# files/ vs roles/foo/files . Can I use both?

**URL:** <https://forum.ansible.com/t/files-vs-roles-foo-files-can-i-use-both/14120>\
**Category:** Ansible Project\
**Created:** [December 10, 2013, 9:24pm UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/files-vs-roles-foo-files-can-i-use-both/14120 "2013-12-10T21:24:32Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Dimon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Dimon](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Dimon)\
**Post date:** [December 10, 2013, 9:24pm UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/files-vs-roles-foo-files-can-i-use-both/14120/1 "2013-12-10T21:24:32Z")

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I have a situation where I have files locateed in /files (top-level) and would like to use them within certain roles to avoid duplication. However ansible tells me it can’t find referenced file. Do I need to turn a knob or should I just copy same files into diff roles or for any common files create additional common roles?

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**Author:** ![David\_Karban](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@David\_Karban](https://forum.ansible.com/u/David_Karban)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 8:58am UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/files-vs-roles-foo-files-can-i-use-both/14120/2 "2013-12-11T08:58:36Z")

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Hi,

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**Author:** ![Brian\_Coca1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Brian\_Coca1](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Brian_Coca1)\
**Post date:** [December 11, 2013, 6:50pm UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/files-vs-roles-foo-files-can-i-use-both/14120/3 "2013-12-11T18:50:23Z")

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symlinks also work, but can be a pain to maintain

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**Author:** ![Dimon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Dimon](https://forum.ansible.com/u/Dimon)\
**Post date:** [December 12, 2013, 2:03am UTC](https://forum.ansible.com/t/files-vs-roles-foo-files-can-i-use-both/14120/4 "2013-12-12T02:03:39Z")

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thanks for the pointer. with\_first\_found is an interesting construct I’ve missed reading docs.