fsck.minix

fsck.minix [-1|-2|-3] [-s|-l|-m] [-v] [-a|-A|-r] [-F] device

-1
    Check Minix 1.4/1.5/1.6 filesystems only

-2
    Check Minix 2 filesystems only

-3
    Check V7 filesystems only

-s
    Output superblock information

-l
    List all filenames

-m
    Show blocks used/total (usage)

-v
    Verbose output

-a
    Automatic repair (answer yes to all)

-A
    Automatic repair without prompting

-r
    Interactive repair mode

-F
    Do not fork into background

fsck.minix is a utility for checking the consistency of Minix filesystems and optionally repairing them. Minix filesystems were among the first supported by the Linux kernel, originating from Andrew S. Tanenbaum's Minix operating system. This tool scans the filesystem on a specified device or file, verifying structures like inodes, directories, and blocks for errors such as bad links, duplicate blocks, or corrupted superblocks.

It supports different Minix versions (1.x, 2.x, V7) and offers modes for listing files, showing usage stats, or verbose output. Repair options range from fully automatic to interactive prompting. Designed for block devices like /dev/sda1, it can fix common issues but may require unmounting the filesystem first for safety. While effective for legacy Minix setups, modern Linux favors ext4 or others due to Minix's 64MB partition limit and 14-character filename restriction.

Usage typically involves running as root after boot or from live media to avoid mounted filesystem corruption risks.

Run on unmounted filesystems only; Minix limited to 64MB partitions, 16MB on 1.x; backups recommended before repairs; obsolete for modern use.

0: no errors; 1: repaired; 2: damaged, manual repair needed; 4: usage/fatal error; 8: bad magic/unknown superblock

Introduced in early Linux (1991-1992) for Minix FS support, derived from Minix OS utilities by Tanenbaum (1987). Maintained in util-linux but deprecated as Linux adopted extended filesystems.

fsck(8), mkfs.minix(8), minix(5)