Apache2 symlink - How to use target name and MIME type

I just set up an Apache2 server and it works fine. Since this server purpose is to simply serve versioned files, I created a latest symlink which targets e.g. myfile_v1.1.0.ext.

The problem is that when I access the URL http://localhost/latest, the download window shows latest as the filename and application/octet-stream as MIME type.

I would like that when I access this same URL, it shows myfile_v1.1.0.ext as the filename and application/my-app as MIME type.

Is there a way to achieve that?

Many thanks in advance

The solution is to simply add a Redirect directive in the Apache configuration file for your website.

Redirect "/latest" "files/myfile_v1.1.0.ext"

One way to do this would be to use an Alias in the Apache configuration. The downside is that you'll need to update this every time there's a release, but the benefit is that you can have a greater degree of control over how the file is handled.

Here is how you can do it:

0. Edit the Apache .conf file for the site
1. Add this in the <VirtualHost> section:

   Alias "/download" "/path/to/releases/myfile_v1.1.0.ext"
   <Directory "/path/to/releases">
           Options FollowSymLinks
           AllowOverride All
   
           <FilesMatch "\.(ext|zip)$">
                   Header set Cache-Control "max-age=1209600, public"
                   ForceType application/tar+gzip
           </FilesMatch>
   </Directory>
   

   ^{Note: Be sure to replace application/tar+gzip with the proper content type for the file.}
2. Save the file and restart Apache:

   sudo service apache2 restart
   

   ^{Note: Feel free to switch restart with reload.}
3. Test the url by visiting your.site/download

This has been tested on Ubuntu Server 20.04.3 LTS with Apache 2.4.41