Thank you for being part of the FixData community! In this edition, you will find everything related to the famous file system, plus in our premium version, you will be able to see the diagnostics of a Western Digital Green of the Marvell family.

• Trivia

• File System

• FAT16

• What system to choose for my USB?

• FAT32

• NTFS

• exFAT

• Testimony

• FixData Community

• Premium Content: Western Digital Green diagnostics

Trivia

Can I use the same HDD after a data recovery?

(answer at the end of the newsletter)

File system

The file system is a storage system for a memory device; it is responsible for structuring and maintaining an organization between the following functions in the files:

• Writing

• Search

• Reading

• Storage

• Editing

• Delete

In this way, the user can identify files without room for error and access them more quickly and efficiently.

In addition, file systems give files characteristics such as the following:

• File naming conventions

• File attributes

• Access controls

A file system acts as an interface between the operating system and all devices that are connected to the computer.

To have a file system, it is necessary to format the data carrier. There are different formats, each one used for a specific function based on the capabilities of the storage unit, and each one has a limit on allowed characters. Of which we will see only 4 of the most common on Windows: FAT16, FAT32, NTFS, and exFAT.

FAT16

The FAT (File Allocation Table) system was first introduced in 1977; later improvements to this system were implemented.

Maximum Volume:

Starting with a limit of up to 32 MB with the release of FAT12 with the MS-DOS 2.0 operating system in 1983, later FAT16 was created, which provides a maximum capacity of 4 GB.

Architecture:

FAT16 supports 16-bit architecture in operating systems, as compared to FAT12's maximum support of only 8 bits.

Advantages:

Currently, it has no advantage compared to the newer technologies of FAT32 or exFAT because either of those technologies has greater capacity and efficiency; however, years ago, it may have been a better option than FAT12, among others.

Disadvantages:

It wastes too much space by spending about 3.2 percent of the total space, which means that out of 62 KB, about 2 KB can be wasted.

What system to choose for my USB?

FAT32

It is one of the most common systems on USB devices and memory cards due to its wide compatibility with modern operating systems. It was created in 1996 with the arrival of the Windows 95 operating system, which is an improved version of FAT16.

Maximum Volume:

In the case of FAT32, it has a volume capacity of 8 TB, which surpasses FAT16 with an increase of 2000 times more storage than its predecessor, FAT16. 

Architecture:

This file system handles a 32 bit architecture, which makes it very common among USB flash drives for their compatibility with different operating systems nowadays.

Maximum Cluster Limit:

It has a maximum of 268 435 456 clusters, with a maximum size per cluster of 32 bytes, providing a maximum of 4 GB per cluster. In this way, it manages to surpass its predecessors, FAT16 and FAT12. 

Advantages:

It is one of the best options for saving information on USB flash drives because it is compatible with all operating systems and does not lose information like exFAT.

Disadvantages:

• It can only work with files smaller than 4 GB in size.

• Only works with partitions with a maximum capacity of 8 TB.

• There is no data protection in case of a power loss. 

• The FAT32 system does not have any features that allow compressing files.

FAT32 was not designed to be secure and therefore does not include any encryption features, so you have to use external applications for this.

NTFS

NTFS, or New Technology File System, is one of the most common file systems among Windows operating systems since the inception of Windows NT 3.1.

Maximum Volume:

It has a maximum volume of 256 TB, or 8 petabytes, in Windows Server versions newer than 2019 or equal and a character limit of 255 per file, plus it allows almost any symbol to be used due to its compatibility with Windows operating systems from Windows 2000 to the newest ones today.

Architecture:

It stands out for its 64-bit architecture, besides being a notable improvement of the FAT system, but in doing so, it has its disadvantages, such as only being compatible with Windows operating systems.

Maximum Cluster Limit:

This system also has a 2 TB partition limit system, which is recommended for storage units with more than 500 MB due to their storage being less than or equal to 400 MB.

Advantages:

This system integrates functions such as MFT (Master File Table) , which is a master table containing information with file creation, last modification date, size, etc. By logging file changes, its backup mechanisms are also stronger. In addition, it includes an index indicating which blocks of the storage media belong to which file, which makes it easier to try to locate and recover damaged content if necessary.

It also provides the ability to grant permissions on a file or folder to certain users or a group of them to enter or not to enter that file.

Disadvantages:

Besides, it is only compatible with Windows operating systems, which means that from different non-Windows operating systems, you will only be able to read the content of the information but not edit it, as in the case of Apple, where you can only manipulate your files through the operating system.

exFAT:

exFAT is a file system that is an improvement of FAT32 in terms of flash drives, SSD disks, and USB sticks, which stands for Extended File Allocation Table. It is also fully compatible with Apple and other operating systems.

Maximum Volume:

It has no limit on the maximum size per file.

Architecture:

exFAT, like FAT32, handles a 32-bit architecture despite being the middle ground in file systems such as FAT32 and NTFS.

Maximum Cluster Limit:

It has a total of approximately 17,179,869,184 sectors, which in some cases can have a maximum size of 34 MB per sector or cluster or 32 MB. On the other hand, the maximum number of files that can be stored in a folder is 2,796,202 files.

Advantages:

It has more efficient management compared to FAT32. 

There are no file or partition size limits.

Wide operating system compatibility

Disadvantages:

In order to use exFAT on an older operating system, such as Windows XP, an update must be installed. Otherwise, it will not recognize the format. Windows Vista also requires Service Pack 1 or Service Pack 2 to be able to recognize exFAT.

On the other hand, exFAT sometimes gives problems if used intensively; the hard disk may not recognize the data and present problems when transmitting data because exFAT does not copy the master data continuously. Storage media using exFAT as a file system must always be extracted carefully; otherwise, data may be erased.

If you are looking to store information on USB drives or thumb drives, it is advisable to use the FAT32 file system because of its compatibility with different operating systems, which includes most Windows and Linux systems.

In the case of Windows, it is advisable to use the NTFS system if you use Windows operating systems in your day-to-day work because it is undoubtedly one of the best file systems you can choose.

Testimony

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Trivia

Can I use the same HDD after a data recovery?

When a data recovery is performed on a hard drive, it is because the drive failed.

The hard disk drive (HDD) during the data recovery process may require some replacement parts in order to extract as much data as possible.

We recommend that after your drive undergoes a data recovery process, the drive not be used to store data.

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