The Allocation Table

• • The actual File Allocation Table has ONE value for every allocation unit (cluster):
  • • Free, the cluster is NOT in use, value is 0 (zero)
    • 2 .. max, location of the NEXT cluster in the chain
    • EOF, end of file, this is the last cluster in the chain
    • BAD, the cluster is unusable due to bad sectors
  • Each value can be 12 bits, 16 bits or 32 bits depending on volume and cluster size.
  • A directory entry points to the FIRST cluster of an 'allocation chain'