<s>
exFAT	B-Application
(	O
Extensible	B-Application
File	I-Application
Allocation	I-Application
Table	I-Application
)	O
is	O
a	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
introduced	O
by	O
Microsoft	O
in	O
2006	O
and	O
optimized	O
for	O
flash	B-Device
memory	I-Device
such	O
as	O
USB	O
flash	O
drives	O
and	O
SD	B-Device
cards	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
was	O
proprietary	O
until	O
28	O
August	O
2019	O
,	O
when	O
Microsoft	O
published	O
its	O
specification	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
can	O
be	O
used	O
where	O
NTFS	B-Application
is	O
not	O
a	O
feasible	O
solution	O
(	O
due	O
to	O
data-structure	O
overhead	O
)	O
,	O
but	O
where	O
a	O
greater	O
file-size	B-Application
limit	I-Application
than	O
that	O
of	O
the	O
standard	O
FAT32	B-Application
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
(	O
i.e.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
has	O
been	O
adopted	O
by	O
the	O
SD	O
Association	O
as	O
the	O
default	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
for	O
SDXC	O
cards	O
larger	O
than	O
32GB	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
8	I-Application
and	O
later	O
versions	O
natively	O
support	O
exFAT	B-Application
boot	O
,	O
and	O
support	O
the	O
installation	O
of	O
the	O
system	O
in	O
a	O
special	O
way	O
to	O
run	O
in	O
the	O
exFAT	B-Application
volume	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
was	O
introduced	O
in	O
late	O
2006	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
CE	I-Operating_System
6.0	I-Operating_System
,	O
an	O
embedded	O
Windows	O
operating	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
of	O
the	O
vendors	O
signing	O
on	O
for	O
licenses	O
are	O
manufacturers	O
of	O
embedded	O
systems	O
or	O
device	O
manufacturers	O
that	O
produce	O
media	O
formatted	O
with	O
exFAT	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
entire	O
File	B-Application
Allocation	I-Application
Table	I-Application
(	O
FAT	O
)	O
family	O
,	O
exFAT	B-Application
included	O
,	O
is	O
used	O
for	O
embedded	O
systems	O
because	O
it	O
is	O
lightweight	O
and	O
is	O
better	O
suited	O
for	O
solutions	O
that	O
have	O
low	O
memory	O
and	O
low	O
power	O
requirements	O
,	O
and	O
can	O
be	O
easily	O
implemented	O
in	O
firmware	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Because	O
file	O
size	O
references	O
are	O
stored	O
in	O
eight	O
instead	O
of	O
four	O
bytes	O
,	O
the	O
file	B-Application
size	I-Application
limit	I-Application
has	O
increased	O
to	O
(	O
,	O
or	O
about	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
otherwise	O
limited	O
by	O
a	O
maximum	O
volume	O
size	O
of	O
or	O
)	O
,	O
raised	O
from	O
(	O
)	O
in	O
a	O
standard	O
FAT32	B-Application
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Other	O
specifications	O
,	O
features	O
,	O
and	O
requirements	O
of	O
the	O
exFAT	B-Application
file	I-Application
system	I-Application
include	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
Scalability	O
to	O
large	O
disk	O
sizes	O
:	O
about	O
128PB	O
(	O
)	O
maximum	O
,	O
512TB	O
(	O
)	O
recommended	O
maximum	O
,	O
raised	O
from	O
the	O
32-bit	O
limit	O
(	O
2TB	O
for	O
a	O
sector	O
size	O
of	O
512bytes	O
)	O
of	O
standard	O
FAT32	B-Application
partitions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Microsoft	O
documents	O
a	O
limit	O
of	O
65,534	O
(	O
216−2	O
)	O
files	O
per	O
sub-directory	O
for	O
their	O
FAT32	B-Application
implementation	I-Application
,	O
but	O
other	O
operating	O
systems	O
have	O
no	O
special	O
limit	O
for	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
files	O
in	O
a	O
FAT32	B-Application
directory	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
