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Overview of Supported File Systems

The document provides an overview of file systems supported by Red Hat Enterprise Linux, including local, network, shared storage, volume-managing, and specific file systems like XFS and ext4. It discusses the functionalities of these file systems, such as creating, mounting, and managing storage, as well as the importance of journaling for recovery. Additionally, it covers various file systems like ISO 9660, procfs, MS-DOS, VFAT, and NTFS, highlighting their characteristics and use cases.

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Sudarshan Gawande
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16 views5 pages

Overview of Supported File Systems

The document provides an overview of file systems supported by Red Hat Enterprise Linux, including local, network, shared storage, volume-managing, and specific file systems like XFS and ext4. It discusses the functionalities of these file systems, such as creating, mounting, and managing storage, as well as the importance of journaling for recovery. Additionally, it covers various file systems like ISO 9660, procfs, MS-DOS, VFAT, and NTFS, highlighting their characteristics and use cases.

Uploaded by

Sudarshan Gawande
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

GETTING STARTED

WITH
FILE SYSTEMS
LINUX ADMIN
Mr. RAM

 FILE SYSTEMS:

 Before the partition can be used, however you need to create a filesystem for
each one.
 Red Hat Enterprise Linux supports a variety of file systems.
 Each type of file system solves different problems and their usage is
application specific.
 The supported file systems include local on-disk file systems XFS and ext4,
network and client-and-server file systems NFS and SMB, as well as a
combined local storage and file system management solution, Stratis.
 You can perform several operations with a file system such as creating,
mounting, backing up, restoring, checking and repairing, as well as limiting
the storage space by using quotas.

TYPES OF FILE SYSTEMS:


 At the most general level, available file systems can be grouped into the
following major types:

DISK OR LOCAL FS:


 Local file systems are file systems that run on a single, local server and are
directly attached to storage.
 The local file systems are: xfs, ext4/3/2…etc.
XFS FS:
 XFS is a default file system in RHEL.
 XFS is a highly scalable, high-performance, robust, and mature 64-bit
journaling file system that supports very large files and file systems on a
single host.
EXT4 FS:
 The ext4 file system is the fourth generation of the ext file system family.
 ext4 driver can read and write to ext2 and ext3 FS’s, but ext4 FS’s format
is not compatible to ext2 & ext3.
 Support limits for ext4 fs and file sizes are lower than those on XFS.
LINUX ADMIN
Mr. RAM

COMPARISON OF XFS AND EXT4:


 XFS is the default file system in RHEL. This section compares the usage
and features of different file systems.

JOURNALING:
 It can help speed up recovery if there is a disk failure because journaling file
systems keep a “journal” of the file system’s metadata.
 It can check drivers faster during the system boot process.
NOTE: The journaling feature isn’t on older file systems such as ext2.

 Creating a file system using xfs:


#[Link] -f /dev/nvme0n1
 Creating a file system using ext family:
#mkfs.ext4/3/2 /dev/nvme0n1
LINUX ADMIN
Mr. RAM

NETWORK FILE SYSTEMS:


 Network file systems, also referred to as client/server file systems, enable
client systems to access files that are stored on a shared server. This makes it
possible for multiple users on multiple systems to share files and storage
resources.
 Network file systems are:
 The most common client/server file system for RHEL customers is the
NFS file system. RHEL provides both an NFS server component to
export a local file system over the network and an NFS client to import
these file systems.
 RHEL also includes a CIFS client that supports the popular Microsoft
SMB file servers for Windows interoperability. The userspace Samba
server provides Windows clients with a Microsoft SMB service from a
RHEL server.

SHARED STORAGE FILE SYSTEMS:


 Shared storage file systems, sometimes referred to as cluster file systems,
give each server in the cluster direct access to a shared block device over a
local storage area network (SAN).
 Shared storage file systems are:
 Red Hat Enterprise Linux provides the GFS2 file system. GFS2 comes
tightly integrated with the RHEL High Availability Add-On and the
Resilient Storage Add-On.
 Red Hat Enterprise Linux supports GFS2 on clusters that range in size
from 2 to 16 nodes.

VOLUME-MANAGING FILE SYSTEMS:


 Volume-managing file systems integrate the entire storage stack for the
purposes of simplicity and in-stack optimization.
 Volume-managing file systems are:
 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 provides the Stratis volume manager as a
Technology Preview. Stratis uses XFS for the file system layer and
integrates it with LVM, Device Mapper, and other components.
LINUX ADMIN
Mr. RAM

SWAP FILE SYSTEM:


 A swap file is a system file that creates temporary storage space on a solid-
state drive or hard disk when the system runs low on memory. The file
swaps a section of RAM storage from an idle program and frees up memory
for other programs.

