diff --git a/core/libs/prx/libkernel/File/include/WindowsSymbolicLink.hpp b/core/libs/prx/libkernel/File/include/WindowsSymbolicLink.hpp
index d4a17f6abb..cfe60f586d 100644
--- a/core/libs/prx/libkernel/File/include/WindowsSymbolicLink.hpp
+++ b/core/libs/prx/libkernel/File/include/WindowsSymbolicLink.hpp
@@ -26,8 +26,22 @@ class WindowsSymbolicLink {
     };
     static constexpr ULONG relativeFlag = 1;
 
+    static std::wstring TextAt(const std::byte* data, DWORD size, USHORT offset, USHORT length, const char* operation) {
+        const std::size_t begin = sizeof(ReparseData) + offset;
+        if (length % sizeof(wchar_t) != 0 || begin + length > size)
+            throw std::runtime_error(std::string(operation) + ": malformed symbolic link reparse data");
+        std::wstring name(length / sizeof(wchar_t), L'\0');
+        if (!name.empty()) std::memcpy(name.data(), data + begin, name.size() * sizeof(wchar_t));
+        return name;
+    }
+
+    static std::wstring WithoutNtPrefix(std::wstring name) {
+        if (name.rfind(L"\\??\\", 0) == 0 || name.rfind(L"\\\\?\\", 0) == 0) name.erase(0, 4);
+        return name;
+    }
+
 public:
-    static bool ReadRelative(const std::filesystem::path& native, std::string& target, const char* operation) {
+    static bool Read(const std::filesystem::path& native, std::string& target, const char* operation) {
         const HANDLE handle = CreateFileW(native.c_str(), 0, FILE_SHARE_READ | FILE_SHARE_WRITE | FILE_SHARE_DELETE, nullptr,
             OPEN_EXISTING, FILE_FLAG_OPEN_REPARSE_POINT | FILE_FLAG_BACKUP_SEMANTICS, nullptr);
         if (handle == INVALID_HANDLE_VALUE)
@@ -42,12 +56,13 @@ public:
         ReparseData header{};
         if (size < sizeof(header)) return false;
         std::memcpy(&header, data.data(), sizeof(header));
-        if (header.tag != IO_REPARSE_TAG_SYMLINK || (header.flags & relativeFlag) == 0) return false;
-        const std::size_t begin = sizeof(header) + header.substituteNameOffset;
-        if (begin + header.substituteNameLength > size)
-            throw std::runtime_error(std::string(operation) + ": malformed symbolic link reparse data");
-        std::wstring name(header.substituteNameLength / sizeof(wchar_t), L'\0');
-        std::memcpy(name.data(), data.data() + begin, name.size() * sizeof(wchar_t));
+        if (header.tag != IO_REPARSE_TAG_SYMLINK) return false;
+        const bool relative = (header.flags & relativeFlag) != 0;
+        std::wstring name = relative
+            ? TextAt(data.data(), size, header.substituteNameOffset, header.substituteNameLength, operation)
+            : TextAt(data.data(), size, header.printNameOffset, header.printNameLength, operation);
+        if (!relative && name.empty())
+            name = WithoutNtPrefix(TextAt(data.data(), size, header.substituteNameOffset, header.substituteNameLength, operation));
         target = std::filesystem::path(name).generic_string();
         return true;
     }
diff --git a/core/libs/prx/libkernel/File/src/NativeStat.cpp b/core/libs/prx/libkernel/File/src/NativeStat.cpp
index a0314cb45c..c83090182b 100644
--- a/core/libs/prx/libkernel/File/src/NativeStat.cpp
+++ b/core/libs/prx/libkernel/File/src/NativeStat.cpp
@@ -51,8 +51,8 @@ static int DoLstat(const std::filesystem::path& p, NativeStat* st) {
     const auto attributes = GetFileAttributesW(p.c_str());
     if (attributes == INVALID_FILE_ATTRIBUTES || (attributes & FILE_ATTRIBUTE_REPARSE_POINT) == 0) return DoStat(p, st);
     std::string target;
-    if (!File::WindowsSymbolicLink::ReadRelative(p, target, "lstat") && !File::WindowsSymbolicLink::ReadJunction(p, target, "lstat"))
-        NotImplemented_nid_no_patch("lstat of a Windows reparse point other than a relative symbolic link");
+    if (!File::WindowsSymbolicLink::Read(p, target, "lstat") && !File::WindowsSymbolicLink::ReadJunction(p, target, "lstat"))
+        NotImplemented_nid_no_patch("lstat of a Windows reparse point other than a symbolic link");
     const auto handle = CreateFileW(p.c_str(), FILE_READ_ATTRIBUTES, FILE_SHARE_READ | FILE_SHARE_WRITE | FILE_SHARE_DELETE,
         nullptr, OPEN_EXISTING, FILE_FLAG_OPEN_REPARSE_POINT | FILE_FLAG_BACKUP_SEMANTICS, nullptr);
     if (handle == INVALID_HANDLE_VALUE) return File::WindowsFileTime::Failure(GetLastError());
diff --git a/core/libs/prx/libkernel_sys/Export.cpp b/core/libs/prx/libkernel_sys/Export.cpp
index 80688e21df..d438fa7b6b 100644
--- a/core/libs/prx/libkernel_sys/Export.cpp
+++ b/core/libs/prx/libkernel_sys/Export.cpp
@@ -130,8 +130,8 @@ std::int64_t ReadNativeLink(const std::filesystem::path& native, char* buffer, s
     const DWORD attributes = GetFileAttributesW(native.wstring().c_str());
     if (attributes != INVALID_FILE_ATTRIBUTES && (attributes & FILE_ATTRIBUTE_REPARSE_POINT) != 0) {
         std::string target;
-        if (!File::WindowsSymbolicLink::ReadRelative(native, target, "readlink") && !File::WindowsSymbolicLink::ReadJunction(native, target, "readlink")) {