FAT32	B-Application
implementations	I-Application
in	O
other	O
operating	O
systems	O
allow	O
an	O
unlimited	O
number	O
of	O
files	O
up	O
to	O
the	O
number	O
of	O
available	O
clusters	O
(	O
that	O
is	O
,	O
up	O
to	O
268,304,373	O
files	O
on	O
volumes	O
without	O
long	O
filenames	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Maximum	O
number	O
of	O
files	O
on	O
volume	O
C	O
,	O
to	O
4,294,967,285	O
(	O
,	O
up	O
from	O
about	O
in	O
standard	O
FAT32	B-Application
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Free	O
space	O
allocation	O
and	O
delete	O
performance	O
improved	O
due	O
to	O
introduction	O
of	O
a	O
free-space	B-Application
bitmap	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Timestamp	O
granularity	O
of	O
10ms	O
for	O
creation	O
and	O
modified	O
times	O
(	O
down	O
from	O
2s	O
on	O
FAT	O
,	O
but	O
not	O
as	O
fine	O
as	O
NTFS	B-Application
's	O
100ns	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Timestamps	O
come	O
with	O
a	O
time	B-Device
zone	I-Device
marker	O
in	O
offset	O
relative	O
to	O
UTC	O
(	O
starting	O
with	O
Vista	B-Application
SP2	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Optional	O
support	O
for	O
TexFAT	O
,	O
a	O
transactional	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
standard	O
(	O
optionally	O
WinCE	B-Operating_System
activated	O
function	O
,	O
not	O
supported	O
in	O
Windows	O
Desktop/Server	O
versions	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Provision	O
for	O
OEM-definable	O
parameters	O
to	O
customize	O
the	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
for	O
specific	O
device	O
characteristics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Valid	O
data	O
length	O
(	O
VDL	O
)	O
:	O
through	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
two	O
distinct	O
lengths	O
fields	O
one	O
for	O
"	O
allocated	O
space	O
"	O
and	O
the	O
other	O
for	O
"	O
valid	O
data	O
"	O
exFAT	B-Application
can	O
preallocate	O
a	O
file	O
without	O
leaking	O
data	O
that	O
was	O
previously	O
on-disk	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
no	O
longer	O
stores	O
the	O
short	O
8.3	O
filename	O
references	O
in	O
directory	O
structure	O
and	O
natively	O
uses	O
extended	O
file	O
names	O
,	O
whereas	O
legacy	O
FAT	O
versions	O
implement	O
extended	O
file	O
names	O
through	O
the	O
VFAT	B-Application
extension	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
XP	I-Application
requires	O
update	O
KB955704	O
to	O
be	O
installed	O
,	O
and	O
Windows	B-Application
Vista	I-Application
requires	O
its	O
SP1	O
or	O
SP2	O
be	O
installed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows	B-Application
Vista	I-Application
is	O
unable	O
to	O
use	O
exFAT	B-Application
drives	O
for	O
ReadyBoost	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Windows10	O
only	O
allows	O
formatting	O
exFAT	B-Application
and	O
NTFS	B-Application
on	O
volumes	O
sized	O
larger	O
than	O
32GB	O
with	O
the	O
default	O
user	O
interface	O
,	O
and	O
FAT32	B-Application
format	O
is	O
suggested	O
for	O
smaller	O
volumes	O
;	O
command-line	O
utilities	O
do	O
n't	O
accept	O
quick	O
format	O
using	O
FAT32	B-Application
if	O
volume	O
is	O
larger	O
than	O
32	O
GB	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
standard	O
exFAT	B-Application
implementation	O
is	O
not	O
journaled	B-Application
and	O
only	O
uses	O
a	O
single	O
file	B-Application
allocation	I-Application
table	I-Application
and	O
free-space	O
map	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
FAT	B-Application
file	I-Application
systems	I-Application
instead	O
used	O
alternating	O
tables	O
,	O
as	O
this	O
allowed	O
recovery	O
of	O
