Microsoft officially brings the exFAT file system to Linux
Microsoft allows exFAT support to come to the kernel, but not everyone is happy with the move. Of course.
Microsoft’s embrace of Linux continues, with the company announcing that it is helping to bring support for its EXFAT file system to the Linux kernel. According to John Gossman, Microsoft Distinguished Engineer & Linux Foundation Board Member, the move will enable Linux users to easily use devices formatted in the EXFAT files system with their PCS.
Of course, some people may be thinking “I’ve been using EXFAT devices with Linux for years,” and back in 2013 Samsung did indeed release a Linux FUSE driver for EXFAT under the GPL licence. However, this is the first time Microsoft has officially supported the file system’s use in Linux, and it should hopefully make using exfat-formatted devices with Linux much more stable.
According to Gossman, Microsoft will also “support the eventual inclusion of a Linux kernel with EXFAT support in a future revision of the Open Invention Network’s Linux System Definition, where, once accepted, the code will benefit from the defensive patent commitments of OIN’S 3040+ members and licensees.” You can view the technical specifications for EXFAT at http://bit. ly/lxf255exfattech 2. While some people have welcomed this development, as the Phoronix website points out (http://bit.ly/lxf255exfatcode 3), not everyone is happy with how it’s being done. Kernel developer Christoph Hellwig noticed that the code was re-using a lot of the existing EXFAT driver, and calling the implementation a “pile of crap.” Meanwhile, Greg Kroah-hartman, another kernel developer, defended the new driver, saying “I know the code is horrible, but I will gladly take horrible code into staging. If it bothers you, just please ignore it. That’s what staging is there for :)”