floppy disk
Enable an agent to recognise a floppy disk, assess its physical and recorded state, and decide how it may be read, written, preserved or retired.
Research draft, second pass
A second pass drafted this model: the structure a model of this thing needs, and what is known about it in the world. The line under this one says how the second half was obtained - researched against sources, or recalled without web access, in which case nothing here was read anywhere and every claim is a lead to verify. Unreviewed either way.
recalled by Codex without web access - no source was read
Researched by: Codex
Purpose and description
Enable an agent to recognise a floppy disk, assess its physical and recorded state, and decide how it may be read, written, preserved or retired.
A floppy disk is a removable magnetic data-storage medium consisting of a flexible, magnetically coated disk enclosed in a protective jacket or cartridge and read or written by a compatible rotating-disk drive.
It can be Identify a likely physical and recording format from enclosure features, markings and cautious examination.; Select a compatible reading setup and establish protection against unintended writes.; Read or image the disk while recording errors, retries and acquisition settings.; Format, write or erase the disk when authorised and supported by its condition and equipment.; Quarantine a damaged or contaminated specimen pending specialist assessment.; Associate preservation copies and recovery reports with the physical specimen..
Distinguishing features
The recording substrate is a flexible disk with a magnetic coating; a rigid outer cartridge does not make it a hard disk.
The medium is designed to rotate in a compatible drive with recording surfaces accessible to magnetic heads.
The disk remains within a protective jacket or cartridge during ordinary use, with format-specific head and spindle access.
The medium requires an external drive to read or write it and has no self-contained electronic data interface.
Scope
+ Flexible magnetic recording disk, protective enclosure, hub and access features
+ Physical format, recording density and compatibility with drives and controllers
+ Recorded organisation, formatting state and readable capacity
+ Write-protection mechanisms and their observed effectiveness
+ Media condition, read reliability and preservation handling
- Floppy disk drives, controllers and host computers as devices
- Files, software and intellectual works stored on the disk as independent information objects
- Hard disks, optical discs, magnetic tape and solid-state removable media
- Disk-image files and virtual floppy devices as independent digital objects
- Manufacturing businesses and commercial product lines
Characteristics
- Physical format
- Nominal size designation, enclosure family and observed access features; unknown permitted Narrows the compatible drive family without assuming that physical fit guarantees readable data.
- Enclosure dimensions
- Width, height and thickness in mm Supports identification when labels or nominal size designations are missing.
- Density designation
- Observed manufacturer or format designation, evidence source, or unknown Constrains recording compatibility and prevents capacity from being inferred from size alone.
- Recording organisation
- Recorded sides, tracks, sector organisation and encoding where established; nonstandard or unknown permitted Determines how recorded signals can be interpreted and whether ordinary sector reading is sufficient.
- Capacity
- Bytes, specifying nominal formatted capacity, recovered bytes or filesystem free space Separates format capacity from successful recovery and currently available storage.
- Write-protection state
- Protection feature present or absent; protected, writable or unknown; drive enforcement separately recorded Informs whether an operation could alter the recording.
- Physical condition
- Observed enclosure damage, contamination, coating damage, deformation and hub or shutter faults Determines whether insertion or rotation could damage the medium or contaminate a drive.
- Readability
- Untested, fully read under a stated method, partially read, inconsistent reads or unreadable under a stated setup Keeps a failed attempt distinct from a conclusion that no data can be recovered.
- Compatible reading setup
- Drive, controller, host and software combination, with compatibility evidence A mechanically suitable drive may still lack the ability to interpret the recorded format.
Also called
Where this came from
wikidata · CC0 1.0
Drafted structure
Bundle to layer to finding to question, as the second pass will find it: 5 bundles · 9 layers · 16 findings · 24 questions.
Medium identification Identify the floppy medium through its flexible recording disk, enclosure and format-specific features.
Enclosure appearance and labels provide useful clues but do not establish the recording format by themselves.
Recording disk and enclosure
Establish the defining physical construction without unnecessary opening or handling.
Flexible magnetic medium
Record evidence that the object contains a flexible magnetic recording disk rather than another kind of storage medium.
- What observable features or reliable identification records establish a flexible magnetic disk inside this enclosure? definition
- Is the object a physical floppy disk, a drive accessory, or an electronic replacement housed in a similar form? boundary
Format identification features
Use dimensions, hub geometry, openings and markings to narrow the medium family.
Physical format evidence
Separate directly observed identifying features from assumptions based on labels or familiar appearance.
- What are the enclosure dimensions, hub features, head-access openings and visible sensing holes or notches? measurement
- Which manufacturer markings or format references support the proposed size and density designation? provenance
Recording and read compatibility Describe how the medium's magnetic recording can be accessed and interpreted.
Physical fit, density support, controller capability and logical format are separate requirements for a successful read.
Drive and controller match
Relate the medium to equipment capable of accessing its recording.
Compatible acquisition path
Record the complete reading setup and the evidence supporting its suitability.
- Which drive and controller support this medium's physical format and suspected recording requirements? action
- What documentation or successful controlled reads establish compatibility beyond mechanical fit? provenance
Recorded layout and capacity
Establish the recording organisation independently of the filesystem or stored works.
Observed recording organisation
Record established sides, tracks, encoding and sector layout without forcing unfamiliar recordings into a standard geometry.
- What sides, tracks, encoding and sector sizes or nonstandard structures are supported by the read evidence? measurement
- Does the stated capacity describe a nominal format, successfully recovered data, or filesystem space? boundary
Write control and recording state Distinguish protection settings, observed recordings and operations that change the disk.