the	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
if	O
the	O
media	O
was	O
ejected	O
during	O
a	O
write	O
(	O
which	O
occurs	O
frequently	O
in	O
practice	O
with	O
removable	O
media	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
exFAT	B-Application
format	O
allows	O
individual	O
files	O
larger	O
than	O
4GB	O
,	O
facilitating	O
long	O
continuous	O
recording	O
of	O
HD	O
video	O
,	O
which	O
can	O
exceed	O
the	O
4GB	O
limit	O
in	O
less	O
than	O
an	O
hour	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Current	O
digital	O
cameras	O
using	O
FAT32	B-Application
will	O
break	O
the	O
video	O
files	O
into	O
multiple	O
segments	O
of	O
approximately	O
2	O
or	O
4GB	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
EFS	O
supported	O
in	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
10	I-Operating_System
v1607	O
and	O
Windows	O
Server	O
2016	O
or	O
later	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
SDXC	O
cards	O
running	O
at	O
UHS-I	O
have	O
a	O
minimum	O
guaranteed	O
write	O
speed	O
of	O
10MB/s	O
,	O
and	O
exFAT	B-Application
plays	O
a	O
factor	O
in	O
achieving	O
this	O
throughput	O
through	O
the	O
reduction	O
of	O
the	O
file-system	B-Application
overhead	O
in	O
cluster	O
allocation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
is	O
achieved	O
through	O
the	O
introduction	O
of	O
a	O
separate	O
cluster	O
bitmap	B-Data_Structure
where	O
the	O
reservation	O
state	O
of	O
each	O
cluster	O
(	O
reserved/free	O
)	O
is	O
tracked	O
by	O
only	O
one	O
bit	O
,	O
reducing	O
writes	O
to	O
the	O
much	O
larger	O
FAT	O
that	O
originally	O
served	O
this	O
purpose	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Additionally	O
,	O
a	O
single	O
bit	O
in	O
the	O
directory	O
record	O
indicates	O
that	O
the	O
file	O
is	O
contiguous	O
(	O
unfragmented	O
)	O
,	O
telling	O
the	O
exFAT	B-Application
driver	B-Application
to	O
ignore	O
the	O
FAT	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
optimization	O
is	O
analogous	O
to	O
an	O
extent	B-Application
in	O
other	O
file	B-Application
systems	I-Application
,	O
except	O
that	O
it	O
only	O
applies	O
to	O
whole	O
files	O
,	O
as	O
opposed	O
to	O
contiguous	O
parts	O
of	O
files	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
is	O
supported	O
in	O
Windows	B-Application
XP	I-Application
and	O
Windows	B-Application
Server	I-Application
2003	I-Application
with	O
update	O
KB955704	O
,	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
Embedded	I-Operating_System
CE	I-Operating_System
6.0	I-Operating_System
,	O
Windows	B-Application
Vista	I-Application
with	O
Service	O
Pack	O
1	O
,	O
Windows	B-Device
Server	I-Device
2008	I-Device
,	O
Windows	B-Device
7	I-Device
,	O
Windows	B-Application
8	I-Application
,	O
Windows	B-Device
Server	I-Device
2008	I-Device
R2	I-Device
(	O
except	O
Windows	B-Device
Server	I-Device
2008	I-Device
Server	O
Core	O
)	O
,	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
10	I-Operating_System
,	O
macOS	B-Operating_System
starting	O
from	O
10.6.5	O
,	O
Linux	B-Application
via	O
FUSE	B-Application
or	O
natively	O
starting	O
from	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
5.4	O
,	O
and	O
iPadOS	B-Operating_System
as	O
well	O
as	O
iOS	B-Application
starting	O
from	O
13.1	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Companies	O
can	O
integrate	O
exFAT	B-Application
into	O
a	O
specific	O
group	O
of	O
consumer	O
devices	O
,	O
including	O
cameras	O
,	O
camcorders	O
,	O
and	O
digital	O
photo	O
frames	O
for	O
a	O
flat	O
fee	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
is	O
supported	O
in	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
media	O
devices	O
such	O
as	O
modern	O
flat-panel	O
TVs	O
,	O
media	O
