File Systems

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This page provides information on some of the file systems commonly used in Manjaro. It also shows where and how they are used. Further information on these and other file systems can be found in the ARCH Wiki

A file system manages the space on a storage medium (hard disk, SSD ...). It makes this memory available to the operating system so that files can be saved and read again. Each of the following file systems has advantages and disadvantages. They are mostly developed for a special purpose and are therefore used in a certain environment.

Linux

File systems that are mostly used under linux.

Note that many file system drivers are already included in the Linux kernel. You may not need anything else to mount, read, or write these filesystems. But there are packages with additional tools. You may need them to format, check, repair, modify, or optimize such file systems. So if you regularly use a file system, it is a good idea to install the appropriate tools

Ext2 → Ext3 → Ext4

Ext4 is the default file system in Manjaro at the moment. It is the evolution of the most used Linux filesystems (Ext3, Ext2) and promises improved design, better performance, reliability, and features over its predecessors.

If you are using Ext2 or Ext3, you can convert the partition to Ext4. Ext4 uses journaling, checksums and write barriers and is therefore more robust against damage.

Currently Ext4 is fully supported in Win10 and OsX. Support for ext4 has been built in since WSL is included in Win10 (2016).

see Ext4@ARCH-wiki, Ext4@wikipedia

Install

In manjaro e2fsprogs is already installed

Tips

For advanced optimizations see the Archwiki Ext4 article.

btrfs

A modern file system with a lot of advanced features. Its main advantage it to be a Copy-On-Write-filesystem

see btrfs@kernel.org, Btrfs@ARC-wiki, Btrfs@wikipedia

Install

user $ pamac install btrfs-progs COPY TO CLIPBOARD

reiserfs → reiser4

Reiserfs was actively used by a few distributions a while ago, but is not currently widely used. Reiser4 is the successor to reiserfs (3). However, Reiser4 is not integrated in the kernel.

see Reiser4@ARCH-wiki, ReiserFS@wikipedia, Reiser4@wikipedia, Reiser4@kernel.org

Install

user $ pamac install reiserfsprogs reiser4progs COPY TO CLIPBOARD

Windows

File systems mostly used in windows

NTFS

This today is used by most windows installs

see NTFS@ARCH-wiki, NTFS@wikipedia

Install

user $ pamac install ntfs-3g COPY TO CLIPBOARD

DOS

File systems under DOS and early windows on a lot of floppydisks and USB-sticks

FAT → FAT32 → VFAT

You may find this filesystem on disks created under DOS or Windows9x. It is sometimes used to transport files from one operating system to another.

see FAT@ARCH-wiki, FAT@wikipedia

Install

user $ pamac install dosfstools COPY TO CLIPBOARD

exFAT

Microsoft created the exFAT (Extended File Alocation Table) to make up for the inadequacies of FAT32, as it can hold large files, large numbers of files & use very large partitions. Supported on Linux, Windows, MacOS and many other devices, it is one of the most compatible filesystems. A good choice when you need to share a removable device between many systems.

see ExFAT@wikipedia

Warning

---

exFAT FS does not use journaling. Data on such a filesystem is vulnerable to irreparable corruption due to improper ejection or power outage.

Install

user $ pamac install exfatprogs COPY TO CLIPBOARD

macOS

Filesystems mostly used in macOs

HFS → HFS+

see HFSPlus@wikipedia

Install from AUR

user $ pamac install hfsprogs COPY TO CLIPBOARD

Others

XFS

see XFS@ARCH-wiki

ZFS

see ZFS@ARCH-wiki

Comparisions

Possible usage of Filesystems

Filesystem	manjaro	Win10	OsX	Win9x, DOS
ext2	■	▷ ExtFS	■
ext3/4	■	▷ ExtFS	?
btrfs	● btrfs-progs	▷ ExtFS, WinBtrfs	-	-
reiser3	● reiser4progs	▷ RFSTool	?	-
reiser4	● reiserfs	?	?	-
NTFS	○ ntfs-3g	■	?
FAT	● dosfstools	■	■	■
exFAT	● exfatprogs	■	?	?
HFS	○ hfsprogs (AUR)	?	■
XFS	?	▷ ExtFS	?
ZFS	?	?	?

■ = fully supported
● = fully supported, additional tools to install
○ = partially supported
▷ = possible via external tools
? = feel free to extend ;-)

Some important properties

Properties	ext2	ext3	ext4	btrfs	reiserfs	XFS
journaling	-	● ordered	● ordered	●	▶ 2.6	●
barriers	-		●	●	?
checksum	-	-	◎ metadata	● full	?
kompression	-	-	-	●, zstd ▶ 4.14/5.1	-
encryption	-	-	▶ 4.13	-
snapshots	-	-	-	●	-
TRIM possible	-	-	▶ 2.6.33	▶ 4.3
xattr, ACL	◎	?	ACL	ACL	ACL
small repair	● fsck	● fsck	● fsck	● auto	reiserfsck
journal repair	● fsck	● fsck	● fsck	● auto 3.2
repair after power loss	-	?	● tune2fs, fsck	● auto, scrub
since	1993	2001	2008	2009	2001

See also

Wikipedia:exFAT
Wikipedia:Comparison of file systems
Archwiki:File Systems