Protection mechanisms differ across formats, and an unrecognised recording must not be mistaken for an empty disk.
Write protection
Assess the disk's protection feature together with the equipment that senses it.
Effective write protection
Record the format-specific protection setting and how prevention of writes is established.
- How does this disk format indicate write protection, and what is the specimen's observed setting? definition
- How can the selected setup prevent writes without testing protection by modifying the original disk? action
Formatting and reuse
Determine what is known about existing recordings before any change to the medium.
Recording state before change
Distinguish a recognised format, an unknown recording and apparent absence of data, while retaining the limits of observation.
- What evidence distinguishes an unformatted disk from an unsupported, damaged or unfamiliar recording? boundary
- Before formatting, overwriting or erasing, what authorisation and preservation of existing recordings are required? action
Condition and preservation Assess whether the floppy can be handled and read safely, and document preservation outcomes.
Reading requires physical motion and head access, so damage or contamination can make attempted recovery harmful.
Physical read readiness
Inspect the enclosure and accessible medium for conditions that affect insertion and rotation.
Damage and contamination assessment
Record visible defects and determine whether ordinary reading should proceed.
- Are there signs of mould, debris, coating loss, deformation, or damage to the jacket, hub or shutter where present? measurement
- Which observed conditions require quarantine or specialist assessment before insertion into a drive? action
Recovery evidence
Tie readability assessments and preservation copies to a documented acquisition attempt.
Documented read outcome
Record recoverable regions, inconsistent results and the relationship between the specimen and its preservation copies.
- Which tracks or sectors were read, failed or varied across attempts, and under what equipment and settings? measurement
- Which linked images, checksums and acquisition logs identify the captured recording and document anything the capture method omitted? provenance
Evidence and external alignment What the world already says about this thing, gathered so the model can be checked against it.
A model that cannot be lined up against existing standards, identifiers and practice cannot be adopted by anyone who already uses them.
Reported evidence
Findings from the breadth pass, kept separate from the structural claims.
Check these first
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- This describes the physical storage-medium kind, not a particular product, individual disk or the save icon derived from its appearance.
- Capacities depend on recording format and computer platform; the listed PC capacities are examples, not universal limits. The familiar 1.44 MB label denotes 1440 KiB.
- A researcher should verify applicable physical-format standards and compatibility for each size and density; no sources were consulted for this recall.
- Which of these check these first hold for the sense of floppy disk this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Kinds and varieties
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- 8-inch floppy disk
- 5.25-inch floppy disk
- 3.5-inch floppy disk
- 3-inch floppy disk
- Which of these kinds and varieties hold for the sense of floppy disk this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Identifiers and schemes
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Size, sidedness and recording-density designation - Nominal size plus SS or DS and SD, DD, HD or ED - SS and DS indicate single-sided and double-sided; density abbreviations indicate single, double, high or extra-high density. Not every combination exists, and these labels do not fully specify compatibility.
- Which of these identifiers and schemes hold for the sense of floppy disk this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Standards and regulation
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- ISO/IEC 9293, issued by ISO and IEC, specifies volume and file structure for flexible disk cartridges used for information interchange.
- Which of these standards and regulation hold for the sense of floppy disk this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Real-world use
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Distribution and installation of software.
- Transfer and backup of documents and other small files.
- Booting computers and running diagnostic or recovery utilities.
- Loading programs or data into legacy industrial equipment and electronic musical instruments.
- Preservation and recovery of historical software and digital records.
- Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of floppy disk this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Typical measurements
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Nominal physical size - Common families are 3.5, 5.25 and 8 - inch
- Formatted capacity of common double-sided 3.5-inch PC formats - 720 for DD; 1440 for HD; 2880 for ED - KiB
- Formatted capacity of common double-sided 5.25-inch PC formats - 360 for DD; 1200 for HD - KiB
- Typical drive spindle speed - 300 or 360, depending on drive and format - rpm
- Which of these typical measurements hold for the sense of floppy disk this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Failure modes and hazards
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- Magnetic coating deterioration, contamination or abrasion can cause unreadable sectors.
- Strong magnetic fields can alter or erase recorded data.
- Heat, moisture and mechanical deformation can damage the medium or enclosure.
- Dirty or misaligned drive heads can cause read/write failures or damage the recording surface.
- Accidental overwriting, interrupted writes or filesystem corruption can destroy access to stored data.
- Which of these failure modes and hazards hold for the sense of floppy disk this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart
Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.
- floppy disk drive - The drive supplies the motor, heads and control mechanisms; the floppy disk is the removable recording medium.
- hard disk - A hard disk records on rigid platters; a floppy disk uses a flexible recording substrate even when its outer cartridge is rigid.
- optical disc - An optical disc is read using light; a floppy disk stores information magnetically.
- disk image - A disk image is a digital representation of disk contents or recorded structure, rather than the physical medium.
- Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of floppy disk this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
What the second pass must settle
- Which physical-format and recording standards, with issuing bodies and editions, should anchor the supported floppy families?
- Which nominal capacity conventions and unit interpretations apply to each supported format?
- How should unusual recordings, including nonstandard track layouts and copy-protection features, be represented without assuming sector-based organisation?
- What specialist guidance establishes suitable storage conditions, cleaning methods and stop criteria for damaged or contaminated floppy media?
- What evidence is sufficient to distinguish media deterioration from drive alignment, controller limitations or unsupported encoding?