What is a direct access filing system?

What is a direct access filing system?

• A. A system that requires an index to be consulted before retrieval.
• B. A system that prevents access to files without authorization.
• C. A system that allows locating a particular record by going directly to the files and looking under the name of the record.
• D. A system where files are arranged randomly.

Answer: (C)

Direct access filing means you can locate a specific record by going straight to its file and opening it, using the record’s name as the retrieval key. This makes retrieval quick because you don’t need to search through other files or consult a separate index first. The option described matches this: you go directly to the files and look under the name of the record. In contrast, needing an index first describes indirect access, a system that uses a separate reference to find where a file is stored. A system that prevents access without authorization is about security, not the method of retrieval, and a random arrangement would not allow efficient finding of records.

Direct access filing means you can locate a specific record by going straight to its file and opening it, using the record’s name as the retrieval key. This makes retrieval quick because you don’t need to search through other files or consult a separate index first. The option described matches this: you go directly to the files and look under the name of the record. In contrast, needing an index first describes indirect access, a system that uses a separate reference to find where a file is stored. A system that prevents access without authorization is about security, not the method of retrieval, and a random arrangement would not allow efficient finding of records.