junction links

Junction links in Windows 10 and 11 allow you to move large folders from the system drive to another local drive without breaking applications that expect the original path. By creating a junction at the original location that points to the new folder, Windows and most apps treat the junction as if the folder is still there. This technique is useful for freeing up space on C: by relocating application data, game files, development caches, or media libraries. The process is intermediate-level and takes about 15 minutes. Junction links are a native Windows feature, not a third-party tool, and work across NTFS volumes on the same machine.