That seems to be the indication given by this webpage http://www.zip.com.au/~akpm/linux/ext3/ext3-usage.html However, default install of Redhat 7.2 setsup fs_passno(6th field of /etc/fstab) as 2 which asks you if you want to run fsck after an unclean shutdown The question is, is fsck required after an unclean shutdown or should one just rely on journal replay. What does fsck do when it sees an unclean ext3 filesystem Regards, Yusuf -- Yusuf Goolamabbas yusufg@outblaze.com