FAT32 The FAT32 file system, originally introduced in Windows 95 Service Pack 2, is really just an extension of the original FAT16 file system that provides for a much larger number of clusters per partition. As such, it greatly improves the overall disk utilization when compared to a FAT16 file system. However, FAT32 shares all of the other limitations of FAT16, and adds an important additional limitation—many operating systems that can recognize FAT16 will not work with FAT32—most notably Windows NT, but also Linux and UNIX as well. Now this isn't a problem if you're running FAT32 on a Windows XP computer and sharing your drive out to other computers on your network—they don't need to know (and generally don't really care) what your underlying file system is. Top of pageTop of page The Advantages of NTFS The NTFS file system, introduced with first version of Windows NT, is a completely different file system from FAT. It provides for greatly increased security, file–by–file compression, quotas, and even encryption. It is the default file system for new installations of Windows XP, and if you're doing an upgrade from a previous version of Windows, you'll be asked if you want to convert your existing file systems to NTFS. Don't worry. If you've already upgraded to Windows XP and didn't do the conversion then, it's not a problem. You can convert FAT16 or FAT32 volumes to NTFS at any point. Just remember that you can't easily go back to FAT or FAT32 (without reformatting the drive or partition), not that I think you'll want to. The NTFS file system is generally not compatible with other operating systems installed on the same computer, nor is it available when you've booted a computer from a floppy disk. For this reason, many system administrators, myself included, used to recommend that users format at least a small partition at the beginning of their main hard disk as FAT. This partition provided a place to store emergency recovery tools or special drivers needed for reinstallation, and was a mechanism for digging yourself out of the hole you'd just dug into. But with the enhanced recovery abilities built into Windows XP (more on that in a future column), I don't think it's necessary or desirable to create that initial FAT partition.

Answered by Raghu , an ibibo Specialist, at 5:35 PM on October 27, 2007

NTFS 1)allows access local to w2k,w2k3,XP,win NT4 with SP4 & later may get access for somefile. 2)Maximum size of partition is 2 Terabytes & more. 3)Maximum File size is upto 16TB. 4)File & folder Encryption is possible only in NTFS. FAT 32 1)Fat 32 Allows access to win 95,98,win millenium,win2k,xp on local partition. 2)Maximum size of partition is upto 2 TB. 3)Maximum File size is upto 4 GB. 4)File & folder Encryption is not possible.

Answered by take it easy , an ibibo Advisor, at 4:48 PM on October 27, 2007

NTFS is the standard file system of Windows NT, including its later versions Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, and Windows Vista.[5] NTFS stands for New Technology File System.[6] The NT (which stands for New Technology) is from Windows NT. NTFS replaced Microsoft's previous FAT file system, used in MS-DOS and early versions of Windows. NTFS has several improvements over FAT and HPFS (High Performance File System) such as improved support for metadata and the use of advanced data structures to improve performance, reliability, and disk space utilization plus additional extensions such as security access control lists and file system journaling. The exact specification is a trade secret, although (since NTFS v3.00) it can be licensed commercially from Microsoft through their Intellectual Property Licensing program. FAT32 provides the following enhancements over previous implementations of the FAT file system: • FAT32 supports drives up to 2 terabytes in size. NOTE: Microsoft Windows 2000 only supports FAT32 partitions up to a size of 32 GB. • FAT32 uses space more efficiently. FAT32 uses smaller clusters (that is, 4-KB clusters for drives up to 8 GB in size), resulting in 10 to 15 percent more efficient use of disk space relative to large FAT or FAT16 drives. • FAT32 is more robust. FAT32 can relocate the root folder and use the backup copy of the file allocation table instead of the default copy. In addition, the boot record on FAT32 drives is expanded to include a backup copy of critical data structures. Therefore, FAT32 drives are less susceptible to a single point of failure than existing FAT16 drives. • FAT32 is more flexible. The root folder on a FAT32 drive is an ordinary cluster chain, so it can be located anywhere on the drive. The previous limitations on the number of root folder entries no longer exist. In addition, file allocation table mirroring can be disabled, allowing a copy of the file allocation table other than the first one to be active. These features allow for dynamic resizing of FAT32 partitions. Note, however, that although the FAT32 design allows for this capability, it will not be implemented by Microsoft in the initial release.

