Skip to content
scrambled
Software Engineering Concept

Flat Filesystem Namespace

JourneySoftware engineering Statuslearning Tags
  • architecture
On this page

A storage approach where files have a flat name (e.g. folder/subfolder/file.txt) with no actual directory objects. Directory structure is derived by splitting the name on a delimiter (usually /).

How It Works ​

  • Each file has a single name field containing the full path.

  • There are no directory rows or directory objects.

  • Directory listing is simulated by prefix queries (e.g. WHERE name LIKE 'folder/%').

  • A path_tokens column (cached split of the name) can optimize these queries.

Tradeoffs ​

  • Simpler than a tree (no parent_id, no recursive queries, no cycle detection).

  • Renaming a folder means updating every file whose name starts with that folder prefix.

  • No way to store directory-level metadata without a separate mechanism.

Where It Appears ​

  • Supabase Storage: objects.name is the full path. path_tokens caches the split. storage.search() simulates directory listing.

  • MongoDB GridFS: Filenames can contain / but there is no directory concept.

  • S3: Flat key-value store. "Folders" are just common prefixes.