Module 7: File Systems Cop4600 Practice Study Guide Exam

MODULE 7: FILE SYSTEMS COP4600 PRACTICE STUDY GUIDE EXAM Explain the image on 'shared files & links' slide - CORRECT ANSWER-- i-node array holds i-nodes to data blocks located on disk for specific file - a single file's i-node can point to multiple different data blocks - data does not have to be ordered or sequential - a directory block has an i-node that points back to the i-node array, which then points to the file data - multiple directories can point to the same i-node to access the same file - this OS uses hard links - if one of the two directories using this file 'deletes it' the link count simply decrements; if both 'delete' it, the link count will be zero Hard (regular) Link - CORRECT ANSWER-- holds the reference of target file - points to i-node - can be used on same file system only - does not differ from 'link rot' Soft (symbolic) Link - CORRECT ANSWER-- holds the path of target file - can span multiple file systems - can suffer from 'link rot' Purpose/jobs of file systems - CORRECT ANSWER-- locate storage space - store info in a persistent way - allow multiple processes to access info concurrently - find info in a human understood way - protect data - identify types of data file type identifier options - CORRECT ANSWER-- extension - magic number - file attributes - look at file contents File Control Block - CORRECT ANSWER-- store location information and attributes of a file - often distributed across the file system, within directories or reachable from them File Access Methods (two types) - CORRECT ANSWER-1. Sequential Access (tapes, pipes) 2. Random Access (HDD, SSD, Floppy)