A computer-implemented method for providing a file system, the method comprising: partitioning a file system of a storage system into a plurality of FS partitions, each FS partition including FS metadata to provide access to segments of data files stored in one or more storage units, wherein the FS partitions collectively represent the file system of the storage system as a single logical file system, wherein each of the FS partitions is associated with a specific time period, including a first FS partition corresponding to a first time period and a second FS partition corresponding to a second time period, and wherein the first FS partition includes first FS metadata having name and directory information for accessing a first set of files each having a time attribute associated with the first time period and the second FS partition includes second FS metadata having name and directory information for accessing a second set of files each having a time attribute associated with the second time period; in response to a request for writing a file to the storage system, selecting the first FS partition after determining that a time attribute of the file is associated with the first time period, the time attribute including a last modified time attribute representing a time at which the file was last modified; loading the first FS metadata of the first FS partition into the system memory for accessing the first set of files stored in the first FS partition without loading the second FS metadata of the second FS partition into the system memory; assigning a token with an initial value to the first FS partition, wherein the token value determines how long the first FS metadata of the first FS partition is rooted in the system memory and decrements when an IO request is executed on the first FS partition and at predetermined time intervals; storing the file in a storage device associated with the first FS partition using the first FS metadata maintained in the system memory, such that files having similar time attributes are stored in an identical FS partition; and unloading the first FS metadata of the first FS partition from the system memory after determining that the token assigned to the first FS partition has a predetermined value. partitioning a file system of a storage system into a plurality of FS partitions, each FS partition including FS metadata to provide access to segments of data files stored in one or more storage units, wherein the FS partitions collectively represent the file system of the storage system as a single logical file system, wherein each of the FS partitions is associated with a specific time period, including a first FS partition corresponding to a first time period and a second FS partition corresponding to a second time period, and wherein the first FS partition includes first FS metadata having name and directory information for accessing a first set of files each having a time attribute associated with the first time period and the second FS partition includes second FS metadata having name and directory information for accessing a second set of files each having a time attribute associated with the second time period; in response to a request for writing a file to the storage system, selecting the first FS partition after determining that a time attribute of the file is associated with the first time period, the time attribute including a last modified time attribute representing a time at which the file was last modified; loading the first FS metadata of the first FS partition into the system memory for accessing the first set of files stored in the first FS partition without loading the second FS metadata of the second FS partition into the system memory; assigning a token with an initial value to the first FS partition, wherein the token value determines how long the first FS metadata of the first FS partition is rooted in the system memory and decrements when an IO request is executed on the first FS partition and at predetermined time intervals; storing the file in a storage device associated with the first FS partition using the first FS metadata maintained in the system memory, such that files having similar time attributes are stored in an identical FS partition; and unloading the first FS metadata of the first FS partition from the system memory after determining that the token assigned to the first FS partition has a predetermined value.