inode numbers

[Larry Campbell]

> In article <44700005 at gypsy.UUCP> lrr at gypsy.UUCP writes:
> >
> >Inode number 1 is ``reserved'' and (to the best of my knowledge) it is not
> >used. 
> >
> >Larry Rogers
>
> On at least some European V7 systems, inode 1 is used for a list of bad
> blocks. Basically mkfs has been extended to include a secret undocumented
> option (in the true Unix tradition!) which scans the whole device and puts
> any funny blocks in inode 1 out of harms way. As far as I know, nothing else
> pays any attention to the list - it is just a device for keeping blocks off
> the free list without upsetting fsck.
>
> I have no idea whether this feature is standard (but undocumented), or a
> local hack, but I have seen it on more than one system.
> 
> Robert Stroud,

VENIX/86 mkfs has a -b option, which the manual says "causes mkfs to check
the disk for bad blocks (unreadable), to gather them together and put
them in an inaccessible file."  VENIX is a more-or-less vanilla Seventh
Edition port, but this could be a local extension.  (I've never seen it
find a bad block, so I don't even know if this works.)

- Larry Campbell
  The Boston Software Works, Inc., 120 Fulton St., Boston MA 02109
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