Hard Disk : File Systems

All file systems consist of structures necessary for storing and managing data. These
structures typically include an operating system boot record, directories, and files. A file
system also performs three main functions: 1) tracking allocated and free space, 2)
maintaining directories and file names, and 3) tracking where each file is physically stored
on the disk.
Different file systems are used by different operating systems. Some OSs can recognize
only one file system, while other OSs can recognize several. Some of the most common
file systems are the following:
• FAT (File Allocation Table)
• FAT32 (File Allocation Table 32)
• NTFS (New Technology File System)
• HPFS (High Performance File System)
• NetWare File System
• Linux Ext2 and Linux Swap