| FAT12 | FAT16 | FAT32 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Developer | Microsoft | ||
| Full Name | File Allocation Table | ||
| (12-bit version) | (16-bit version) | (32-bit version) | |
| Introduced | 1977 (Microsoft Disk BASIC) | July 1988 (MS-DOS 4.0) | August 1996 (Windows 95 OSR2) |
| Partition identifier | 0x01 (MBR) | 0x04, 0x06, 0x0E (MBR) | 0x0B, 0x0C (MBR) EBD0A0A2-B9E5-4433 -87C0-68B6B72699C7 (GPT) |
| Structures | |||
| Directory contents | Table | ||
| File allocation | Linked List | ||
| Bad blocks | Linked List | ||
| Limits | |||
| Max file size | 32 MiB | 2 GiB | 4 GiB |
| Max number of files | 4,077 | 65,517 | 268,435,437 |
| Max filename size | 8.3 or 255 characters when using LFNs | ||
| Max volume size | 32 MiB | 2 GiB 4 GiB with some implementations | 2 TiB |
| Features | |||
| Dates recorded | Creation, modified, access | ||
| Date range | January 1, 1980 - December 31, 2107 | ||
| Forks | Not natively | ||
| Attributes | Read-only, hidden, system, volume label, subdirectory, archive | ||
| Permissions | No | ||
| Transparent compression | Per-volume, Stacker, DoubleSpace, DriveSpace | No | |
| Transparent encryption | Per-volume only with DR-DOS | No | |
File Allocation Table (FAT) is a partially patentedPatents apply to technology supporting Long File Names (Microsoft) and extended attributes (IBM) within the file system, but not the core file system itself. file system developed by Microsoft for MS-DOS and is the primary file system for consumer versions of Microsoft Windows up to and including Windows Me.
The FAT file system is considered relatively uncomplicated, and is consequently 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).
More on [ File Allocation Table ]

FAT32 - Webopedia Definition and Links - This page describes the term 'FAT32' and lists other pages on the Web where you can find additional information.
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FAT32 Structure Information - A complete list of the structure information used in FAT32.
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