Hardlinks in Linux: 3 Commands to Find Duplicate Files

Question: I have duplicate-looking files. Are they hardlinks or real copies?

Try: find /home/linuxteck -type f -links +1 -printf '%i %n %p\n' | sort

Info: Finds files sharing inodes and link counts to identify hardlinks.

Examples:

• $ find /path -samefile /path/to/original  # Locate all hardlinks referencing a specific file
• $ ls -li file.txt  # Display file inode numbers in the first column
• $ stat -c '%h %n' file.txt  # Output hardlink count and filename

Note: Hardlinks share the same inode and disk blocks without consuming extra space. Changes reflect across all links, and deleting one link leaves others intact. Note that hardlinks cannot cross filesystem boundaries.