## File System Types

Windows NT can use FAT, or NTFS, or both on the same system. There are significant differences between FAT and NTFS that will be of interest to the administrator. The two file system features are summarized in the following table.

Feature | FAT | NTFS
Max file name length | 255 | 255
Max file size | 4 GB | 16 Exabytes (2^64 bytes)
Max partition size | 4 GB | 16 Exabytes (2^64 bytes)
Security | No | Yes
Transaction tracking (journaling) | No | Yes
Hotfixing | No | Yes
Overhead | High | Low
Backward compatible with Microsoft Windows 95®/MS-DOS® | Yes | No
Case sensitive | No | POSIX only
Preserves case | Yes | Yes
Fragmentation | High | Low

Note Hotfixes have nothing to do with operating system hotfix patches-the hotfix capability of the NTFS file system allows it to move data to another location if it encounters a bad disk sector.

#### Defragmentation

In the event that an NTFS partition becomes 70 percent full, defragmentation software can enhance its performance.

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Last Updated: December 1, 1997