  We derive the codimension-two defects of 4d $\mathcal{N} = 4$ Super
Yang-Mills (SYM) theory from the (2, 0) little string. The origin of the little
string is type IIB theory compactified on an ADE singularity. The defects are
D-branes wrapping the 2-cycles of the singularity. We use this construction to
make contact with the description of SYM defects due to Gukov and Witten
[arXiv:hep-th/0612073]. Furthermore, we derive from a geometric perspective the
complete nilpotent orbit classification of codimension-two defects, and the
connection to ADE-type Toda CFT. The only data needed to specify the defects is
a set of weights of the algebra obeying certain constraints, which we give
explicitly. We highlight the differences between the defect classification in
the little string theory and its (2, 0) CFT limit.
