<operating system> (FS, or "filesystem") 1. A system for
organizing directories and files, generally in terms of
how it is implemented in the disk operating system. E.g.,
"The Macintosh file system is just dandy as long as you
don't have to interface it with any other file systems".
2. The collection of files and directories stored on a given
drive (floppy drive, hard drive, disk partition, logical
drive, RAM drive, etc.). E.g., "mount attaches a named file
system to the file system hierarchy at the pathname location
directory [...]" -- Unix manual page for "mount(8)".
As an extension of this sense, "file system" is sometimes used
to refer to the representatation of the file system's
organisation (e.g. its file allocation table) as opposed the
actual content of the files in the file system.
Unix manual page: fs(5), mount(8).
(1997-04-10)
Nearby terms:
file server « File Service Protocol « file signature « file system » Filesystem Hierarchy Standard » file transfer » File Transfer Protocol
