File system fragmentation: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 03:16, 14 December 2006

Revision as of 04:03, 14 December 2006

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In computing, '''[[file system]] [[fragmentation (computer)|fragmentation]]''', sometimes called '''file system aging''' is the inability of a specialfile casesystem ofto [[fragmentationlay (computer)#Dataout related fragmentation|data fragmentation]]sequentially (contiguously), an inherent phenomena in [[computer storage|storage]]-backed file systems that allow in-place modification of their contents. It is a special case of [[fragmentation (computer)#Data fragmentation|data fragmentation]].

File system fragmentation is projected to become more problematic with time, due to the increasing gap between sequential access speed and [[seek time]] of consumer-grade [[hard disk]]s, which file systems are usually placed on.<ref name=seagate-future>{{cite conference |author=Dr. Mark H. Kryder |publisher=[[Seagate Technology]] |date=2006-04-03 |title=Future Storage Technologies: A Look Beyond the Horizon |booktitle=Storage Networking World conference |url=http://www.snwusa.com/documents/presentations-s06/MarkKryder.pdf |accessdate=2006-12-14 }}</ref>

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* Fragmentation within individual [[computer file|file]]s.

* The decrease of [[locality of reference]] between separate, but related files.

* Free space fragmentation, making it increasingly difficult to lay out new files contiguous

==See also==