-            NotImplemented_nid_no_patch("readlink of a Windows reparse point other than a relative symbolic link");
+        if (!File::WindowsSymbolicLink::Read(native, target, "readlink") && !File::WindowsSymbolicLink::ReadJunction(native, target, "readlink")) {
+            NotImplemented_nid_no_patch("readlink of a Windows reparse point other than a symbolic link");
             return -1;
         }
         return CopyLinkTarget(target, buffer, size);
diff --git a/core/libs/tests/GuestFilesystem.cpp b/core/libs/tests/GuestFilesystem.cpp
index b358b88503..6ecd978e3d 100644
--- a/core/libs/tests/GuestFilesystem.cpp
+++ b/core/libs/tests/GuestFilesystem.cpp
@@ -714,24 +714,11 @@ int main() {
         Require(stat_nid_postfix(fileLink.string().c_str(), &followed) == 0 && (followed.st_mode & 0170000) == 0100000);
         Require(followed.st_ino == status.st_ino && linkStatus.st_ino != status.st_ino && linkStatus.st_dev == status.st_dev);
         Require(stat_nid_postfix(directoryLink.string().c_str(), &followed) == 0 && (followed.st_mode & 0170000) == 0040000);
-        const auto checkUnsupportedLink = [](const std::filesystem::path& link) {
-            FileStat untouched;
-            std::memset(&untouched, 0x5a, sizeof(untouched));
-            constexpr int sentinelError = 123;
-            *__error_nid_postfix() = sentinelError;
-            bool rejected = false;
-            try {
-                lstat_nid_postfix(link.string().c_str(), &untouched);
-            } catch (const std::runtime_error& error) {
-                rejected = std::strcmp(error.what(), "lstat of a Windows reparse point other than a relative symbolic link not implemented") == 0;
-            }
-            const bool errorUnchanged = *__error_nid_postfix() == sentinelError;
-            const auto* bytes = reinterpret_cast<const unsigned char*>(&untouched);
-            const bool statusUnchanged = std::all_of(bytes, bytes + sizeof(untouched), [](unsigned char value) { return value == 0x5a; });
-            return rejected && errorUnchanged && statusUnchanged;
-        };
         Require(stat_nid_postfix(fileLink.string().c_str(), &status) == 0 && status.st_size == 5);
-        Require(checkUnsupportedLink(absoluteLink));
+        FileStat absoluteStatus{};
+        Require(lstat_nid_postfix(absoluteLink.string().c_str(), &absoluteStatus) == 0);
+        Require((absoluteStatus.st_mode & 0170000) == 0120000 && absoluteStatus.st_size > 0 && absoluteStatus.st_nlink == 1);
+        Require(stat_nid_postfix(absoluteLink.string().c_str(), &followed) == 0 && followed.st_ino == status.st_ino);
         Require(std::filesystem::remove(fileLink) && std::filesystem::remove(directoryLink) && DeleteFileW(danglingLink.c_str()) != 0 &&
             std::filesystem::remove(absoluteLink) && std::filesystem::remove(targetDirectory));
     }
diff --git a/core/libs/tests/GuestKernelSys.cpp b/core/libs/tests/GuestKernelSys.cpp
index d2084f6920..d005fbc525 100644
--- a/core/libs/tests/GuestKernelSys.cpp
+++ b/core/libs/tests/GuestKernelSys.cpp
@@ -289,13 +289,18 @@ int main() {
         const auto absolute = std::filesystem::absolute(root / "absolute");
         Require(CreateSymbolicLinkW(absolute.wstring().c_str(), std::filesystem::absolute(original).wstring().c_str(),
             SYMBOLIC_LINK_FLAG_ALLOW_UNPRIVILEGED_CREATE) != 0);
-        bool refused = false;
-        try {
-            readlink_nid_postfix((root / "absolute").string().c_str(), buffer, sizeof(buffer));
-        } catch (const std::runtime_error& failure) {
-            refused = std::string(failure.what()) == "readlink of a Windows reparse point other than a relative symbolic link not implemented";
-        }
-        Require(refused);
+        char absoluteBuffer[512];
+        std::memset(absoluteBuffer, '#', sizeof(absoluteBuffer));
+        const auto absoluteLength = readlink_nid_postfix((root / "absolute").string().c_str(), absoluteBuffer, sizeof(absoluteBuffer));
+        const bool absoluteFits = absoluteLength > 0 && static_cast<std::size_t>(absoluteLength) < sizeof(absoluteBuffer) &&
+            absoluteBuffer[absoluteLength] == '#';
+        const std::string absoluteTarget = absoluteFits ? std::string(absoluteBuffer, static_cast<std::size_t>(absoluteLength)) : std::string();
+        std::error_code absoluteError;
+        const bool absoluteMatches = absoluteFits && absoluteTarget.find('?') == std::string::npos &&
+            std::filesystem::equivalent(absoluteTarget, original, absoluteError) && !absoluteError;
+        if (!absoluteMatches)
+            std::fprintf(stderr, "absolute link returned %lld bytes\n", static_cast<long long>(absoluteLength));
+        Require(absoluteMatches);
 #else
         Require(std::filesystem::is_symlink(std::filesystem::symlink_status(symbolic)));
         Require(readlink_nid_postfix(symbolic.c_str(), buffer, sizeof(buffer)) == 12 && std::memcmp(buffer, "original.bin", 12) == 0);