Computing » Filesystem interoperability

ADFS / Advanced Disc Filing System

Acorn’s successor to DFS. Also known as Filecore.

• RISC OS: primary filesystem.
• Linux: native support.
• NetBSD: native support.

AdvFS / Advanced File System

Highly reliable filesystem originally for Digital/Tru64 UNIX.

• Digital/Tru64 UNIX: primary filesystem.

Can likely be accessed via emulators and common-denominator filesystems; needs research/testing.

APFS / Apple File System

Apple’s proprietary “next-generation” filesystem to superseed HFS+.

• macOS: primary filesystem since 10.13 High Sierra; native support since 10.12 Sierra.
• Linux: kernel module support.

Easily accessible on Windows/Linux/*BSD/etc. by common means of file transfer, e.g. a FAT32 flash drive or e-Mail.

Apple DOS 3.𝑥 filesystem

Floppy disk format for DOS on the Apple II.

• Apple DOS 3.𝑥: primary filesystem.
• Windows/Linux/*BSD/macOS: accessible via DiskM8.

AFS / AtheOS File System

Journalling filesystem for the obscure AtheOS, Syllable and Wave OS.

• AtheOS: primary filesystem.
• Syllable: primary filesystem.
• Wave OS: primary filesystem.

Can likely be accessed via emulators and common-denominator filesystems; needs research/testing.

BFS / Boot File System

Simple filesystem that contained files necessary for booting some old UNIX OSes.

• System V, Version 4.0: secondary filesystem.
• UnixWare: secondary filesystem.
• Linux: native support.

BFS/BeFS / Be File System

BeOS and Haiku’s native filesystem.

• BeOS: primary filesystem.
• Haiku: primary filesystem.
• Linux: native support.
• SkyOS: native support.
• Syllable: native support.

BFS / Byte File System

IBM’s filesystem for Unix applications on z/VM.

• z/VM: co-primary filesystem.

Can likely be accessed via emulators and common-denominator filesystems; needs research.

Btrfs / B-tree file system

Increasingly popular scalable filesystem.

• Linux: native support; de facto co-primary filesystem.
• ReactOS: native support.

CBMFS

Commodore floppy disk drive OS’ native filesystem.

• CBM DOS: native filesystem.
• Windows/Linux/*BSD: accessible via VICE.

CDFS / Compact Disc File System

Predecessor to ISO 9660, developed by Simson Garfinkel and J. Spencer Love.

Only known by name; needs research.

CP/M filesystem

Disk format for the original CP/M.

• CP/M: primary filesystem.
• Linux/*BSD: accessible via Cpmtools.

DFS (Acorn) / Disc Filing System

A somewhat simple filesystem notorious for its differing implementations. Superseded by ADFS.

• Acorn MOS: primary filesystem.

DFS (IBM)

Only known by name; needs research.

EROFS / Enhanced Read-only File System

Lightweight read-only filesystem.

• Linux: native support since 5.4.

EFS / Extent File System

Pioneering extent-based filesystem, superseded by XFS.

• IRIX: primary filesystem until v5.3.
• Linux: native support since 2.4.20.
• NetBSD: native support.

exFAT / Extensible File Allocation Table

Microsoft’s flash-friendly replacement for FAT32.

• Windows: native support since Windows XP SP2.
• Linux: native support since 5.4.
• macOS: native support since 10.6.5.

ext / Extended file system

Original filesystem for Linux, replacing the MINIX filesystem. Quickly superseded by ext2, though often used on Linux floppies.

• Linux: native support.

ext2 / Second extended file system

Successor to ext. Still somewhat in use for removable media, though eventually superseded by ext3.

• Linux: native support.
• NetBSD: native support.
• OpenBSD: native support.
• Windows: support via Ext3Fsd.

ext3 / Third extended file system

Successor to ext2, adding journalling. Somewhat quickly superseded by ext4.

