File system decides how data is stored and retrieved. File system separates data to pieces and gives a name to each piece, thus the information is isolated and recognized.
Without a file system, the information placed in the storage medium will be a large data body. We cannot identify where one message stops and where the next message begins.
There are many different types of file systems. And different operating systems support different file systems. For example, FAT32 is suitable for removable drive and Mac drives support HFS+. You should know the various file systems and the operating systems they are compatible with.
File systems are different from each other. They have different ways of organizing data. Some file systems are faster than others; some have additional security features; some support drives with large storage capacity; some are more robust.
When you create a new partition, you are required to format this partition in order to store data on this partition. There are several file systems for you to choose. How to choose from so many file systems?
FAT32 is an older file system. It is the most used version of FAT file system. FAT32 uses a 32-bit file allocation table, which greatly enhances its ability to manage disks and breaks the limit of FAT16 – 2 GB for each partition.
Advantage of FAT32
FAT32’s compatibility is very good. It is compatible with all Windows versions, Mac OS, Linux, etc.
The cluster is 4 kb when a FAT32 partition’s size is smaller than 8 GB. That means it greatly reduces disk waste and improves disk utilization.
Disadvantage of FAT32
FAT32 supports up to a single file with 4 GB. If your file is larger than 4 GB, you cannot save it on a FAT32 partition. The largest volume size of FAT32 partition is 2 TB.
NTFS (New Technology File System) was introduced in Windows NT and now it is a major file system for Windows. It is the default file system for partitions.
Advantage of NTFS
The theoretical maximum volume size of NTFS is 264 clusters − 1 cluster (format); 256 TB − 64 KB (implementation). As to the largest file size, it is 16 EiB – 1 KB (format);16 TB – 64 KB (Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2 or earlier implementation); 256 TB – 64 KB (Windows 8, Windows Server 2012 or later implementation).
NTFS is a journaling file system. That means it uses log file and checkpoint information to make file system consistent automatically when some circumstances happen.
NTFS can compress partitions, folders and files. It is not necessary to decompress files when applications in Windows read and write the compressed files on NTFS partition. That’s because when the files are read, it is automatically decompressed.
Users can set access permissions for shared resources, folders, and files on NTFS partition. It contains two parts. The first one is to set who can be allowed to access folders, files and shared resources. The second one is what content can be visited.
Disadvantage of NTFS
NTFS cannot work with some operating systems, including Linux and Mac OS X. It is read-only with these systems.
HFS+ is a file system developed by Apple Inc. Macs use HFS+ for their partitions. It replaced HFS as the primary file system of Apple computers with the 1998 release of Mac OS 8.1.
HFS+, an improved version of HFS, supports larger files and use Unicode to name files and folders.
Advantage of HFS+
In HFS files, the size of files is described by 32 bit. However, in HFS+ files, it is described by 64 bit. You ask what does this mean? It means HFS+ supports larger files.
Ext2 is short for second extended file system. It is a file system for Linux Kernel.
Disadvantage of Ext2
The biggest disadvantage of Ext2 is the lack of journaling. If you are writing to an Ext2 drive, suddenly power fails or computer crashes, the data may be lost.
Advantage of Ext3
Ext3 is the third extended file system, which is often used in Linux operating system. It is the default file system for many Linux distributions.
It has journaling feature that guarantees data security. But the speed is slow down for all data need writing twice.
And it allows upgrading from ext2 file systems without having to back up and restore data. In addition, it uses less CPU power than ReiserFS and XFS.
Advantage of Ext4
Ext4 is a further development of Ext3, extended with the support of optimized file allocation information (extents) and extended file attributes. This file system is frequently used as a “root” file system for most Linux installations.
The Ext4 files system can support 1EiB volumes and 16 TiB files. That’s a large number.
Ext3 currently supports only 32000 subdirectories, while ext4 theoretically supports an unlimited number of subdirectories.
In this post, I tell you what file system is and introduce some file system to you. And the systems that are compatible with these file systems are provided.
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