File Systems
FAT 16/FAT 32(File Allocation Table)
The file allocation table is specific sectors in a hard drive that contain an address book for the different
files on a hard disk drive. In other words, it keeps track of the physical location on each platter where files
are stored. There are usually two FATs (kept in different locations) on a hard drive. One is kept as a
backup in case data corruption occurs on the other FAT. FAT32 is used in the Windows® 95 &
Windows® 98 operating system. FAT32 receives its designation because it allows 32 bits of data to be
read as opposed to 16 bits at a time as in the older FAT16.
HPFS (High Performance File System)
HPFS is the file system used by OS/2. HPFS is more efficient, give better performance and resists
fragmentation better that FAT.
NTFS (NT File System)
NTFS is an advanced file system used by Windows® NT. NTFS provides built-in compression, large
partition support and better performance.
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