centers	O
,	O
and	O
portable	O
media	O
players	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
is	O
the	O
official	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
of	O
SDXC	O
cards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Because	O
of	O
this	O
,	O
any	O
device	O
not	O
supporting	O
exFAT	B-Application
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
3DS	I-Operating_System
,	O
may	O
not	O
legally	O
advertise	O
itself	O
as	O
SDXC	O
compatible	O
,	O
despite	O
supporting	O
SDXC	O
cards	O
as	O
mass	O
storage	O
devices	O
by	O
formating	O
the	O
card	O
with	O
FAT32	B-Application
or	O
a	O
proprietary	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
tied	O
to	O
the	O
device	O
in	O
question	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
vendors	O
of	O
other	O
flash	B-Device
media	I-Device
,	O
including	O
USB	O
pen	O
drives	O
,	O
compact	O
flash	O
(	O
CF	O
)	O
and	O
solid-state	O
drives	O
(	O
SSD	O
)	O
ship	O
some	O
of	O
their	O
high-capacity	O
media	O
pre-formatted	O
with	O
the	O
exFAT	B-Application
file	I-Application
system	I-Application
to	O
ensure	O
compatibility	O
with	O
any	O
given	O
device	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
Sandisk	O
ships	O
their	O
256GB	O
CF	O
cards	O
as	O
exFAT	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mac	O
OS	O
X	O
Snow	B-Device
Leopard	I-Device
10.6.5	O
and	O
later	O
can	O
create	O
,	O
read	O
,	O
write	O
,	O
verify	O
,	O
and	O
repair	O
exFAT	B-Application
file	I-Application
systems	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Linux	B-Application
has	O
support	O
for	O
exFAT	B-Application
via	O
FUSE	B-Application
since	O
2009	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2013	O
,	O
Samsung	B-Application
Electronics	O
published	O
a	O
Linux	B-Application
driver	B-Application
for	O
exFAT	B-Application
under	O
GPL	B-License
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
28	O
August	O
2019	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
published	O
the	O
exFAT	B-Application
specification	O
and	O
released	O
the	O
patent	O
to	O
the	O
Open	O
Invention	O
Network	O
members	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
introduced	O
native	O
exFAT	B-Application
support	O
with	O
the	O
5.4	O
release	O
in	O
November	O
2019	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
ChromeOS	B-Operating_System
can	O
read	O
and	O
write	O
to	O
exFAT	B-Application
partitions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
+	O
Default	O
exFAT	B-Application
cluster	O
sizes	O
in	O
Windows	O
Volumesize	O
Clustersize	O
Clustercount7	O
–	O
256	O
MB	O
4	O
KB	O
<	O
64	O
K256	O
MB	O
–	O
32	O
GB	O
32	O
KB	O
<	O
1	O
M32	O
–	O
512	O
GB	O
128	O
KB	O
<	O
4	O
M512	O
GB	O
–	O
1	O
TB	O
256	O
KB1	O
–	O
2	O
TB	O
512	O
KB2	O
–	O
4	O
TB	O
1	O
MB4	O
–	O
8	O
TB	O
2	O
MB8-16	O
TB	O
4	O
MB16	O
–	O
32	O
TB	O
8	O
MB32	O
–	O
64	O
TB	O
16	O
MB64	O
–	O
512	O
TB	O
32	O
MB	O
<	O
16	O
MNotes	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
employs	O
a	O
filename	O
hash-based	O
lookup	O
phase	O
to	O
speed	O
certain	O
cases	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
described	O
in	O
US	O
patent	O
Quick	O
File	O
Name	O
Lookup	O
Using	O
Name	O
Hash	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
AppendixA	O
of	O
the	O
document	O
contains	O
details	O
helpful	O
in	O
understanding	O
the	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
NTFS	B-Application
,	O
exFAT	B-Application
can	O
pre-allocate	O
disk	O
space	O
for	O
a	O
file	O
by	O
just	O
marking	O
arbitrary	O
space	O
on	O
disk	O
as	O
"	O
allocated	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
each	O
file	O
,	O
exFAT	B-Application
uses	O
two	O