• Linux: native support.
• Windows: support via Ext3Fsd.

ext3cow / Third extended file system with copy-on-write

Copy-on-write-enabled version of ext3.

• Linux: native support.

ext4 / Fourth extended file system

Successor to ext3, improving performance and limitations. Can be journalled or journalless.

• Linux: native support; current de facto primary filesystem.
• Windows: support via Ext3Fsd.

FAT / File Allocation Table

Original 8-bit structure for Microsoft’s various BASIC disks.

• NCR Basic 6+: primary filesystem.

Might be accessible by later versions of FAT; needs research/testing.

FAT12 / 12-bit File Allocation Table

Essentially a noncompatible rewrite of 8-bit FAT, designed to be more compatible with CP/M’s standards. Common on most all floppy disks, though otherwise superseded by the backwards-compatible FAT16B for most purposes.

• PC-DOS: primary filesystem until v3.0.
• MS-DOS: primary filesystem until v3.0.
• Windows: native support.
• FreeBSD: native support.
• OpenBSD: native support.
• NetBSD: native support.
• NeXTStep: native support.
• OS/2: native support.
• eComStation: native support.
• ArcaOS: native support.
• RISC OS: native support.
• ReactOS: native support.

Possibly accessible by later versions of FAT on Linux/BSD/etc.; needs research/testing.

FAT16 / 16-bit File Allocation Table

Backwards-compatible successor to 12-bit FAT. Note that when most people mention FAT16, they’re likely talking about its quick successor, FAT16B.

• MS-DOS: primary filesystem between v3.0 and v4.0.
• PC-DOS: primary filesystem between v3.0 and IBM DOS v4.0.
• Windows: native support since Windows 3.1.
• OS/2: native support.
• eComStation: native support.
• ArcaOS: native support.
• ReactOS: native support.

FAT16B / 16-bit File Allocation Table, version B

An expansion to the original FAT16 with 32-bit sector counts, allowing usage of larger disks. When most people mention FAT16, they actually mean FAT16B. Superseded by the backwards-compatible FAT32 for most purposes.

• MS-DOS: primary filesystem between v4.0 and Win98’s v7.1.
• IBM DOS: primary filesystem since v4.0.
• OS/2: primary filesystem until v1.2.
• DR DOS: primary filesystem between v3.31 and v7.03.
• Windows 9𝑥: primary filesystem between Windows 3.1 and Windows 98; native support since Windows 95.
• Windows NT: native support.
• FreeBSD: native support.
• NetBSD: native support.
• OpenBSD: native support.
• NeXTStep: native support.
• RISC OS: native support.
• OS/2: native support.
• eComStation: native support.
• ArcaOS: native support.
• ReactOS: native support.

Possibly accessible by later versions of FAT on Linux/BSD/etc.; needs research/testing.

FAT32 / 32-bit File Allocation Table

Backwards-compatible successor to FAT16B with support for much larger disks. Still commonly used on removable media and as a common-denominator filesystem.

• MS-DOS: primary filesystem since Win98 SE’s v7.1.
• Windows 9𝑥: native support since Windows 95; primary filesystem since Windows 98 SE.
• Windows NT: native support since Windows 2000.
• Linux: native support.
• FreeBSD: native support.
• NetBSD: native support.
• OpenBSD: native support.
• NeXTStep: native support.
• macOS: native support.
• RISC OS: native support.
• OS/2: native support.
• eComStation: native support.
• Haiku: native support.
• ArcaOS: native support.
• DR-DOS: support via DRFAT32.

FFS/AFFS / Amiga Fast File System

Amiga’s HDD-friendly replacement for OFS.

• AmigaOS: primary filesystem since DOS/1.
• Linux: native support.

Files-11

OpenVMS filesystem. Also known as ODS, for whatever reason.

• OpenVMS: primary filesystem.
• RSX-11: primary filesystem in some versions.

HAMMER

High-availability filesystem originally for DragonFly BSD. Superseded by the backwards-compatible HAMMER2.

