Written 29 Aug 2026. This is a how-to, not a product card.

Make a shortcut

After SSH works, make a shortcut with ln -s so a second name points at the same file. You don't need a file manager app for this.

Copy a file without leaving the computer makes a second pile of bytes. Tonight you only need a second name. ln -s puts a shortcut next to a file you already have. Change the real file, and the shortcut shows the same words. You are still only practicing in home. The computer does not need a desktop, a file manager, or a NAS for this one job.

Skip until SSH already works

SSH from the couch should already get you a prompt. If you need a real second copy, that is copy a file without leaving the computer. If you only need a new name and the old one can go, that is rename or move a file. Skip this whole note if you only need a house share other computers browse. That is a folder the house can open.

What this is

ln -s means link, symbolic. The computer also calls this a symbolic link. You can keep calling it a shortcut. It makes a new name that points at a file that is already there. You run it on the computer, after SSH. It does not copy the words. That is cp. It does not rename the file. That is mv. It does not change who can read or run it. That is make a file runnable. Two names, one file.

Make a practice shortcut

SSH in. Put one short practice file in home. A short name with no spaces is easier to type later:

echo 'hello from the computer' > ~/hello.txt

Then make a shortcut next to it. The first path is the real file. The second path is the new name:

ln -s ~/hello.txt ~/hello-link.txt

Use a path that starts with ~ or / so the shortcut still works after you move into another folder. A short name with no spaces is easier to type later.

See the arrow:

ls -l ~/hello-link.txt

You want a line that starts with l (for link) and an arrow to the real file, something like hello-link.txt -> /home/you/hello.txt. The computer prints your real home path, not the word you. Peek through the shortcut:

cat ~/hello-link.txt

You should see hello from the computer. That is the whole first-night trick.

Useful extras, still practicing only

Need to see where a shortcut points without dumping the file?

readlink ~/hello-link.txt

You want the path you gave ln -s.

Change the real file, then peek at the shortcut again:

echo 'hello again' > ~/hello.txt

cat ~/hello-link.txt

You want the new line. There is still only one pile of words. The shortcut did not keep a spare.

Need a shortcut to a folder you already made? Make a folder first if you don't have one, then:

ln -s ~/practice ~/practice-link

ls -l ~/practice-link

Same arrow, same idea. Skip that until a folder shortcut is the job.

If you see command not found, install the usual tools, then try again:

sudo apt install coreutils

Debian and Ubuntu Server usually already have it. That install is not a reason to buy a file manager.

When you are done practicing, delete the shortcut first. That does not delete the real file:

rm -i ~/hello-link.txt

Then the practice file, if you want it gone too:

rm -i ~/hello.txt

If you delete hello.txt first, the shortcut still sits there, but cat ~/hello-link.txt fails. That leftover name is a broken shortcut. Remove it with rm -i too.

What this is not

This is not a second copy of the words. That is copy a file without leaving the computer. It is not a rename. That is rename or move a file. It is not flipping the run bit. That is make a file runnable. It is not a file from the laptop. That is copy a file to the computer from your laptop. It is not a house share other computers browse. That is a folder the house can open.

What next

Need a real spare instead of a pointer? Copy a file without leaving the computer. Need the names and arrows again? See what's in a folder. Need the run bit on a practice script? Make a file runnable. Need a short line before the file exists? Put a short line into a file. Need a folder for shortcuts to land in? Make a folder. Need a file from the laptop instead? Copy a file to the computer from your laptop. When a house job broke, look at the computer's own diary: when something broke, look at the log. When key login is boring on every computer you use, turn off password login once the key works. Keep SSH on the house network: keep the computer on the house network. Don't forward port 22.

Skip

• Skip if SSH still fails. Finish SSH from the couch first.
• Skip ln without -s. That other kind of link is harder to undo. Tonight: the shortcut, ln -s.
• Skip ln -sf, shortcuts under /etc, SSH settings, or a file you care about. Practice only in home tonight.
• Skip a relative shortcut from a random folder. If you later cd somewhere else, that pointer can break. Start the real path with ~ or /.
• Skip SSH settings, /etc/shadow, and anything under /etc/ssh. Looking at trusted laptop keys is see which laptop keys the computer already trusts.
• Skip buying a file manager, a “cloud drive,” or a NAS to make one shortcut.
• Skip opening SSH to the internet so you can make shortcuts from a coffee shop. That is keep the computer on the house network.