UNIX Filesystems: Evolution, Design, and Implementation

Summary

This chapter described the main concepts applicable to filesystems as a whole, how they are created and mounted, and how they are repaired if damaged by a system crash or other means. Although the format of some of the mount tables differs between one system and the next, the location of the files differ only slightly, and the principles apply across all systems.

In general, unless administrating a UNIX-based machine, many of the commands here will not be used by the average UNIX user. However, having a view of how filesystems are managed helps gain a much better understanding of filesystems overall.