Answered by jm , an ibibo Advisor, at 3:48 PM on October 27, 2007

NTFS is 'New Technology File System' which is more advanced file system, compared to FAT32. It improves performance and is required in order to implement numerous security and administrative features in the OS. For example, NTFS supports Active Directory domain names and provides file encryption. NTFS is the file system that works best with large disks. NTFS Recommended minimum volume size is approximately 10 megabytes (MB), Volumes much larger than 2 terabytes (TB) are possible and it cannot be used on floppy disks. In Windows XP, you can format a FAT32 volume up to 32 GB only.

Answered by saixaero , an ibibo Master, at 3:40 PM on October 27, 2007

NTFS stands for New Technology File System. This filing system, first introduced in Windows NT, is a complex system of metadata stored in binary trees. NTFS is more advanced than the FAT file system used by the earlier Windows operating systems, with regards to data structures, filenames, security, and access control. FAT32 is a 32-bit version of the File Allocation Table which first shipped with Windows95 SR2. FAT32 uses 32 bits to address each cluster and can support drives as big as two Terabytes. The older FAT used 16-bits to address each cluster and was limited to drive sizes of 512 Mb.

Answered by @ , an ibibo Master, at 3:29 PM on October 27, 2007

NTFS is the standard file system of Windows NT, including its later versions Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, and Windows Vista.[5] NTFS stands for New Technology File System.[6] The NT (which stands for New Technology) is from Windows NT. NTFS replaced Microsoft's previous FAT file system, used in MS-DOS and early versions of Windows. NTFS has several improvements over FAT and HPFS (High Performance File System) such as improved support for metadata and the use of advanced data structures to improve performance, reliability, and disk space utilization plus additional extensions such as security access control lists and file system journaling. The exact specification is a trade secret, although (since NTFS v3.00) it can be licensed commercially from Microsoft through their Intellectual Property Licensing program. File Allocation Table (FAT) is a partially patented file system developed by Microsoft for MS-DOS and was the primary file system for consumer versions of Microsoft Windows up to and including Windows Me. FAT as it applies to flexible/floppy and optical disk cartridges (FAT12 and FAT16 without long file name support) has been standardized as ECMA-107 and ISO/IEC 9293. The FAT file system is relatively uncomplicated, and is supported by virtually all existing operating systems for personal computers. This ubiquity makes it an ideal format for floppy disks and solid-state memory cards, and a convenient way of sharing data between disparate operating systems installed on the same computer (a dual boot environment). The most common implementations have a serious drawback in that when files are deleted and new files written to the media, directory fragments tend to become scattered over the entire media, making reading and writing a slow process. Defragmentation is one solution to this, but is often a lengthy process in itself and has to be performed regularly to keep the FAT file system clean.

Answered by alokgupta14 , an ibibo Guru, at 3:01 PM on October 27, 2007

NTFS 1)allows access local to w2k,w2k3,XP,win NT4 with SP4 & later may get access for somefile. 2)Maximum size of partition is 2 Terabytes & more. 3)Maximum File size is upto 16TB. 4)File & folder Encryption is possible only in NTFS............................... . FAT 32 1)Fat 32 Allows access to win 95,98,win millenium,win2k,xp on local partition. 2)Maximum size of partition is upto 2 TB. 3)Maximum File size is upto 4 GB. 4)File & folder Encryption is not possible.

Answered by Relax , an ibibo Advisor, at 3:01 PM on October 27, 2007

FAT32 is a revised version of FAT16 that can be used to create much larger partitions and has native support for long filenames, and was introduced with Win98. Both FAT16 and FAT32 are also backwards- and cross-compatible with older versions of Windows and other OSes. However, both FAT16 and FAT32 suffer from many drawbacks: they have weak error recovery and no built-in file security, just to name two. NTFS, which was introduced with Windows NT, is much more secure and robust than FAT16 or FAT32, and offers better recovery from errors. NTFS is now offered on Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows 2003 Server, although all of the above OS's can also use FAT16 or FAT32. It's generally recommended that NTFS be used except when backwards compatibility is urgently needed.

Answered by mrmister , an ibibo Citizen, at 2:14 PM on October 27, 2007