cross platform filesystem
 

I need a filesystem that reads and writes in both linux and windows AND supports files larger than 4GB. I was using fat32 but obviously no support for files over 4GB and you can't write to ntfs on linux. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks,
Zach

Windows only supports FAT16, FAT32, and NTFS. You can write to NTFS in Linux but you have to find a 3rd party manufacture that will work with your kernel version. Some costs up to $60. There is captive-ntfs (free program) but it only works for 2.4.x kernels and you need a Windows 2000 or Windows XP to get some files for it to work.

You can use ext2/3 but writing to it in Windows is experimental. You can try use VMware that runs Linux and Samba. Then setup the Linux partition as a raw device in VMware. Hopefully Samba was compiled to support large file transfers from the desire Linux distribution. Then you can transfer big files back in forth between Linux and Windows on the same machine.

that'll work but how do you let windows access a linux share? I always get a: you don't have permission to access this folder.

Through Samba and the network. This what I said. Please do not skim read.

I use it sometimes with 2.6, but it isn't reliable. doesn't hose the file system, but sometimes it returns errors. I had not recognized it as an issue with 2.6, but that could be it.

If I understand you correctly, then this is a bad plan. Are you suggesting dual mounting a partition in both the host and the VMWare guest file system? To use it to transfer files, both file systems would have to simultaneously mount it. This won't work because no file system expects that and no file system supports it.

If filesystem A writes to the partition, filesystem B won't see the write until after BOTH file systems dismount and remount the partition. If filesystem A and filesystem B both write to the partition without dismounting/remounting in between writes, you'll get unpredictable results, but probably corruption.

Using VMWare, files can be transferred back and forth via a "scratchpad" directory that VMWare will establish and maintain, that will be up to date on both operating systems. I don't know about size limits on that directory, though. Of course, you can also transfer files back and forth via the virtual network that VMWare will establish and maintain using samba.

I have a copy of vmware on my computer. The writing to the ext2 filesystem via samba ie a network drive, would work but for the life of me I can get it to let windows to access that network drive. Just like on my real windows box, I cant access anything on my linux box but I can go the other way around. Can you help me on that?