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Comment by drannex | Hacker News Reader

Figured I would write this here, but I would scratch the concept of a file system and replace it with a database.

True, because you could always ...

    CREATE TABLE filesystem(inode AS BIGINT UNIQUE NOT NULL PRIMARY KEY, is_dir AS BIT(1) NOT NULL, name AS VARCHAR(4096) UNIQUE NOT NULL, in_this_dir_inode AS INT NOT NULL, bloblist_ptr AS INT NOT NULL, metadata_ptr AS BIGINT),

    CREATE TABLE bloblist(blob_id AS INT UNIQUE NOT NULL, onwer_inode_ptr AS INT, thisblob AS LONGBLOB, prev_blob_ptr AS INT NOT NULL, next_blob_ptr AS INT NOT NULL)

   CREATE TABLE file_metadata(metadata_record_id AS BIGINT UNIQUE NOT NULL, created_at AS DATETIME NOT NULL, last_accessed at AS DATETIME, last_modified_at AS DATETIME, owner_uid AS INT NOT NULL, owner_gid AS INT NOT NULL, mode AS BIT(4) NOT NULL)

or similar.

Isn't that how z/os from IBM works? The API is a SQL api into files I think

You're mixing up IBM z (mainframes, z/OS) with IBM i (AS/400).

The latter has a single level storage system where disks and memory are part of single address space, and a variant of DB2 database is part of core OS thus making it common to use SQL for many things people wouldn't expect.

AFAIK it still uses a classical file system, just with a DQL system layered on top. I am talking about completely scrapping the idea of file systems, folders, the lot of it. A central database that stores all blobs, configurations, info, and other metadata (modified, created, revision history, diffs, keys, tags, and authority). This would enable real time distributed scalable systems, potentially immutable backups, and a lot more (such as fully auditable data transfers, messaging, access, and more for rapid debugging).

If an operationg system was built today for tomorrow it would certainly be built on/as a database.

Z doesn't really have files or databases, but rather an emulation of variable-length records contained within a relatively fixed allocation on disk. Mainframe DASDs also have a much richer interface than just read/write a given block; for example, you can scan for records within a track that have a given prefix

I would like to scrap the idea of a file and replace it with an object. If it's a "file" it just regurgitates it's contents, but it could also return aspects of itself, decrypt itself, stream from an offscreen resource. Just let them be smart, and what we know as sending "files" would just become object serialisation.

I'm curious of what the fully developed OS will look like for spatial computing if that's what we're calling it now. I think it will have to be built on old methods people are familiar with, like 'clicking' on something with their finger or hand, but I'm fascinated to see when someone is reading the paper newspaper and wants more detail, so they click on the 'link' (ie word/phrase) in the paper and their headset brings up a website with more detail on what they're reading. It could even be older books without any specially marked keywords or anything, as in the physical world would stay exactly the same. Perhaps with people looking at a building and 'clicking' on the building could bring up the tax map or contact info for the building, etc. As time goes by the building would be viewed from all sides, making it a truly 3D model, so you could click on it from any side. An OS on the past with the physical, based on the past with the web, but with the future integrated. I am truly excited to see this built out over the next few years.

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