separate	O
64-bit	O
fields	O
in	O
the	O
directory	O
:	O
the	O
valid	O
data	O
length	O
(	O
VDL	O
)	O
,	O
which	O
indicates	O
the	O
real	O
size	O
of	O
the	O
file	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
physical	O
data	O
length	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
feature	O
of	O
exFAT	B-Application
(	O
used	O
in	O
the	O
exFAT	B-Application
implementation	O
within	O
embedded	O
systems	O
)	O
provides	O
atomic	O
transactions	O
for	O
the	O
multiple	O
steps	O
of	O
updating	O
the	O
file-system	B-Application
metadata	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
and	O
the	O
rest	O
of	O
the	O
FAT	O
family	O
of	O
file	B-Application
systems	I-Application
do	O
not	O
use	O
indexes	O
for	O
file	O
names	O
,	O
unlike	O
NTFS	B-Application
,	O
which	O
uses	O
B-trees	B-Architecture
for	O
file	O
searching	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
introduces	O
metadata	O
integrity	O
through	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
checksums	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
volume	B-Device
boot	I-Device
record	I-Device
(	O
VBR	O
)	O
is	O
a	O
12-sector	O
region	O
that	O
contains	O
the	O
boot	O
records	O
,	O
BIOS	B-Device
parameter	I-Device
block	I-Device
(	O
BPB	O
)	O
,	O
OEM	O
parameters	O
and	O
the	O
checksum	O
sector	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
the	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
is	O
mounted	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
integrity	O
check	O
is	O
conducted	O
,	O
these	O
hashes	O
are	O
verified	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Mounting	O
also	O
includes	O
comparison	O
of	O
the	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
exFAT	B-Application
file	I-Application
system	I-Application
by	O
the	O
driver	B-Application
to	O
make	O
sure	O
the	O
driver	B-Application
is	O
compatible	O
with	O
the	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
it	O
is	O
trying	O
to	O
mount	O
,	O
and	O
to	O
make	O
sure	O
that	O
none	O
of	O
the	O
required	O
directory	O
records	O
are	O
missing	O
(	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
the	O
directory	O
record	O
for	O
the	O
upcase	O
table	O
and	O
allocation	O
bitmap	B-Data_Structure
are	O
required	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
ca	O
n't	O
run	O
if	O
they	O
are	O
missing	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
any	O
of	O
these	O
checks	O
fail	O
,	O
the	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
should	O
not	O
be	O
mounted	O
,	O
although	O
in	O
certain	O
cases	O
it	O
may	O
mount	O
read-only	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
provides	O
extensibility	O
through	O
template-based	O
metadata	O
definitions	O
using	O
generic	O
layouts	O
and	O
generic	O
patterns	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
contains	O
a	O
few	O
features	O
that	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
Microsoft	O
,	O
makes	O
it	O
flash-friendly	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
Boundary	O
alignment	O
for	O
filesystem	B-Application
structures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
single	O
type	O
for	O
flash	B-Device
storage	I-Device
is	O
pre-defined	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
lack	O
of	O
a	O
journal	B-Application
,	O
so	O
that	O
less	O
data	O
is	O
written	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
Although	O
FAT32	B-Application
also	O
lacks	O
a	O
journal	B-Application
.	O
)	O
</s>
<s>
+	O
Flash	O
device	O
features	O
in	O
exFAT	B-Application
implementations	O
Boundary	O
alignment	O
(	O
format	O
)	O
OEM	O
parameters	O
(	O
use	O
)	O
TRIM	O
(	O
use	O
)	O
Note	O