ISO 9660 FILE SYSTEM:


 This industry standard media format was originally designed to specify the
volume and file structures of compact-disk read-only memory (CD-ROM)
optical disks, and is a read-only media format.
 The ISO 9660 format is used currently on CD and DVD read-only media.

/PROC FILE SYSTEM:


 Proc file system (procfs) is a virtual file system created on the fly when the
system boots and is dissolved at the time of system shutdown. It contains
useful information about the processes that are currently running.

MS-DOS & VFAT FILE SYSTEM:


 The FAT File System was initially used on PC operating systems such as
MS-DOS and early versions of Microsoft Windows. Still, it is widely used
on USB memory sticks or memory cards for file storage. It is simple, robust
and offers good performance especially in embedded applications.
 A virtual file allocation table (VFAT) is an extension to the file allocation
table (FAT) from Windows 95 and onward for creating, storing and
managing files with long names.

NTFS FILE SYSTEM:


 New Technology File System (NTFS) is a proprietary journaling file system
developed by Microsoft.
 It superseded File Allocation Table (FAT) as the preferred filesystem on
Windows and is supported in Linux and BSD as well.

Common questions

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Journaling is important in modern file systems because it speeds up recovery in the event of a disk failure by keeping a 'journal' of metadata changes. This can significantly reduce the time taken to check file systems during the system boot process. In the context provided, XFS and NTFS are examples of file systems that support journaling, with ntfs being developed by Microsoft for Windows and is supported in Linux. Ext4 also supports journaling, whereas the older ext2 does not .

Red Hat Enterprise Linux supports network file system interoperability with Microsoft Windows through CIFS client, which supports Microsoft SMB file servers. Additionally, the userspace Samba server provides Windows clients with a Microsoft SMB service from a RHEL server, facilitating file sharing between the operating systems .

XFS is a highly scalable, high-performance, robust, and mature 64-bit journaling file system compared to ext4, which is the fourth generation of the ext file system family. While ext4 provides capability to handle large files and file systems, XFS offers more scalability and better performance especially for very large files and file systems on a single host. Ext4 driver can read and write to ext2 and ext3 file systems, but ext4's format is not compatible with ext2 & ext3. XFS also supports faster driver checks during boot due to its robust journaling system .

Using NTFS in a Linux environment allows for compatibility with modern Windows file systems, offering advanced features like journaling and file permissions management. NTFS provides a robust and secure file system option that supersedes the older File Allocation Table (FAT) systems, which were used in previous versions of Windows and are still common on removable storage due to their simplicity and compatibility. Linux and BSD systems support NTFS, and this compatibility allows for seamless file sharing and data exchange between Linux and Windows environments .

NFS, or Network File System, enhances file sharing capabilities in Red Hat Enterprise Linux by enabling client systems to access files stored on a shared server. This feature allows multiple users on various systems to share files and storage resources efficiently. RHEL includes both an NFS server component to export a local file system over the network and an NFS client component to import these file systems, facilitating seamless file sharing within a network environment .

The /proc file system in Linux provides a virtual interface to kernel data structures and contains useful information about system processes. It is considered 'virtual' because it is created on-the-fly when the system boots and dissolves at shutdown, meaning it doesn't correspond to actual disk data. This dynamism allows /proc to present real-time information about the current state of the operating system and processes .

Swap files in Linux systems create temporary storage space on a solid-state drive or hard disk when the system's RAM is insufficient. This allows a portion of memory to be swapped out from idle programs to free up RAM for other applications, effectively enabling the system to manage memory more efficiently and ensuring the smooth operation of processes that require more memory than is physically available .

The ISO 9660 file system format provides a standardized volume and file structure for CD-ROMs and DVDs, facilitating compatibility across different hardware and operating systems. It enables consistent and reliable read-only media distribution, primarily used for optical discs like CDs and DVDs, where it allows systems to access data regardless of the operating environment .

Shared storage file systems like GFS2 support cluster configurations by allowing each server in the cluster direct access to a shared block device over a local storage area network (SAN). In Red Hat Enterprise Linux, GFS2 is integrated with the High Availability and Resilient Storage Add-Ons to provide robust clustered storage solutions. RHEL supports GFS2 on clusters ranging in size from 2 to 16 nodes, offering scalability and high availability within these parameters .

Volume-managing file systems like Stratis enhance simplicity and optimization in Red Hat Enterprise Linux by integrating the entire storage stack, thereby simplifying management tasks. Stratis specifically combines the XFS file system with volume management tools like LVM (Logical Volume Manager) and Device Mapper, allowing for improved optimization and management of storage resources in a single cohesive solution .

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