It is the file systems that determine how information is stored in the form of familiar files, as well as how quickly the data will be accessed and what limitations users will face.
There are more than 30 file systems (FS), most of which have specific applications. For example, the FS called XFS was created exclusively for the IRIX operating system, and DTFS is a file system that specializes in data compression.
If we talk about ordinary PC users on Windows, MacOS and Linux, then for them the list can be reduced to several of the most common ones.
- FAT32.
- exFAT.
- NTFS.
FAT32
A file system developed by Microsoft to replace FAT16. Structurally, the entire disk area in FAT32 is divided into clusters ranging in size from 512 bytes to 32 KB. Imagine a notebook with a grid. Each cell is a cluster in which a file or part of it can be written. Thus, large files consist of a chain of clusters that are not necessarily located one after another.
Let’s not delve into technical details and talk about what most interests ordinary users – the pros and cons of FAT32.
The main and so far indisputable advantage of this file system is its versatility. FAT32 works with almost all Windows operating systems, and is also easily recognized by Linux, MacOS, gaming console operating systems and even Android (if the smartphone supports OTG).
That is why flash drives are most often formatted in FAT32, so as not to have compatibility issues on different devices. More than 90% of all flash drives are supplied with this file system from the factory. In parallel, the advantages include high speed of work with small and medium files (tens/hundreds of megabytes) and undemanding RAM capacity.
However, the venerable age of FAT32 (more than 24 years, which is simply a huge period by the standards of the IT industry) imposes a number of unpleasant restrictions.
Despite the fact that the volume size can technically reach up to 8 TiB (tebibytes), which is about 8.7 TB, in fact, in Windows operating systems, due to a built-in limitation, you will not be able to create a volume larger than 32 GB. Accordingly, it will not be possible to mark large hard drives, at least in Windows, in FAT32. There will also be problems with 64 GB flash drives.
Another, more significant limitation is that the size of one file cannot exceed 4 GB. Considering that backups, high-resolution movies, and archives with various information weigh more than this limit, the limitation causes a lot of inconvenience.
exFAT
One of the latest “novelties”, created in 2008 as an extended version of FAT32 (extended FAT). Microsoft decided to take the best and get rid of the most unpleasant shortcomings.
exFAT is designed exclusively for portable storage devices — flash drives, SD cards, and removable hard drives. The cluster size has been increased to 32 megabytes, allowing the file size to now reach as much as 16 exabytes (1 exabyte = 1,048,576 TB). exFAT has quite an impressive future.
At the same time, the developers got rid of the volume size limit, introduced support for access rights, and minimized the number of rewrites, which is especially important for flash memory, the memory cells of which have a limited number of write cycles, after which they fail.
There is only one noticeable drawback — a slight loss of compatibility. exFAT supports Windows XP SP2 and newer operating systems. Accordingly, Windows 2000, NT, and everything older are left “overboard.” The increased complexity of the structure also led to large expenditures of computer computing power. However, against the background of modern processors with their potential, this drawback can be neglected.
NTFS
New Technology File System was developed back in 1993, but, like FAT32, is still used today. The similarity with FAT is also evident in the fact that the space is divided into clusters of a given size. However, it is the structure that provides NTFS with high flexibility.
The first 12% of the disk is allocated for the MFT zone – a special service space where various information for the operation of the entire FS is stored. This zone is never fragmented. Unlike FAT, a binary structure is used.
The binary tree arranges file names in such a way that the search is performed faster – by obtaining two-digit answers to questions about the file’s location. Accordingly, the search engine does not have to look through the entire chain of files in the directory.
NTFS has many advantages. The maximum volume size in practice is 256 TB. The file size is also more than enough – about 16 TB. In addition, due to the journaling function, NTFS is a fault-tolerant system. Simply put, the FS either performs the action to the end, or rolls everything back to the state when the action was not yet performed. There are practically no intermediate “erroneous” states. There is built-in compression, means of delimiting object rights, and data encryption.
The main disadvantage of NTFS is low compatibility – everything below Windows NT is not supported. This is not so sad, but on MacOS and Linux you will not be able to write files to disks with NTFS – only read. The PlayStation and Xbox 360 game consoles also do not work with this file system.
For example, in PS4 you can format an external hard drive, but only in the format of the console itself to ensure compatibility.
Thus, due to its functionality and support for large amounts of space, NTFS is an excellent option for HDD and SSD drives. Despite this, you can easily create a flash drive on NTFS, but its speed will be lower compared to FAT.
Exotic file systems
A series of file systems ext1-ext4 was developed specifically for Linux. The most common is ext3 – the maximum file size is 2 TiB (about 2 TB), and the limit on the FS size is 32 TiB (about 35 TB). A journal is provided, thanks to which you can restore the system in case of some failures. You can read ext on Windows, but only with the use of special software (Ext2Explore and similar).
The ext4 file system is a modification of the third version. The main innovations include an increase in the maximum partition size to 1 exbibyte and a file to 16 tebibytes (17.6 TB). In many distributions, ext4 is used by default, for example, Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, Mandriva Linux, Red Hat Enterprise.
Apple gadgets use a proprietary FS called APFS, which is also used on iOS. It is optimized for working with solid-state drives, and the maximum file size is about 8 exabytes. Other information regarding the file system is a commercial secret of the developers. You can make friends with APFS with Windows only with the help of special software.