Windows	B-Operating_System
CE	I-Operating_System
Windows	O
Desktop	O
and	O
Server	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
exfatprogs	O
is	O
assumed	O
to	O
be	O
used	O
for	O
formatting	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
exFAT	B-Application
was	O
a	O
proprietary	O
file	B-Application
system	I-Application
until	O
2019	O
,	O
when	O
Microsoft	O
released	O
the	O
specification	O
and	O
allowed	O
OIN	O
members	O
to	O
use	O
their	O
patents	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
lack	O
of	O
documentation	O
along	O
with	O
the	O
threat	O
of	O
a	O
patent	O
infringement	O
lawsuit	O
,	O
as	O
happened	O
previously	O
when	O
Microsoft	O
sued	O
various	O
companies	O
over	O
the	O
VFAT	B-Application
long	O
file	O
name	O
patent	O
(	O
before	O
it	O
expired	O
)	O
,	O
hampered	O
the	O
development	O
of	O
free	B-License
and	I-License
open-source	I-License
drivers	O
for	O
exFAT	B-Application
,	O
and	O
led	O
to	O
a	O
situation	O
where	O
Linux	B-Application
distributions	O
could	O
not	O
even	O
tell	O
users	O
how	O
to	O
get	O
an	O
exFAT	B-Application
driver	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Accordingly	O
,	O
exFAT	B-Application
official	O
support	O
was	O
effectively	O
limited	O
to	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
own	O
products	O
and	O
those	O
of	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
licensees	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
,	O
in	O
turn	O
,	O
inhibited	O
exFAT	B-Application
's	O
adoption	O
as	O
a	O
universal	O
exchange	O
format	O
,	O
as	O
it	O
was	O
safer	O
and	O
easier	O
for	O
vendors	O
to	O
rely	O
on	O
FAT32	B-Application
than	O
it	O
was	O
to	O
pay	O
Microsoft	O
or	O
risk	O
being	O
sued	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
exFAT	B-Application
,	O
this	O
potentially	O
requires	O
every	O
implementation	O
to	O
perform	O
certain	O
procedures	O
in	O
exactly	O
the	O
same	O
way	O
as	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
implementation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
license	O
to	O
use	O
these	O
algorithms	O
can	O
be	O
purchased	O
from	O
Microsoft	O
,	O
and	O
some	O
companies	O
including	O
Apple	O
,	O
Google	B-Application
and	O
Samsung	B-Application
have	O
done	O
so	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
open-source	B-License
ecosystem	I-License
,	O
users	O
have	O
typically	O
responded	O
to	O
vendors	O
being	O
unwilling	O
to	O
pay	O
for	O
patent	O
licenses	O
by	O
procuring	O
an	O
implementation	O
for	O
themselves	O
from	O
unofficial	O
sources	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
this	O
is	O
what	O
happened	O
with	O
LAME	B-Algorithm
when	O
MP3	B-Application
patents	O
were	O
still	O
valid	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Regardless	O
of	O
whether	O
open-source	O
or	O
not	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
stated	O
that	O
"	O
a	O
license	O
is	O
required	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
implement	O
exFAT	B-Application
and	O
use	O
it	O
in	O
a	O
product	O
or	O
device	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Unlicensed	O
distribution	O
of	O
an	O
exFAT	B-Application
driver	B-Application
would	O
make	O
the	O
distributor	O
liable	O
for	O
financial	O
damages	O
if	O
the	O
driver	B-Application
is	O
found	O
to	O
have	O
violated	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
patents	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
2018	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
released	O
60,000	O
patents	O
to	O
the	O
Open	O
Invention	O
Network	O
members	O
for	O
Linux	B-Application
systems	O
,	O
but	O
exFAT	B-Application
patents	O
were	O
not	O
