Where files live
Use this map to find files and trace merged paths such as /bin and /etc
to the directories that actually store their contents.
The map describes the base filesystem in
dev.peios.fsbase at 92b0caf.
Images and local configuration can differ. Inspect the running machine before
assuming its layout or storage lifetime matches.
Choose where to look #
| What you are looking for | Location and purpose |
|---|---|
| Vendor-supplied software and defaults | /usr: executables in bin/sbin, helpers in libexec, libraries/modules/firmware in lib, shared files in share, defaults in etc/conf. |
| Local software and file-based overrides | /lcl: operator-managed trees such as bin, sbin, etc and conf. Local entries can hide vendor entries. |
| Files generated from registry configuration | /system/retc: reconciler output projected into /etc. Find the owning setting or component before editing its generated output. |
| Service data and identity stores | /var/state: persistent mutable state, including reserved services and protected secrets namespaces. See registry source paths for the machine's hives. |
| Caches, logs and crash data | /var/cache, /var/log and /var/crash. Check service configuration: recorded events and service output need not be text files here. Start with Event Viewer. |
| A person's files | /home: human home directories; services use configured state/runtime directories. Access depends on security descriptors. |
| Operator-managed bulk data | /data. Its name does not imply a separate disk or a backup policy. |
| Content served by this host | /srv: the host's served-content namespace. Check the service configuration for the actual path. |
| Software with its own directory layout | /opt. |
| Runtime sockets and service directories | /run, including /run/services and the /run/lock directory recreated by peinit at boot. Sockets and PID files are runtime resources, not saved service data. |
| Temporary working files | /tmp and /var/tmp; read the lifetime caveat below. |
| Boot inputs and generated artifacts | /boot holds the initramfs source tree and EFI-partition mount location; /system/boot holds generated initramfs output. Check that the intended EFI partition is mounted. |
| Additional mounted storage | /mnt and /media are available mount locations. Their existence does not attach a device. |
| Kernel and device interfaces | /proc, /sys and /dev. These expose runtime interfaces, not ordinary saved application data. |
A path does not grant access or prove that its data is safe to delete, backed up, or kept during installation. For space problems, use Find why a filesystem is full before deleting anything.
Trace a runtime path to its real file #
The base system uses StrataFS views for /bin, /sbin, /lib, /libexec,
/share, /include, /etc and /conf. Ordinary views put the corresponding
/lcl directory above /usr; the vendor stratum is read-only through that
view. This does not make the underlying /usr tree universally read-only.
Use the read-only inspector:
list shows the current mount namespace; resolve explains providers and write
routing without writing or granting permission. See Inspecting a stack
for interpretation and access limits.
/lib64 is different: the reviewed x86-64 base supplies a relative symlink to
usr/lib/x86_64-linux-peios, not a StrataFS view. The ordinary /lib view maps
the whole lib trees, including modules and firmware. These distinctions are
implemented by the
base recipe
and root-filesystem hook.
Find the owner of configuration #
Start with Find where a setting lives
and the component's regman documentation. A visible /etc file may be generated
from a registry setting; find that setting rather than changing generated output.
In the reviewed real-root hook, /etc has this precedence:
/system/retc: generated registry output./lcl/etc: local configuration, also the create stratum./usr/etc: vendor defaults.
An existing generated name wins over the same name in /lcl/etc. /conf has
only local and vendor tiers. The
initramfs hook
also uses only local and vendor tiers for /etc; do not assume the installed
root and the startup environment have identical views.
/lcl/policy is separate from ordinary file-based configuration. Its autorun
and registry-apply directories carry boot policy, not general-purpose storage;
see peinit’s Phase 1 reference
for their authority and execution rules.
Check temporary-file and boot-storage assumptions #
In the reviewed base setup, /tmp is a plain directory. The fsbase package's
temporary-directory policy
explains that it is disk-backed on an installed system and is not cleared at
boot or size-limited by that setup. A live image's volatile upper layer has a
different lifetime. Do not rely on a reboot to erase temporary files, or assume
that /tmp has a separate space budget. /var/tmp is intended for temporary
files that survive reboot; check the actual mount and local cleanup policy.
For boot files, the activation checklist distinguishes generated output, the intended EFI partition and the running kernel.