In Mac OS X, what is an alias and how does it work?

In Mac OS X, an alias is a pointer file that makes it easier for you to quickly open the files, folders, servers, or applications that you use most often. When you double-click an alias, the operating system finds the file to which the alias is pointing and opens it. You can tell an alias from a normal file or folder by its icon, which has an arrow in the bottom left corner. Once you create an alias, it will always open the original item, even if the item has been moved or renamed. The link between an alias and its original remains functional until the original is deleted, or minor hard disk errors cause the system to forget the original file's location. At this point, the alias is broken and should be deleted and recreated.

Creating an alias

You have several options for creating an alias:

• Drag and drop: Click the item you wish to alias and hold down the mouse button. Then, while holding down the Cmd and Option keys simultaneously, drag the item to where you want the alias to appear, and let go of the mouse button. Instead of moving the original item, this will create an alias at the new location.
  
  
• Contextual menus: Hold down the Ctrl key, and then click the item you wish to alias. The contextual menu will appear, and one of the choices will be Make Alias. Highlight that option, and then let go of the mouse button. The new alias will appear next to the original.
  
  
• Keystroke: Select the icon of the item you wish to alias, and then press Cmd-l (the lowercase L). The new alias will appear next to its original.
  
  
• From the File menu: Click the item once to select it, and then from the File menu, select Make Alias. This also creates a new icon next to the original. For example, if you click a file called Gotham.doc, the icon will darken. Then, after opening the File menu and selecting Make Alias, the alias will be created, with the name "Gotham.doc alias, next to the original.

Once you have created an alias, you can move it to a more convenient location, and then rename it or give it a new icon as you wish.

Also see:

• In Unix, what is a symbolic link, and how do I create one?
• In Mac OS X, how do I find the original (parent) of an alias?
• In Mac OS and Mac OS X, what are file types and creators?