FAT File System Conversion via Data Bulk Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
The FAT file system experiences inefficiencies in read/write operations due to disk fragmentation, requiring time-consuming searches and limiting access speed, and compatibility issues with new storage systems, reducing user adoption.
Innovation Solution
A file format converting method that restructures the FAT index table into data bulks, creating a data bulk system with a bulk index table to manage storage, allowing for efficient access and conversion between file systems, enabling faster read/write speeds and compatibility with FAT systems.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the FAT index table is searched and updated for every read/write operation, then the file system can manage storage space, but the search time increases due to disk fragmentation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the storage space into fixed-size data bulks and creates a separate bulk index table to track them. This segmentation allows the system to manage storage without searching through fragmented FAT entries, as each bulk is a contiguous block that can be directly accessed and tracked independently in the bulk index table.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a bulk index table as an intermediary layer between the file system and the physical storage. This intermediary structure maps logical file operations to physical bulk allocations, eliminating the need to search the FAT index table for every operation and reducing search time while maintaining storage management capabilities.
2Reliability
If the FAT index table is searched from a header every time it is updated, then the file allocation can be tracked, but the operation becomes time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary organization of storage space into fixed-size data bulks during the formatting stage. The bulk index table is pre-structured to track these bulks, so that during read/write operations, the system can directly access and update bulk allocations without needing to search from the header or perform complex FAT table updates, thereby improving read/write speed while maintaining allocation tracking.
3Ease of operation
If only one read or write authority is provided to a same file at a time in FAT file system, then file access control is simplified, but read/write efficiency is seriously insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments files into multiple data bulks that can be independently accessed. This segmentation allows different processes to simultaneously hold read/write authorities on different bulks of the same file, improving read/write efficiency while maintaining simplified access control through the bulk index table's tracking mechanism.
4Productivity
If a new storage system is implemented to improve storage management, then storage efficiency is enhanced, but compatibility with FAT systems is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a file conversion mechanism that acts as an intermediary between the new bulk-based storage system and FAT systems. The conversion module translates bulk-based file structures into FAT-compatible formats when needed, allowing the system to maintain high storage efficiency through bulk management while preserving compatibility with FAT systems through format conversion.
Data Source
AI summary
A file format converting method for converting a first format file in a first file system of a storage apparatus to a second format file in a second file system is provided. The method includes creating a temporary file and defining a data amount of the temporary file as a first predetermined value; defining a start position of the temporary file to be the same as that of the first format file; and defining the data amount of the temporary file to be the same as that of the first format file to generate the second format file.