When you create a long filename (longer than 8.3) with VFAT, the file system actually creates two different filenames. Although VFAT preserves the case of filenames, it's not considered case sensitive. For example, VFAT filenames can contain up to 255 characters, spaces, and multiple periods. VFAT maintains backward compatibility with FAT but relaxes the rules. VFAT is an extension of the FAT file system and was introduced with Windows 95. Perhaps you've also heard of a file system called VFAT. Filenames in a FAT file system must also begin with a letter or number, and they can't contain spaces. The FAT file system limits filenames to the 8.3 naming convention, meaning that a filename can have no more than eight characters before the period and no more than three after. Because of its age, most operating systems, including Microsoft Windows NT®, Windows 98, the Macintosh OS, and some versions of UNIX, offer support for FAT.
Introduced in 1981, FAT is ancient in computer terms. FAT may sound like a strange name for a file system, but it's actually an acronym for File Allocation Table.
