# Fileset

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Fileset
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Fileset.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fileset
> Source revision: 1268551321
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

In [computing](/source/Computing), a **fileset** is a [set](/source/Set_(mathematics)) of [computer files](/source/Computer_file) linked by defining property or common characteristic.[1] There are different types of fileset[2] though the context will usually give the defining characteristic. Sometimes it is necessary to explicitly state the fileset type to avoid ambiguity, an example is the [emacs](/source/Emacs) editor which explicitly mentions its *Version Control* (VC) fileset type[2] to distinguish from its "named files" fileset type.[3]

## Fileset types

While there is probably no classification of fileset types some common usage cases do emerge:

- A fileset type where the set of files in the fileset are simply enumerated or selected, as an example in the way named filesets are constructed in emacs.[3]
- The set of files included in a software installation package is used in both the [AIX operating system](/source/AIX_operating_system) installation packaging system,[4] and the [HP-UX](/source/HP-UX) packaging system.[5]
- For fileset types relating to [filesystems](/source/Filesystems) there may be a relationship to directories.[6] In terms of *Namespace Database (NSDB) Protocol for Federated File Systems*:

A fileset is loosely defined as a set of files and the directory tree that contains them. The fileset abstraction is the basic unit of data management. Depending on the configuration, a fileset may be anything from an individual directory of an exported file system to an entire exported file system on a fileserver

— *[RFC](/source/Request_for_Comments) 5732[7]*

- In coding forms some libraries may define a fileset object type, typically as a case specific name *Fileset*, or *FileSet* which is used to hold an object which references a set of files.

## Specific examples

Fileset has several meanings and usages, depending on the context. Some examples are:

In the [AIX operating system](/source/AIX_operating_system) installation packaging system it is the smallest individually installable unit (a collection of files that provides a specific function).[4]

[DCE/DFS](/source/DCE_Distributed_File_System) uses the term **fileset** to define a tree containing directories, files, and [mount points](/source/Mount_(computing)) (links to other DFS filesets).[8] A DFS fileset is also a unit of administrative control. Properties such as data location, storage quota, and replication are controlled at this level of granularity. The concept of a fileset in DFS is essentially identical to the concept of a [volume](/source/Volume_(computing)) in [AFS](/source/Andrew_File_System). The glamor filesystem uses the same concept of filesets. Filesets are lightweight components compared to file systems, so management of a file set is easier.

In [IBM](/source/IBM) [GPFS](/source/GPFS) represents a set of files within a file system which have an independent inode space.[9]

## References

1. P. K. Jain; Khalil Ahmad; Om P. Ahuja (1995). [*Functional Analysis*](https://books.google.com/books?id=yZ68h97pnAkC&pg=PA1). New Age International. p. 1. ISBN 978-81-224-0801-0.

1. ["Basic Editing under Version Control"](https://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/manual/html_node/emacs/Basic-VC-Editing.html). *www.gnu.org*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20190918060334/http://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/manual/html_node/emacs/Basic-VC-Editing.html) 18 September 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 October 2019.

1. ["Filesets"](https://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/manual/html_node/emacs/Filesets.html). *www.gnu.org*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20190924083700/http://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/manual/html_node/emacs/Filesets.html) 24 September 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 23 October 2019.

1. ["Cloud-enable your IBM Power data center using AIX"](https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/ssw_aix_72/generalprogramming/pkging_sw4_install.html). *www.ibm.com*. Packaging software for installation. [Archived](https://archive.today/20191016111000/https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/ssw_aix_72/generalprogramming/pkging_sw4_install.html) 16 October 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 16 October 2019.

1. Poniatowski, Marty (1 March 2002). [*HP-UX Virtual Partitions*](https://books.google.com/books?id=6u3k1u0hEnoC&pg=PA54). Pearson Education (US). pp. 55–56. ISBN 9780130352125. Retrieved 24 October 2019.

1. ["FileSet Type"](https://ant.apache.org/manual/Types/fileset.html). *ant.apache.org*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20190329152111/http://ant.apache.org/manual/Types/fileset.html) 29 March 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 24 October 2019.

1. Lentini, James; Tewari, Renu; Lever, Chuck. ["Namespace Database (NSDB) Protocol for Federated File Systems"](https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7532.html). *tools.ietf.org*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20190718100911/https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7532.html) 18 July 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 24 October 2019.

1. Kong, Michael M. ["DCE: An Environment for Secure Client/Server Computing"](https://www.hpl.hp.com/hpjournal/95dec/dec95a1.pdf). *HP*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20151218022805/http://www.hpl.hp.com/hpjournal/95dec/dec95a1.pdf) 18 December 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 16 October 2019.

1. ["Information lifecycle management for IBM Spectrum Scale"](https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/STXKQY_5.0.0/com.ibm.spectrum.scale.v5r00.doc/bl1adv_filesets.htm). *www.ibm.com*. [Archived](https://archive.today/20191016111625/https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/STXKQY_5.0.0/com.ibm.spectrum.scale.v5r00.doc/bl1adv_filesets.htm) 16 October 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 16 October 2019.

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Fileset](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fileset) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fileset?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.