• DragonFly BSD: native support; primary filesystem between v2.0 and v5.2.

HAMMER2

Successor to HAMMER with enhanced clustering.

• DragonFly BSD: primary filesystem since v5.2.

HFS / Hierarchal File System (IBM)

Not to be confused with Apple’s HFS.

• IBM MVS/ESA: primary filesystem.
• HP/UX: native support.
• IRIX: native support.
• z/OS: native support; primary filesystem until v2.5.

HFS / Hierarchal File System (Apple)

Successor to MFS to support hard disks.

• Classic Mac OS: native support since Mac OS 8.1; primary filesystem between System 2.1 and Mac OS 8.1.
• macOS: native support until 10.15 Catalina.
• NeXTStep: native support.

HFS+ / Hierarchal File System Plus

Successor to HFS, with better support for larger files. Superseded by APFS.

• Classic Mac OS: primary filesystem since Mac OS 8.1.
• macOS: primary filesystem until 10.12 Sierra.
• Linux: native support.
• Windows: driver support between Windows XP and 7 when using Boot Camp in OS X 10.6.

HPFS / High Performance File System

OS/2’s much-improved replacement of the FAT filesystem.

• OS/2: primary filesystem since v1.2.
• Windows NT: native support until 3.51.
• Linux: native support.
• DragonFly BSD: native support.
• eComStation: native support.
• ArcaOS: native support.

High Throughput File System

Journalling filesystem of SCO OpenServer.

• SCO OpenServer: primary filesystem.

ISO 9660

The ubiquitous CD-ROM filesystem.

This filesystem is so universally understood that I can’t (currently) be bothered to list off every compatible OS. in-progress

• Windows: native support.
• FreeBSD: native support.
• NeXTStep: native support.
• ReactOS: native support.

JFFS / Journalling Flash File System

A popular flash-friendly filesystem.

• Linux: native support since 2.4.10.

JFS / Journaling File System

IBM’s journalling filesystem, first used for AIX.

• IBM AIX: primary filesystem since v3.1.
• OS/2: primary filesystem since OS/2 Warp Server for eBusiness.
• Linux: native support since 2.4.24.

LFS / Log-structured File System

Proof-of-concept added to 4.4BSD.

• 4.4BSD: native support.
• NetBSD: native support since 4.0.

LTFS / Linear Tape File System

Filesystem designed to make tape access behave more like a disk.

• Windows/Linux/macOS: driver support via Quantum LTFS.

MFS / Macintosh File System

Original filesystem for the Macintosh for a short period before HFS.

• Classic Mac OS: primary filesystem until System 3.1.; native support until Mac OS 8.0.
• macOS: support via MFSLives.

MINIX file system

Originally a simplified, educational variant of UFS.

• MINIX: primary filesystem.
• Linux: native support; de facto primary filesystem till around 1995.
• MiNT: native support.
• HelenOS: native support.

NILFS / New Implementation of a Log-structured File System

Another sort of proof-of-concept logging filesystem.

• Linux: native support since 2.6.30.
• NetBSD: native support.

NOVA / Non-volatile Memory Accelerated

Log-structured filesystem for persistent memory.

• Linux: since 4.13.

NTFS / New Technology File System

Microsoft’s most successful take on a journalling filesystem.

• Windows NT: primary filesystem.
• Linux: native support since 2.1.74.
• macOS: native support since OS X 10.3.
• FreeBSD: native support since 3.2.
• NetBSD: native support.
• OpenBSD: native support since 4.9.
• Haiku: native support.
• Windows 9𝑥: driver support since Windows 95 via SysInternals’ NTFS98.
• OS/2/eComStation/ArcaOS: plugin support via NetDrive
• MS-DOS: driver support via Avira’s NTFS4DOS.
• DR-DOS: driver support since v7.0 via NTFSREAD.

NVFS / Non-volatile File System

Flash memory filesystem made by Palm.

