Design rule for Camera File system

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Design rule for Camera File system (DCF) is a JEITA specification (number CP-3461) which defines a file format and file system for digital cameras, including the directory structure, file naming method, character set, file format, and metadata format. It is currently the de facto industry standard for digital still cameras. The file format of DCF is based on the Exif 2.2 specification.

The latest version of the standard is v 2.21.

The root directory in a digital camera contains a DCIM (Digital Camera Images) directory which contains possibly multiple subdirectories with names such as "123ABCDE", and no two directories may have the same three digit code. The alphabet characters often refer to a camera maker. Each image has a name such as "ABCD1234" for image number 1234.

For example, the files on a Nikon D40 are arranged according to the above specification. Thus, the root folder is named "NIKOND40", with a subdirectory named "DCIM". This folder contains a subfolder named by default "100NCD40", in which images are stored. Images are named "DSC_xxxx", where xxxx represents the file's sequential number. As this is an industry standard, similar directory structures and naming procedures can be found in most digital cameras.