A versioning file system maintains files as they change, allowing them to be restored to a previous state. It can be implemented within a file system or added separately. Methods include periodically saving entire files or maintaining a log of changes. It is useful in collaborative environments for tracking and rolling back changes.
A versioning file system is a computer software component of a larger file system that maintains files as they change so that the file can be viewed or restored to a previous state. In a versioning file system, any file created will have any changes made to its data stored somewhere in the file system so that the file’s data can be reconstructed to represent its accurate state at any time since its creation. While the end result of using versioning on a file system is similar to creating a backup of the files on the file system, it is not considered the same because the various versions of the files are stored on the same file system, usually the same volume as a file being versioned. The mechanisms used to implement a versioning file system can vary widely, but generally include periodically saving an entire file to create a version or maintaining a log for each file where only the changes are saved so that the file can be procedurally reconstructed as needed. One of the benefits of a versioned file system when used in a development or collaborative environment is that changes can be tracked and rolled back entirely.
The implementation of a file system for versioning can vary widely. Some file systems implement versioning within their own framework, but versioning is most often added separately, creating what is known as a stackable versioning file system, where the versioning capabilities work on another type of file system. A file system occasionally mounts a separate logical drive to store version information, while other times the information is written to files stored on the same logical volume as the actual data files.
At the system level, a versioning file system can take several approaches to storing version information. A simple method is known as copy-on-write, where the version control system captures system file write events and creates a copy of the file to preserve the previous version. This is effective but can use up a large amount of storage space over time.
Another way to implement versioning within a file system is to track changes to a file by only storing the changes. This method essentially creates a log that shows just what information has been added, changed, or deleted from a file. Only change logging can be very archival efficient, but it does require processing power to reassemble a file by essentially executing all the changes made to arrive at the user-requested snapshot.
A version control file system is especially useful in a collaborative development environment. For software development, it can be an invaluable way to remove or roll back changes when problems occur after an update. Other collaborative environments might allow multiple users to edit documents, so versioning can allow partial recovery of a document if several edits need to be removed. In network administration, versioning helps mitigate long-term damage caused by malicious software or hackers who might try to sneakily vandalize files.
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