Unsure how to access it outside of PalmPilot devices.

NWFS / NetWare File System

A heavily modified version of FAT by Novell. Superseded by NSS.

• NetWare: primary filesystem between v2 and v5.

NSS / Novell Storage Services

Novell’s successor to NWFS.

• NetWare: primary filesystem since v5.

OFS / Amiga Old File System

Amiga’s predecessor to AFFS. Somewhat useless on anything but floppies.

• TRIPOS: primary filesystem.
• AmigaDOS: primary filesystem.
• AmigaOS: native support; primary filesystem until v3.5.
• NetBSD: native support.

OS-9 file system

Forested filesystem.

• OS-9: primary filesystem.

PFS / Professional File System

• AmigaOS: native support since around 1995.
• MorphOS: native support.
• AROS: native support.

ProDOS file system

Filesystem native to the ProDOS on the Apple II.

• ProDOS: primary filesystem.

QNX4FS / QNX version 4 file system

• QNX: primary filesystem between v4 and v6.

ReFS / Resilient File System

Microsoft’s enterprise-grade successor to NTFS. Can’t boot off it, though.

• Windows: native support between Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 2017 Fall Creators Update, except for Windows 10 Enterprise and Pro for Workstations.

ReiserFS

Yet another general-purpose filesystem for Linux.

• Linux: native support since 2.4.1.
• ReactOS: native support.

Reliance

An embedded filesystem.

• Linux: driver support?
• QNX: driver support?

Reliance Nitro

A higher-performance rendition of Reliance.

• Linux: driver support?
• QNX: driver support?
• Windows: driver support since Windows 2000 via RWD.

SFS / Amiga Smart File System

Amiga’s better-performing alternative to AFFS.

• AmigaOS: native support since v1.279.
• AROS: native support since v1.84.
• MorphOS: native support since 1.224.
• Linux: native support since 1.0beta12.

SkyFS / SkyOS File System

A fork of BFS for SkyOS.

• SkyOS: primary filesystem.

Soup

Shallow database of sorts for the Newton platform.

• Newton: primary filesystem.

Tux3

Experimental fork of ext3 with versioning.

• Linux: non-mainline kernel module support.

TRSDOS filesystem

Used on the Tandy TRS-80 family.

Only known by name; needs research.

UBIFS / Unsorted Block Image File System

Nokia’s NAND-friendly alternative to JFFS2.

• Linux: native support since 2.6.27.

UDF / Universal Disk Format

A write-once media format that supplanted ISO 9660.

This filesystem is so universally understood that I can’t (currently) be bothered to list off every compatible OS. in-progress

• FreeBSD: native support.
• OpenBSD: native support.

UFS / Unix File System

Disregarding mutually compatible vendor-specific additions, practically the original Version 7 Unix filesystem. Also known as FFS / Fast File System in some systems.

• UNIX: primary filesystem since Version 7.
• NeXTStep: primary filesystem.
• A/UX: primary filesystem.
• Solaris: primary filesystem.
• SunOS: primary filesystem.
• HP-UX: primary filesystem.
• ULTRIX: primary filesystem.
• Tru64 UNIX: native support.
• FreeBSD: native support; primary filesystem until v5.0.
• OpenBSD: native support; primary filesystem until v6.7.
• NetBSD: native support.
• DragonFly BSD: native support.
• Linux: native support.
• macOS: native support until 10.7.

UFS2 / Unix File System, version 2

• FreeBSD: primary filesystem since v5.0.
• OpenBSD: primary filesystem since v6.7.
• NetBSD: native support.
• DragonFly BSD: native support.
• Linux: native support.

VxFS / Veritas File System

Extent-based filesystem developed for AT&T USL. Also known as JFS.

• HP-UX: primary filesystem.
• AIX: native support.
• Solaris: native support.
• Reliant UNIX: native support.
• UnixWare: native support.
• SCO OpenServer: native support.
• Linux: native support.