Where is the metadata???

[time to c]

So i was just playing with files like opening with hex editor and doing some stuff. and i found one thing...
i can access the data stored in a file but where are the metadata like file property, time stamps and other things are stored?

it's definitely not stored inside the file but where it is? is it stored somewhere in HardDrive filesystem or anywhere else? i also noticed that the NTFS file system can also store permissions like i can use dos command cacls (or icacls) on NTFS filesystem but it does not support filesystems like FAT32.
and if it is on the harddrive then we can change the metadata (file properties hidden,archive etc) using linux (am i right)?

please can someone explain or tell me where i can find the right information about this topic.

[Athar]

Yes, the filesystem itself allocates additional space for storing metadata on the disk.
All operating systems give you an API that allows changing the metadata of files (timestamps, attributes, name, etc.).

[time to c]

Can we directly read/write at the metadata location?
by directly i mean RAW read and write using low level interaction with the hardrive (something like debug command)?

[Athar]

Yes, you can by opening the appropriate device file for a partition or hard disk (e.g. "\\.\C:") and reading/writing to it. When you know the details of the file system, you can figure out the metadata location(s) for a specific file on the disk.

[time to c]

Thanks for the information.