1FILESYSTEMS(5) Linux Programmer's Manual FILESYSTEMS(5)
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6 filesystems - Linux file-system types: minix, ext, ext2, ext3,
7 Reiserfs, XFS, JFS, xia, msdos, umsdos, vfat, proc, nfs, iso9660, hpfs,
8 sysv, smb, ncpfs
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11 When, as is customary, the proc file system is mounted on /proc, you
12 can find in the file /proc/filesystems which file systems your kernel
13 currently supports. If you need a currently unsupported one, insert
14 the corresponding module or recompile the kernel.
15 In order to use a file system, you have to mount it; see mount(8).
17 Below a short description of a few of the available file systems.
19 minix is the file system used in the Minix operating system, the
21 first to run under Linux. It has a number of shortcomings: a
22 64MB partition size limit, short filenames, a single
23 timestamp, etc. It remains useful for floppies and RAM
24 disks.
25 ext is an elaborate extension of the minix file system. It has
27 been completely superseded by the second version of the
28 extended file system (ext2) and has been removed from the
29 kernel (in 2.1.21).
30 ext2 is the high performance disk file system used by Linux for
32 fixed disks as well as removable media. The second extended
33 file system was designed as an extension of the extended file
34 system (ext). ext2 offers the best performance (in terms of
35 speed and CPU usage) of the file systems supported under
36 Linux.
37 ext3 is a journaling version of the ext2 file system. It is easy
39 to switch back and forth between ext2 and ext3.
40 Reiserfs is a journaling file system, designed by Hans Reiser, that
42 was integrated into Linux in kernel 2.4.1.
43 XFS is a journaling file system, developed by SGI, that was
45 integrated into Linux in kernel 2.4.20.
46 JFS is a journaling file system, developed by IBM, that was
48 integrated into Linux in kernel 2.4.24.
49 xiafs was designed and implemented to be a stable, safe file system
51 by extending the Minix file system code. It provides the
52 basic most requested features without undue complexity. The
53 xia file system is no longer actively developed or
54 maintained. It was removed from the kernel in 2.1.21.
55 msdos is the file system used by DOS, Windows, and some OS/2
57 computers. msdos filenames can be no longer than 8
58 characters, followed by an optional period and 3 character
59 extension.
60 umsdos is an extended DOS file system used by Linux. It adds
62 capability for long filenames, UID/GID, POSIX permissions,
63 and special files (devices, named pipes, etc.) under the DOS
64 file system, without sacrificing compatibility with DOS.
65 vfat is an extended DOS file system used by Microsoft Windows95
67 and Windows NT. VFAT adds the capability to use long
68 filenames under the MSDOS file system.
69 proc is a pseudo file system which is used as an interface to
71 kernel data structures rather than reading and interpreting
72 /dev/kmem. In particular, its files do not take disk space.
73 See proc(5).
74 iso9660 is a CD-ROM file system type conforming to the ISO 9660
76 standard.
77 High Sierra
79 Linux supports High Sierra, the precursor to the ISO
80 9660 standard for CD-ROM file systems. It is
81 automatically recognized within the iso9660 file-
82 system support under Linux.
83 Rock Ridge
85 Linux also supports the System Use Sharing Protocol
86 records specified by the Rock Ridge Interchange
87 Protocol. They are used to further describe the files
88 in the iso9660 file system to a Unix host, and provide
89 information such as long filenames, UID/GID, POSIX
90 permissions, and devices. It is automatically
91 recognized within the iso9660 file-system support
92 under Linux.
93 hpfs is the High Performance Filesystem, used in OS/2. This file
95 system is read-only under Linux due to the lack of available
96 documentation.
97 sysv is an implementation of the SystemV/Coherent file system for
99 Linux. It implements all of Xenix FS, SystemV/386 FS, and
100 Coherent FS.
101 nfs is the network file system used to access disks located on
103 remote computers.
104 smb is a network file system that supports the SMB protocol, used
106 by Windows for Workgroups, Windows NT, and Lan Manager.
107 To use smb fs, you need a special mount program, which can be
109 found in the ksmbfs package, found at
110 ftp://sunsite.unc.edu/pub/Linux/system/Filesystems/smbfs.
111 ncpfs is a network file system that supports the NCP protocol, used
113 by Novell NetWare.
114 To use ncpfs, you need special programs, which can be found
116 at ftp://linux01.gwdg.de/pub/ncpfs.
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119 proc(5), fsck(8), mkfs(8), mount(8)
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122 This page is part of release 3.22 of the Linux man-pages project. A
123 description of the project, and information about reporting bugs, can
124 be found at http://www.kernel.org/doc/man-pages/.
125Linux 2007-12-14 FILESYSTEMS(5)