I have a dual boot setup with Windows 10 and Linux Debian, but I primarily use Debian. I've noticed that one of my Windows partitions gets flagged as dirty every time I boot, even though I haven't accessed Windows in a while. I made sure to disable fast boot and hibernation in Windows, but the issue persists. Occasionally, some files on that partition revert to older versions. I can fix the dirty flag by running `ntfsfix -d /dev/sda2`, but I have to do this every time I start up. My partition is mounted through fstab using ntfs3 with specific options. Why does this keep happening even though I never use Windows?
5 Answers
You should definitely run `chkdsk` on that partition from Windows if you haven't already. The Linux NTFS tools can handle some issues, but they're not very reliable for deeper problems. If you're not planning to use Windows at all, you might want to consider switching to a different filesystem altogether, as sticking with NTFS could lead to major headaches down the line.
And remember, `ntfsfix` isn’t a substitute for `chkdsk`. Running `chkdsk` in Windows is your best bet for fixing deeper issues. Just make sure to do it!
Have you tried using the `ntfs-3g` package? It’s available on Debian and tends to work better than the default drivers for handling NTFS partitions. You might find it helps reduce the dirty flag issues you’re facing.
Just a heads up, `ntfsfix` can only address minor issues. For anything serious with NTFS, you really should run a scan or repair from Windows. Also, keep an eye on `dmesg -w`—it might reveal specific problems with your filesystem or the drive itself.
The thing is, even if you're not using Windows, accessing the NTFS partition from Linux might still cause issues because Linux doesn’t fully support this filesystem. That's probably why you're running into the dirty flag every time.
Exactly! Windows is generally better suited for managing NTFS, so if you're avoiding it, switching filesystems might save you a lot of trouble.