Digital Forensic Certification Practice Exam

Which version of the FAT file system utilizes 4 bytes per cluster in the file allocation table?

1. FAT16

2. FAT12

3. FAT32

4. FAT64

The correct answer is: FAT32

The FAT32 file system utilizes 4 bytes per cluster in the file allocation table. This design allows FAT32 to manage larger disk sizes than its predecessors, FAT12 and FAT16, which have more limited clustering capabilities. FAT32 employs a more efficient allocation of disk space by using a larger number of clusters, which in turn allows it to support larger volumes and larger files compared to FAT12 and FAT16. With 4 bytes allocated per cluster, FAT32 can handle up to 2^28 clusters, enabling it to support drives ranging in size from 2 GB up to 2 TB, and even larger with advanced implementations. This design choice contributes significantly to the scalability and flexibility of FAT32 for various storage needs compared to earlier versions, which have more restrictions regarding cluster size and disk capacity. In contrast, FAT12 and FAT16 use a smaller number of bits to represent cluster addresses, resulting in limitations that do not apply to FAT32. FAT64, though related, is a different format mainly used in conjunction with modern operating systems and is less common.