File /proc/partitions contains list all the block devices and partitions that the system recognizes: cat /proc/partitions Then use file command to determine what kind of filesystem is the partition, if any: file -s <device(e.g /dev/sda1)> Bash About the author Xuan Ngo is the founder of OpenWritings.net. He currently lives in Montreal, Canada. He loves to write about programming and open source subjects.