FAT Full Form

FAT Stands for File Allocation Table. It is the name of the computer file system architecture family. The FAT file system has 8-bit FAT, FAT12, FAT16, FAT16B, FAT32, ExFAT, FATX and FAT+ variants. It is one of the best filesystems when it comes to being lightweight and compatible. In this article, we are going to discuss FAT's full form along with its history, how it works, advantages, and disadvantages.

What is FAT?

The FAT full form is the File Allocation Table. Microsoft created the file system known as file allocation table, or FAT, for hard drives. It is used by operating systems to manage files on hard drives. The clusters on a storage drive and the relationships between them via related directories and files are tracked by the FAT system using a table. The table is essential to the allocation and storage of files. Although it occasionally refers to the table itself, the abbreviation (FAT) refers to the file system.

History of FAT(File Allocation Table)

Introduced in the year 1977, The original FAT file system (or FAT structure, as it was called initially) was designed and coded by Marc McDonald. The FAT name was derived out of the fact that the original FAT (8 Bit FAT), utilizes an index table extensively throughout its architecture. Throughout the years, since the release of FAT several later iterations of the same family have been introduced such as FAT32, exFAT, etc. which aspire to cope with the drawbacks of their previous iterations as well as trying to comply with the latest standard while preserving backward compatibility with existing software.

Out of the aforementioned FAT, variations stated earlier, FAT12, FAT16, FAT32, and exFAT are the most popular ones. Out of which the first three are used primarily for backward compatibility. Since the FAT filesystem is considered as a family of file systems, We would take a look at one of its versions to describe its merits/demerits. For this purpose, we will be using FAT32 as a discipline throughout the length of this article.

How FAT Systems Work?

An index table of the files kept on the device or in the system is created by the FAT system. There is a record in the index table for every data cluster (data storage area). The next cluster number, an EOF (end of file) marker, any unused disk space, and other specifically designated drive regions are all contained in the entries.

Up until the file's finish, the operating system (OS) searches for the cluster number of each subsequent section.

Advantages

• Storage: Supports partition sizes upto 8 Terabytes.
• Scope: It is the oldest of the 3 file systems available on windows OS. Due to which it is used widely by a large number of manufacturers of computer appliances like USB drives, Game Consoles etc.
• Compatibility With other Filesystems: FAT32 filesystem allows easy conversion routes. Therefore, a volume having FAT32 as files system could be converted to an NTFS volume without any data loss.
• Compatibility: The filesystem is compatible with most operating systems in existence, such as Linux, Windows, MacOS.

Disadvantages

• Has negligible amount of security to the data stored. Therefore, data could be tampered illicitly
• Has no fault tolerance
• No support for Encryption of individual file or folder
• No support for data recovery in case of data loss, as opposed to newer file systems which implement certain measures for ease in data recovery in case of data loss (ex. NTFS has Journaling which could be used for speeding up the process of data recovery)
• No longer being supported by several technological manufacturers, due to newer/better filesystems taking precedence

Conclusion

Since its introduction in 1977, the FAT (File Allocation Table) file system has been renowned for its ease of use and broad compatibility. Even though it lacks advanced features and has file size restrictions, some of these problems are addressed by its variants, such as FAT32 and ExFAT. Even with the introduction of more sophisticated file systems, FAT is still a popular and dependable choice for a variety of storage requirements.

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