In computer science, a record-oriented filesystem is a file system where data is stored as collections of records.
This is in contrast to a byte-oriented filesystem, where the data is treated as an unformatted stream of bytes.
Additional information including blocking factor, binary vs. text and the maximum number of records may be specified.
Some operating systems require that library routines specific to the record format be included in the program.
This means copying the file (which requires additional storage space, time and coordination) may be necessary.
In either case, significant amounts of code to manage records must be provided in protected routines to ensure file integrity.
On a magnetic tape overhead typically takes the form of an inter-record gap.
On a direct access device with variable-length physical records, that overhead typically takes the form of metadata and inter-record gaps.
A record might contain data associated with a particular, e.g., building, contact, employee, part, venue.
Significant portions of modern operating system kernels and associated device drivers are devoted to hiding the naturally structured and delimited (and in some sense a block is just a physical record) nature of physical storage devices.