FAT16
E37469
FAT16 is an older 16-bit File Allocation Table file system widely used on early DOS and Windows systems, known for its simplicity and limitations in maximum partition and file sizes.
Statements (48)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
FAT file system
ⓘ
computer file system standard ⓘ file system ⓘ |
| allocationUnit | cluster ⓘ |
| bitWidth | 16-bit ⓘ |
| bootSectorContains | BIOS Parameter Block ⓘ |
| clusterAddressSize | 16 bits ⓘ |
| commonlyUsedIn |
Windows 3.x
ⓘ
early DOS systems ⓘ early Windows 95 installations ⓘ |
| compatibleWith |
digital cameras (legacy)
ⓘ
many embedded systems ⓘ memory cards (legacy) ⓘ |
| dataStructureType | linked allocation table ⓘ |
| designedFor |
MS-DOS
ⓘ
early Windows operating systems ⓘ simplicity of implementation ⓘ |
| developedBy | Microsoft ⓘ |
| directoryStructure | tree of directories and files ⓘ |
| doesNotSupport |
compression
ⓘ
file-level encryption ⓘ |
| FATCopies | typically 2 ⓘ |
| fileNameCharacterSet | limited ASCII subset ⓘ |
| hasLimitation |
inefficient space usage with large partitions
ⓘ
limited number of clusters ⓘ no access control lists ⓘ no built-in journaling ⓘ no file permissions model like Unix ⓘ |
| introducedIn | 1984 ⓘ |
| longFilenameSupportAddedIn |
Windows 95
ⓘ
surface form:
Windows 95 (VFAT extension)
|
| maximumFileSize | 2 GB (commonly, with 32 KB clusters) ⓘ |
| maximumPartitionSize | 2 GB (standard implementation) ⓘ |
| metadataStoredIn |
FAT tables
ⓘ
boot sector ⓘ root directory region ⓘ |
| originallyDidNotSupport | long filenames ⓘ |
| rootDirectory | fixed-size region on disk ⓘ |
| sectorSize | typically 512 bytes ⓘ |
| standardizedAs | part of Microsoft FAT specification ⓘ |
| supersededBy |
FAT32
ⓘ
NTFS ⓘ |
| supports |
bootable partitions
ⓘ
read and write operations ⓘ short 8.3 filenames ⓘ |
| usedHistoricallyFor | system boot disks ⓘ |
| usedOn |
floppy disks
ⓘ
small hard disk partitions ⓘ |
| uses | File Allocation Table ⓘ |
Referenced by (7)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.