. that's the whole personality. she gets you the body of a symbolic link. slay.

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🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

const char * vfs_get_link (struct dentry *dentry , struct delayed_call *done );

look at her signature, so clean, so iconic ✨

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🎀 ARGUMENTS 🎀

• dentry — the dentry on which to get symbolic link. this is your main character, the thing you're asking about 💅
• done — the caller needs to free returned data with this. yes, really. you own the cleanup, bestie. it's giving "you break it you bought it" 🫶

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💖 DESCRIPTION 💖

okay so here's the vibe: vfs_get_link calls the security hook and i_op->get_link on the supplied inode. both of them. no cap. 🔥

it does not touch atime. ngl that's lowkey important — that's up to the caller if necessary. so if you want the access time updated, that's on you, not her 🙈

and she does not work on "special" symlinks like /proc/$$/fd/N. like, at all. not her department, not her problem, don't @ her 💀

fr fr check that last one before you ship — "special" symlinks are a hard no here, and there's no vibe check that'll save you.

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🦋 SEE ALSO 🦋

Kernel file ./fs/namei.c — and honestly the whole extended friend group, because she knows everyone 💅

• check_acl(9)
• acl_permission_check(9)
• generic_permission(9)
• do_inode_permission(9)
• sb_permission(9)
• inode_permission(9)
• path_get(9)
• path_put(9)
• path_connected(9)
• try_to_unlazy(9)
• try_to_unlazy_next(9)
• complete_walk(9)
• may_follow_link(9)
• safe_hardlink_source(9)
• may_linkat(9)
• may_create_in_sticky(9)
• lookup_fast(9)
• start_dirop(9)
• end_dirop(9)
• kern_path_parent(9)
• vfs_path_parent_lookup(9)
• vfs_path_lookup(9)
• try_lookup_noperm(9)
• lookup_noperm(9)
• lookup_one(9)
• lookup_one_unlocked(9)
• lookup_one_positive_killable(9)
• lookup_one_positive_unlocked(9)
• lookup_noperm_unlocked(9)
• start_creating(9)
• start_removing(9)
• start_creating_killable(9)
• start_removing_killable(9)
• start_creating_noperm(9)
• start_removing_noperm(9)
• start_creating_dentry(9)
• start_removing_dentry(9)
• __start_renaming(9)
• start_renaming(9)
• start_renaming_dentry(9)
• start_renaming_two_dentries(9)
• vfs_prepare_mode(9)
• vfs_create(9)
• atomic_open(9)
• vfs_lookup_open(9)
• vfs_tmpfile(9)
• kernel_tmpfile_open(9)
• end_creating_path(9)
• dentry_create(9)
• vfs_mknod(9)
• vfs_mkdir(9)
• vfs_rmdir(9)
• vfs_unlink(9)
• vfs_symlink(9)
• vfs_link(9)
• vfs_rename(9)
• vfs_readlink(9)
• page_get_link(9)
• page_put_link(9)

like, that's the whole group chat and every single one of them is invited 💜

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okay that's the page!! 🌈 final vibes check: this whole situation lives in the ./fs directory, dated October 2026, and the manual version is vfs_get_link(9) — that's the source, the directory and the date all in one cute little sign-off, mwah 💋 see u next manpage bestie 🫶✨