Logo

Linux File System Flow

User Process👨‍💻
Application LayerUser Space
System Calls💻
Kernel InterfaceAPI
open()read()write()close()stat()lseek()mkdir()rmdir()unlink()rename()chmod()chown()
Physical Storage💿
Storage DevicesData Persistence
Hard Disk Drive (HDD)Solid State Drive (SSD)Network File System (NFS)
Linux File System Flow🐧
LinuxFile SystemOperating System
Kernel⚙️
Operating System CoreKernel Space
Virtual File System (VFS)🗄️
Abstraction LayerFile System Interface
File Operations AbstractionUnified Interface for File SystemsHandles File System Specific DetailsName Resolution (Path Translation)Translates User-specified Paths to InodesUses Directory Structure and Inode NumbersAccess Control (Permissions)Enforces File Access RulesUser/Group/Other PermissionsFile Metadata ManagementStores File AttributesSize, Date, Ownership, Permissions
File Systems💾
Disk ManagementData Storage
Ext4💾
ExtensibleJournaling
Journaling File SystemHigh Performance, ReliabilityCommonly Used in Linux
XFS💾
ScalableHigh Performance
High Performance, ScalabilityUsed for Large File Systems
Btrfs💾
SnapshottingCoW
Copy-on-Write (CoW) TechnologyData Integrity and Snapshots
NTFS💾
Cross-PlatformWindows
Windows-compatible File SystemRead/Write Support in Linux
FAT32💾
SimpleWidely Supported
Simple, Widely SupportedUsed for Removable Media
Block Device Drivers💿
Device DriversHardware
Interface with Physical StorageHandles Disk Requests
Linux File System Hierarchy📁
File System StructureDirectory Hierarchy
/ (Root)
VFSKernel
The Top Level of the File SystemContains All Other Directories
/bin
User Process
Essential Binary FilesAccessible by All Users
/boot
Kernel
Bootloader FilesUsed to Load the Kernel
/dev
Block Device DriversKernel
Device FilesRepresent Physical and Virtual Devices
/etc
Kernel
Configuration FilesSystem Settings
/home
User Process
Home Directories for UsersUser-specific Data and Files
/lib
User Process
Library FilesShared Libraries Used by Programs
/media
VFSFile Systems
Mount Point for Removable MediaUSB Drives, DVDs, etc.
/mnt
VFSFile Systems
Temporary Mount PointsUsed for Mounting Filesystems
/opt
User Process
Optional ApplicationsSoftware Not Included in the Base System
/proc
Kernel
Process InformationDynamically Generated Files about Running Processes
/root
Kernel
Root User's Home DirectoryContains System-level Files
/run
Kernel
Runtime InformationFiles Used by Running Services
/sbin
Kernel
System Binary FilesUsed by System Administrators
/srv
Kernel
Service DataFiles Used by Services
/sys
Kernel
System InformationFiles Related to Hardware and Kernel
/tmp
User Process
Temporary FilesFiles Deleted After System Reboot
/usr
User Process
User Programs and FilesCommonly Used Applications and Libraries
/var
Kernel
Variable DataFiles That Change Frequently (Logs, Caches)

Click here to copy and edit. Right-click and drag to move around the mind map.