initially	O
included	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
was	O
,	O
however	O
,	O
discussion	O
within	O
Microsoft	O
over	O
whether	O
Microsoft	O
should	O
allow	O
exFAT	B-Application
in	O
Linux	B-Application
devices	O
,	O
which	O
eventually	O
resulted	O
in	O
Microsoft	O
publishing	O
the	O
official	O
specification	O
for	O
open	O
usage	O
and	O
releasing	O
the	O
exFAT	B-Application
patents	O
to	O
the	O
OIN	O
in	O
August	O
2019	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
FUSE-based	O
implementation	O
named	O
fuse-exfat	O
,	O
or	O
exfat-fuse	O
,	O
with	O
read/write	O
support	O
is	O
available	O
for	O
FreeBSD	B-Operating_System
,	O
multiple	O
Linux	B-Application
distributions	O
,	O
and	O
older	O
versions	O
of	O
Mac	B-Operating_System
OS	I-Operating_System
X	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
implementation	O
called	O
exFATFileSystem	O
,	O
based	O
on	O
fuse-exfat	O
,	O
is	O
available	O
for	O
AmigaOS	B-Application
4.1	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
implementation	O
by	O
Samsung	B-Application
Electronics	O
is	O
available	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
initially	O
released	O
on	O
GitHub	B-Application
unintentionally	O
,	O
and	O
later	O
released	O
officially	O
by	O
Samsung	B-Application
in	O
compliance	O
with	O
the	O
GPLv2	O
in	O
2013	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
This	O
release	O
does	O
not	O
make	O
exFAT	B-Application
royalty-free	O
,	O
as	O
licensing	O
from	O
Samsung	B-Application
does	O
not	O
remove	O
Microsoft	O
's	O
patent	O
rights	O
.	O
)	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
version	O
of	O
this	O
driver	B-Application
was	O
first	O
incorporated	O
into	O
version	O
5.4	O
of	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
much	O
newer	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
driver	B-Application
,	O
with	O
several	O
bug	O
fixes	O
and	O
improved	O
reliability	O
,	O
was	O
incorporated	O
into	O
kernel	B-Operating_System
5.7	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prior	O
to	O
its	O
being	O
merged	O
into	O
the	O
Linux	B-Operating_System
kernel	I-Operating_System
,	O
this	O
newer	O
version	O
had	O
already	O
seen	O
adoption	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
smartphones	O
and	O
continued	O
to	O
be	O
used	O
on	O
both	O
Linux	B-Application
and	O
Android	B-Application
thereafter	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Proprietary	O
read/write	O
solutions	O
licensed	O
and	O
derived	O
from	O
the	O
Microsoft	O
exFAT	B-Application
implementation	O
are	O
available	O
for	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
Linux	B-Application
,	O
and	O
other	O
operating	O
systems	O
from	O
Paragon	O
Software	O
Group	O
and	O
Tuxera	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
loadable	O
USBEXFAT	O
driver	B-Application
requires	O
Panasonic	O
's	O
USB	O
stack	O
for	O
DOS	O
and	O
only	O
works	O
with	O
USB	O
storage	O
devices	O
;	O
the	O
open-source	O
EXFAT	B-Application
executable	O
is	O
an	O
exFAT	B-Application
file-system	B-Application
reader	O
and	O
requires	O
the	O
HX	O
DOS	O
extender	O
to	O
work	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
no	O
native	O
exFAT	B-Application
real-mode	O
DOS	O
drivers	O
,	O
which	O
would	O
allow	O
usage	O
of	O
,	O
or	O
booting	O
from	O
,	O
exFAT	B-Application
volumes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
renaming	O
of	O
ExFAT	B-Application
file	I-Application
system	I-Application
labels	O
is	O
natively	O
supported	O
by	O
Microsoft	O
Windows	B-Protocol
Explorer	I-Protocol
,	O
while	O
Linux	B-Application
relies	O
on	O
the	O
third-party	O
exfatlabel	O
tool	O
.	O
</s>
