Support README.md being a symbolic link

Everyone can contribute. Help move this issue forward while earning points, leveling up and collecting rewards.

• Close this issue

Summary

When README.md is a symlink to another file (say README), Gitlab web UI should render the contents of the linked file, not just the name of the linked file.

Steps to reproduce

• Create a file README in markdown format.
• Create README.md as a symlink to README so that Gitlab picks it up for pretty rendering: ln -s README README.md
• Push the 2 files to the remote.

Example Project

Someone is proposing a MR to GIMP to have its README as markdown: https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gimp/-/merge_requests/193

I still consider the README as the main first file to be read in a project, because pure text is what matters when one develops (you usually develop in some terminal or code editor, not on the web). Still considering that Markdown is pretty-much text-like, it's ok to use it as the README format if people really care about reading this file in a web browser (why not).

Yet we still need README because it's a GNU project (having a README is a GNU base concept and it makes sense). I know we could make the opposite symlink (README could be a symlink to README.md) but it would be really nice is Gitlab could properly support symbolic links, which are like a base feature of our systems since forever. ;-)

Also as said, I really prefer README to be conceptually the source, not the other way around.

What is the current bug behavior?

The name of the target file is displayed only, i.e. "README"

What is the expected correct behavior?

The contents of README should be pretty-rendered on the Gitlab page.

Relevant logs and/or screenshots

How the README.md is rendered when it's a symlink to README:

Output of checks

This bug happens on gitlab.gnome.org, I have not tested on other instances.

Results of GitLab environment info

…

Results of GitLab application Check

…

Possible fixes

…