Page 76 - Computer - 10(A&B)

In Windows operating system, the file system follows a top-down, hierarchical structure. The root directory is
usually the drive where the files are stored. Folders created under the root directory are used to organise and
store files of different types.

File Names
Each file in a computer is identified by a name. The name of a file is usually made up
of two parts – a primary name, that identifies two files of same type and an extension,
that identifies the type of the file and the program that can use that file. For example, a
file with the name “Image.bmp” tells us the name of the file, Image, and the extension
“.bmp” tells us that the file is a bitmap image file and it can be opened using the Paint
program.
File Types

Data and information in a computer are stored in different types of files. Each file type describes the type of data
that can be stored in it and also provides mechanisms to access the data stored in it. The various file types are
identified by the extension of the file name. Some common file types are:

Extension Description
.exe executable files
.bat batch files
.dll device driver files
.docx Word document files
.jpg JPEG (image) files
.html HTML files

File Path

To access any file, its location on a disk drive or a network must be known. This location is described by the
file path. For example, the file path of a file named “Report1.txt” saved under folder “Office” on disk drive C is
“C:\Office\Report1.txt”.
File paths can be Absolute which state the complete path of the file starting from the root folder up to the
location of the file, or Relative which state the path of the file starting from the current folder.
Windows operating systems use either the FAT (File Allocation Table) or NTFS (New Technology
File System) file systems to manage files in a computer. Older versions of Windows used the FAT
or FAT32 system whereas versions of Windows operating system from Windows 7 onwards use
NTFS. The NTFS allows for longer filenames that may include special characters, which was not
allowed by FAT32 systems.

We create files while working on a computer. We also create folders on a computer and keep our files in the
folders.
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