Apple file system (APFS) is a file system for that was introduced with macOS Seirra, currently being developed and deployed by Apple Inc. As we all know that apple released macOS Sierra last year, and along with the release it debuted a new file system: APPLE FILE SYSTEM dubbed as APFS. This format has been designed for solid storage drives, which will have them to have a strong hold on encryption and data integrity.
While the macOS Sierra has some features and support of APFS(Apple File System) but those are very limited. Apple is expected to make this file system as a default file system in the next major version of macOS. However, if Apple changelog on iOS 10.3 beta is anything to go by, the iOS devices will be getting on the APFS bandwagon sooner than expected.
“Apple File System (APFS) is a data system for macOS, iOS, tvOS and watchOS currently developed by Apple Inc. It is designed at addressing the core issues of the existing HFS+ file system in use on these platforms today.”
With the release of iOS 10.3 beta, Apple has notified iOS users that with the upgrading of OS, the file system will automatically be upgraded to APFS. The devices that will get updated to the new file system include iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Apple TV. Moreover, during this file system conversion, the existing data will be preserved. However, the company recommends their users to backup their device before updating to the newer version of iOS.
When you update to iOS 10.3, your iOS device will update its file system to Apple File System (APFS). This conversion preserves existing data on your device. However, as with any software update, it is recommended that you create a backup of your device before updating.
It is going to be interesting to see how this file system conversions from old files system to new APFS will boost up the performance and stability. It is interesting to note that Apple opted to introduce a new File system with iOS 10.3 rather than iOS 11. As the release of MacOS Sierra was announced last year, however, the conversion was not made with the release of macOS Sierra 10.12.4.