Nlinked

Nlinked is a framework and data model for creating, resolving, and managing cross-references between digital resources across distributed systems. It defines a compact, machine-readable representation for links and their provenance that can be embedded in documents, APIs, and databases.

At its core, Nlinked uses identifiers called Nids. Each Nlinked resource is a link node with metadata such as the source, target, relation type, and a timestamp. The framework supports graph-based linking, enabling multiple parents and children per resource and versioned history of the link graph.

Implementation specifies a JSON-based descriptor, a lightweight protocol for link discovery, and optional security extensions for access control and authentication. A resolver component resolves an Nid to a resource description and can follow chains to dereference related links. The model emphasizes portability, interoperability with REST and GraphQL, and compatibility with existing web standards.

History: The concept originated in 2019–2020 as part of research into interoperable hypermedia. The Nlinked specification was published as an open standard in 2021, with ongoing development by a community consortium.

Applications: digital libraries, knowledge graphs, content management, data integration, and archival systems use Nlinked to maintain rich, auditable connection data and to support offline or edge-resolution scenarios.

Limitations: adoption requires changes to tooling and data models, potential performance overhead for large link graphs, and privacy considerations for link provenance. Critics note the risk of fragmentation if multiple, incompatible extensions arise.