ext4
TLDR: ext4 (fourth extended file system) was introduced in 2008 as an enhanced successor to ext3, designed to offer improved performance, scalability, and reliability. As the default file system for many Linux distributions, ext4 supports large files and volumes, advanced journaling, and features like extent-based allocation to reduce fragmentation. It is widely used for both personal computing and enterprise workloads, ensuring a balance of speed, stability, and data integrity.
ext4 incorporates several enhancements over its predecessors, such as extents, which improve the efficiency of large file storage by replacing the block-mapping mechanism with a more compact representation. Its journaling system ensures quick recovery from unexpected shutdowns or crashes, maintaining data consistency. Additionally, ext4 introduces features like delayed allocation and multi-block allocation, which optimize disk I/O performance and reduce fragmentation, making it suitable for modern high-capacity storage solutions.
https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/latest/filesystems/ext4.html
One of the key strengths of ext4 is its backward compatibility with ext3 and ext2, allowing seamless upgrades without data loss. It supports file systems of up to 1 exabyte and files up to 16 terabytes, catering to growing data demands. Advanced features like checksums for metadata, persistent pre-allocation, and barriers for write protection enhance data reliability. As a versatile and dependable file system, ext4 remains a popular choice across various computing environments.