fix: create resolvable symlinks on Windows#5
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Symlinks extracted on Windows were never resolvable, which broke consumers that open files through the link chain inside the darwin Electron zip (e.g. Electron Framework.framework/Electron Framework). Two bugs in make_symlink: - The archive's POSIX-style target was passed verbatim to CreateSymbolicLink, but NTFS reparse points don't treat '/' as a separator. Rewrite '/' to '\' before creating the link, matching what Node's fs.symlink does. - symlink_file succeeds even when the target is a directory (it just creates an untraversable file-type link), so the symlink_dir fallback was dead code. Decide the link type up front instead: verify_symlink_target now returns the resolved target path, and a windows-only helper follows any remaining hops (pending links from the archive, then the on-disk tree) to check whether it is a directory. Unresolvable targets default to file-type, which is no worse than a dangling link. The new framework fixture mirrors the macOS bundle shape (file link crossing a directory link) and the test runs on Windows whenever the symlink privilege is available.
erickzhao
approved these changes
Jun 5, 2026
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🎉 This PR is included in version 1.0.2 🎉 The release is available on: Your semantic-release bot 📦🚀 |
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What
Symlinks created during extraction on Windows were never resolvable. Any consumer that opens a file through a link chain — like electron/fuses reading
Electron.app/Contents/Frameworks/Electron Framework.framework/Electron Frameworkout of the darwin Electron zip — gotENOENT(see the Windows CI failure on electron/fuses#120).Why
Two bugs in
make_symlinkon Windows:Versions/Current/Electron Framework), and Rust's std passes them verbatim toCreateSymbolicLink. NTFS reparse-point resolution does not treat/as a separator, so the link never resolves. Node'sfs.symlinkrewrites/to\for exactly this reason, which is why the original JS extract-zip worked.symlink_file(...).or_else(symlink_dir(...))never falls back, becausesymlink_filesucceeds even when the target is a directory — it just creates a file-type link that Windows refuses to traverse as a path component. SoVersions/Current -> Acame out untraversable.How
/to\in the target before creating the link.verify_symlink_targetnow returns the resolved target path, and a Windows-only helper follows any remaining hops (pending links from this archive first, then the on-disk tree) to determine whether the target is a directory. Unresolvable targets (dangling, loops) default to file-type — no worse than a dangling link, and never an escape since the path was already verified to stay insidedir.No change to the validation logic itself; the security boundary check is untouched.
Testing
frameworkfixture mirroring the macOS bundle shape: a file link that crosses a directory link, with the links ordered before the file to exercise the pending-link map.x86_64-pc-windows-msvc; full suite (52 tests) green on macOS.