Which component manages LMV device files?

The device mapper is responsible for managing logical volume management (LVM) device files. It provides a framework for creating virtual block devices and allows for the management of storage devices in a more abstract way. LVM utilizes the device mapper to create logical volumes that can span multiple physical volumes, enabling features such as resizing of volumes, snapshotting, and striping.

The device mapper operates at the kernel level, intercepting I/O requests and mapping them to the appropriate underlying physical devices. By abstracting the physical storage layer, it allows users to manage storage efficiently and flexibly. This ability to create and manipulate virtual devices makes the device mapper essential for managing LVM, as it handles the underlying complexity of the storage configuration.

Other options involve important concepts but do not specifically handle LVM device file management. Block devices refer to a type of device file that interfaces with block-oriented devices, while file systems are responsible for organizing and storing data on those devices. The kernel scheduler is concerned with managing CPU resources and processes, rather than storage devices.