app.mkfs

app.mkfs is a thin command-construction wrapper around mkfs and mkfs.<fstype> frontends.

This module constructs ward.process.cmd(...) invocations; it does not parse output. consumers can use wardlib.tools.out (or their own parsing) on the :output() result.

The wrapper prefers mkfs.<fstype> when present in PATH; otherwise it falls back to mkfs -t <fstype>.

Filesystem-specific flags are intentionally not modeled. Use opts.extra.

Import

local Mkfs = require("wardlib.app.mkfs").Mkfs

Privilege escalation and safety

Formatting filesystems is destructive and almost always requires elevated privileges.

Use wardlib.tools.with middleware so privilege escalation is explicit and scoped:

local with = require("wardlib.tools.with")

with.with(with.middleware.sudo(), function()
  -- mkfs.ext4 /dev/sdb1
  Mkfs.ext4("/dev/sdb1"):run()
end)

Options: MkfsOpts

• bin: string?
  • Override the binary (name or absolute path).
  • When set, it is used directly and no -t <fstype> is added.
• extra: string[]?
  • Extra args appended before the device.
  • Use this for filesystem-specific flags (for example, labels, force flags, etc.).

API

Mkfs.format(fstype, device, opts)

Format a device with an explicit filesystem type.

If mkfs.<fstype> exists in PATH, it is used directly. Otherwise:

• Builds: mkfs -t <fstype> <extra...> <device>

Mkfs.format(fstype: string, device: string, opts: MkfsOpts|nil) -> ward.Cmd

Convenience helpers

These call Mkfs.format(...) with the corresponding fstype:

• Mkfs.ext4(device, opts)
• Mkfs.xfs(device, opts)
• Mkfs.btrfs(device, opts)
• Mkfs.vfat(device, opts)
• Mkfs.f2fs(device, opts)

Examples

Create an ext4 filesystem with extra flags

local with = require("wardlib.tools.with")

-- mkfs.ext4 -F -L data /dev/sdb1
with.with(with.middleware.sudo(), function()
  Mkfs.ext4("/dev/sdb1", { extra = { "-F", "-L", "data" } }):run()
end)

Use the generic formatter

-- mkfs -t xfs -f /dev/sdb2
Mkfs.format("xfs", "/dev/sdb2", { extra = { "-f" } })

Force a specific binary

This bypasses the mkfs.<fstype> / mkfs -t selection logic.

-- /usr/sbin/mkfs.ext4 -F /dev/sdb1
Mkfs.format("ext4", "/dev/sdb1", { bin = "/usr/sbin/mkfs.ext4", extra = { "-F" } })