mount command in Linux with Examples - GeeksforGeeks (2024)

FAQs

What is mount in Linux with example? ›

In Linux, the mount command is used to attach (or mount) a file system (a storage device eg. USB flash drive or hard disk) to a specified directory(eg. /usr/local) in the file system hierarchy. This makes the files and directories of the mounted device accessible to the user and the system.

In Linux, you can use the mount, mount -l, and cat /proc/mounts commands to list all mount points.

Mounting makes file systems, files, directories, devices, and special files available for use at a particular location. It is the only way a file system is made accessible. The mount command instructs the operating system to attach a file system at a specified directory.

A mount point can be simply described as a directory to access the data stored in your hard drives. In more specific terms, a mount point is a (usually empty) directory in the currently accessible filesystem on which an additional filesystem is mounted (attached).

The basic usage of the mount command involves specifying the device and the mount point. The device is the file system you want to access, and the mount point is the directory where you want the file system to be accessible. In this example, '/dev/sdb1' is the device, and '/media/usb' is the mount point.

Mounting a file system on Linux is generally a straightforward two-step process: create a mount point directory, and use the mount command to mount the device at the mount point. Unless the file system is in use, unmounting is even simpler, requiring only the umount command.

The mount command is utilized when you need to access files or directories from a device (like a hard drive, CD-ROM, or network location) on your system. It's especially useful for accessing partitions on a hard disk, external storage devices, or file systems on remote machines.

The classic directory for permanent mount points is /mnt , for example sudo mkdir /mnt/exthdd and use that as a mountpoint. /mnt is for internal disks. /media for external.

How do I mount a specific user in Linux? ›

4. Using Specific User Rights. In Linux, we can mount a device with specific user rights by using the mount command with the -o option. The -o flag allows us to specify various mount options, including the user and group that should have access to the mounted device.

Using the findmnt Command

Yes, the "findmnt" command is another way to check if a directory is a mount point on a Linux system. To check a specific mount point, you can use the -T option followed by the path to the mount point.

There are two types of mounts, a remote mount and a local mount. Remote mounts are done on a remote system on which data is transmitted over a telecommunication line. Remote file systems, such as Network File System (NFS), require that the files be exported before they can be mounted.

Example /etc/fstab entries to mount three filesystems, each with a different config directory. Note: To add other mount options, you can add them after the config directory separated by comma. Here is an entry using an additional mount option ( mt ).

In Linux, "mounting" just associates the FS with the path, and will mark the underlying device as in-use.

The mount command instructs the operating system to make a file system available for use at a specified location (the mount point). In addition, you can use the mount command to build other file trees made up of directory and file mounts.