What is btrfs File System
The btrfs is a copy-on-write filesystem in Linux that was developed as an alternative to the ZFS file system introduced by Oracle in 2007. This file system keeps the original data safe by saving a copy of only the modifications part of a file in the form of snapshots. This file system improves the overall performance of the Linux system by copying all the data blocks when reading information and in some cases, it becomes faster than the ext4 file system.
Pros and Cons of btrfs File System in Linux
There are various file systems used in Linux and every file system comes with some positives and negatives. To select any of the file system one must be aware of its pros and cons to use its effectively, so if you are planning to use btrfs file system then read the pros and cons that are given in the table below:
| btrfs File System | Pros | Cons |
| Creates snapshots which makes system restoration easy | Creates file fragmentation in case of HDDs | |
| Supports data compression that fits more data in less space | Does not support encryption | |
| Big file size (2^64) bytes | Getting new updates can lead to data loss | |
| Supports check sum to avoid any data corruption | Very less information is provided about this file system which makes it harder to get address to tricky questions or issues |
Conclusion
File system is a primary constituent of the data management in the storage system of every operating system. Linux operating systems come with ext4 file systems by default but there are various other file systems as well which are used. The btrfs is one of the file systems used by Linux operating systems and users prefer it for various reasons which include snapshots, built-in volume management and self-healing feature.
