Linux no longer supports the ext2 driver as of version 6.9. The use of the ext2 file system has been declining for years, as it has since been succeeded by ext3 and ext4.
Ext2, or second extended file system, is a file system for the Linux kernel and has been around for about thirty years. For a long time this was the default file system in various Linux distros. However, about twenty years ago, ext3 was added to the Linux kernel, and ext4 followed more than a decade ago. The use of ext2 subsequently declined.
Support for the ext2 driver is now ending as it does not support dates after the year 2038, due to the Y2038 issue. That problem occurs in systems that track time in Unix time, or the number of seconds that have passed since 00:00:00 UTC on January 1, 1970. That is kept in a 32-bit integer, but that reaches January 19, 2038 at 03:14:07 UTC the maximum value. The integer then continues to a negative value, indicating the date as December 13, 1901.
Users still using ext2 are advised by Linux developers to upgrade to the ext4 driver. This driver does not suffer from the Y2038 problem and also supports the ext2 file system. The ext2 driver code remains as a reference for file system developers.
