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Auto-select default data filesystem - #97

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Mexit merged 1 commit into
Mexit:masterfrom
PhrozenByte:enhancement/auto-fs-select
Sep 20, 2026
Merged

Mexit merged 1 commit into
Mexit:masterfrom
PhrozenByte:enhancement/auto-fs-select

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@PhrozenByte

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If mkfs.exfat is installed, use exfat as default filesystem, but fall back to fat32 otherwise. FAT32 is the next best alternative and mkfs.fat a hard dependency due to the ESP partition anyway (see #96).

If `mkfs.exfat` is installed, use `exfat` as default filesystem, but fall back to `fat32` otherwise. FAT32 is the next best alternative and `mkfs.fat` a hard dependency due to the ESP partition anyway (see Mexit#96).
@Mexit

Mexit commented Sep 20, 2026

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The user can always choose the filesystem explicitly using:

-f, --fs_type Filesystem type for the data partition [ext2|ext3|ext4|fat32|exfat|ntfs] (default: "$fs_type")

Also, most ISO images are already larger than 4 GB, and FAT32 does not support files larger than 4 GB. I'll leave this topic open for further discussion.

@PhrozenByte

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exFAT would remain the default as long as mkfs.exfat is installed. If it isn't installed, MultiOS-USB currently bails out when invoked with the default settings. This effectively makes mkfs.exfat a hard dependency, even though exFAT isn't actually required for MultiOS-USB to work; it's merely recommended.

That's exactly what this PR proposes: if mkfs.exfat is available, use it; if it isn't, fall back to the next-best option (FAT32).

This is also why most major package management systems differentiate between Requires (hard dependency), Recommends (recommended optional dependency; installed by default), and Suggests (suggested optional dependency; not installed by default).

@JonnyTech

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This effectively makes mkfs.exfat a hard dependency

Please don't.

@Mexit
Mexit merged commit 3c1bcd1 into Mexit:master Sep 20, 2026
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3 participants