Oh, futz. There's a very good reason, which has already been stated: the
same reason that "ls -l" of a database-type file (whether from Berkeley DB or
Oracle) doesn't return the number of bytes occupied by active records.
Reorganizing a database-like file (and directories are in effect simple
databases) on the fly is fraught with race conditions and performance
issues. So when you delete a "record" you leave the space there, allocated
but unused. If a later new record will fit in the space, you reuse it. This
is true of directories; it's true of gdbm; it's true of Berkeley DB; it's
true of Oracle and Informix. And not just on Linux.
Can we lay this silly thread to rest now?
--
brandon s. allbery [os/2][linux][solaris][japh] allbery@kf8nh.apk.net
system administrator [WAY too many hats] allbery@ece.cmu.edu
carnegie mellon / electrical and computer engineering KF8NH
We are Linux. Resistance is an indication that you missed the point.
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