ext2 (second extended filesystem) is a file system that was commonly used by the Linux kernel, but has been largely replaced by ext3/ext4.
3
votes
1answer
39 views
What is the difference between fsck options -y and -p?
The ext2/3/4 filesystem checker has two options that seem to be very similar, -p and -y.
Both seem to perform an automatic repair, but the manpage states that -p can exit when it encounters certain ...
0
votes
1answer
28 views
Is there any alternative to genext2fs in RHEL?
I am tryting to make initrd file system following [this tutorial][1]
My host system is RHEL 6 64 bit.
I am unable to get the required command: genext2fs
No rpm is available for it, neither ...
6
votes
1answer
392 views
“Converting” a filesystem from ext3 to ext4
I've read on some Q&A on this website that one can "convert" an ext3 filesystem to ext4 without formatting, by issuing
tune2fs -O extents,uninit_bg,dir_index /dev/dev-name
And then running ...
4
votes
2answers
120 views
Reliable way to detect ext2 or ext3 or ext4?
I need to detect a filesystem type from a C/C++ program using the filesystem superblock. However, I don't see much differences between superblocks for ext2 and ext4. The s_rev_level field is the same ...
1
vote
1answer
118 views
Ext2 block structure: size of reserved GDT Blocks
In every publication I found about ext2, the structure of a block group is defined as following:
Super Block: 1 block
Group Descriptor: N blocks
Data Bitmap: 1 block
Inode Bitmap: 1 block
Inode ...
0
votes
1answer
74 views
libext2fs gcc linking error
I am writing a C program which uses libext2fs:
#include <ext2fs/ext2fs.h>
int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
char *fsname = argv[1];
errcode_t err;
ext2_filsys fs;
err= ...
0
votes
1answer
37 views
mke2fs difference between -i and -I options
sudo mke2fs
Usage: mke2fs [-c|-l filename] [-b block-size] [-C cluster-size]
[-i bytes-per-inode] [-I inode-size] [-J journal-options]
[-G flex-group-size] [-N number-of-inodes]
[-m ...
3
votes
1answer
158 views
zerofree verbose returns what?
zerofree -v /dev/sda1 returned
123642/1860888/3327744.
The man page does not explain what those numbers are:
http://manpages.ubuntu.com/manpages/natty/man8/zerofree.8.html
I found some code on ...
4
votes
1answer
264 views
How can I dump the contents of a filesystem's superblock?
I understand that I can list the location of a filesystem's superblocks using the following commands.
Example
First get the device handle for the current directory.
$ df -h .
Filesystem ...
2
votes
1answer
96 views
Relation between “Block Size”and “Upper Limits” in ext2
A similar looking question asks for the reason why the upper file limit could be 2 TB in ext2. I am trying to understand but the Documentation on ext2 but find this hard. Please correct me if I'm ...
2
votes
1answer
118 views
Minimizing “idle” writes on a file system
Leaving out many details, I need to create a read/write file system on a device with the following main goals:
Eliminate all writes while data is not being explicitly written.
Reduce all indirect ...
2
votes
1answer
364 views
What determines the maximum file size in ext2 file system
I was reading the Kernel Documentation where it says
There are various limits imposed by the on-disk layout of ext2. Other
limits are imposed by the current implementation of the kernel code.
...
2
votes
1answer
45 views
Having error during Ubuntu installation
I have Ubuntu on a USB stick. When I boot from it (select boot from this USB), it shows some logs like usual. I also see the Ubuntu logo with 5 dots below, but then I get these:
ext2_lookup deleted ...
1
vote
1answer
378 views
Ext4 exhibits unexpected write latency variance vs. ext2
I have a latency sensitive application running on an embedded system, and I'm seeing some discrepancy between writing to a ext4 partition and an ext2 partition on the same physical device. ...
1
vote
1answer
162 views
Cannot make anyfs-tools. My e2fslibs package seems not to be the compatible version
anyfs-tools promises to convert a ntfs partition into ext3. That's what I want to do. (I have backed up what was necessary).
But when I try to compile anyfs-tools I get a make compilation error ...
32
votes
6answers
14k views
How do I know if a partition is ext2, ext3, or ext4?
I just formatted stuff. One disk I format as ext2. The other I want to format as ext4. I want to test how they perform.
Now, how do I know the kind of file system in a partition?
0
votes
5answers
2k views
Debian stucks at formatting 33%
I'm trying to install Debian Squeeze 6.0.5 on a new HP Proliant Microserver N40L with 4 GB RAM and 1.5 GHZ and 2 new Seagate BARRACUDA 2TB HDD (delivered yesterday).
The installation stuck at the ...
3
votes
2answers
879 views
Besides the journal, what are the differences between ext2 and ext3?
I just saw an answer question about filesystems for embedded hardware on another Stack Exchange site. The question was "What file system format should I use on flash memory?" and the answer suggested ...
8
votes
2answers
4k views
largefile feature at creating file-system
Is useful to use -T largefile flag at creating a file-system for a partition with big files like video, and audio in flac format?
I tested the same partition with that flag and without it, and using ...
2
votes
1answer
843 views
Ext4 support in Grub 0.9X (legacy) and Grub 1.9X (Grub2)
I'm about to setup my new USB key with Grub or Grub2. In the old days I used ext2 for the boot partition.
I'm wondering if I could use ext4 for Grub2?
And if use Grub 0.9X, what about support of ...
5
votes
3answers
1k views
ext2/3/4 reserved blocks percentage purpose
I know that this feature dates back 20 years but I still would like to find out
What is the purpose of the reserved blocks in ext2/3/4 filesystems?
1
vote
1answer
7k views
disabling journal vs data=writeback in ext4 file system
What is the difference between disabling journal on ext4 file system using:
tune2fs -O ^has_journal /dev/sda1
and using data=writeback when mounting? I thought ext4 - journal = ext2. means when we ...
3
votes
2answers
3k views
Salvage files from ext3 filesystem with physical errors
I have a disk from a crashed Linux laptop with files on it that the unhappy owner would like to have back if at all possible (no backup solutions please). I have not had anything to do with it ...
6
votes
1answer
676 views
How are files laid out in ext2/ext3/ext4?
A few days ago all my metadata on a ext4 format flash card was overwritten.
I am now going to speculate on how this happened. This is pure speculation. It happened just after I used a different ...
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vote
2answers
96 views
Is the sticky bit not used in current file systems
Can I safely conclude that the sticky bit is not used in current file sysems and reuse the bit for my own purpose.
5
votes
3answers
272 views
Is ext2 suitable for daily use on a desktop or laptop?
Is a journaling filesystem needed in today's desktop world?
A good OS doesn't kernel panic every month, and if we are using a laptop, then there aren't any power outages, so why shouldn't we use ...
4
votes
1answer
2k views
how much space to reserve on ext3 filesystem to prevent fragmentation issues?
I wondered about some missing space on my ext3 partition and, after some googling, found that debian based ubuntu reserves 5% of the size for root.
I also found posts describing how to change that ...
4
votes
3answers
1k views
How many bits is the access flags of a file?
How many bits on a linux file system is taken up for the permissions of a file?
6
votes
2answers
376 views
Defragging an ext partition?
Why don't ext2/3/4 need to be defragmented? Is there no fragmentation at all?
4
votes
2answers
2k views
Remove a corrupted file in a Linux system
How to remove a file that is corrupted?
In Linux (Fedora based), when I type: ls -l I get
drwxr-xr-x. 2 dmiller3 dmiller3 4096 Jul 26 13:57 SomeFile
?????????? ? ? ? 4096 ...
