Are files that use NTFS compression decompressed onto disk or into memory?

In today’s modern world, information technology (IT) administrators are tasked with managing and maintaining the network infrastructure and data storage systems within an organization. One of the most important considerations for IT admins is the type of file system used to store data.

The most commonly used file system is the New Technology File System (NTFS). NTFS offers a number of advantages over other file systems, including better security, support for larger files, and support for compression of files. NTFS compression is a feature that allows the file system to compress individual files, folders, or entire volumes.

The question of whether files that use NTFS compression are decompressed onto disk or into memory is an important one for IT admins. The answer to this question depends on the specific application being used. Generally speaking, however, files that use NTFS compression are decompressed onto disk.

When a file is compressed using NTFS compression, the data within the file is compressed using a compression algorithm. The compressed file is then written to disk. When the file is accessed, the data is decompressed from the disk and loaded into memory, where it can be used by the application.

There are some applications, however, that can access compressed data directly from the disk. In these cases, the data is not decompressed into memory, and the application is able to access the data without having to decompress it. This means that the application can access the data more quickly and efficiently.

In addition, some applications can access NTFS compressed files in a streaming fashion. In this case, the data is decompressed as it is read from disk, with the decompression process taking place in memory. This can be an efficient way to access compressed data and can reduce the amount of space required to store the data on disk.

As an IT admin, it is important to understand how NTFS compression works and how it affects the performance of the applications that are accessing the data. Knowing how the data is decompressed and where it is stored can help you configure your systems for optimal performance.