(12.04) partition not mounting at boot

[mzimmers]

OK, I made that change to the /etc/fstab file, and the system now boots without incident (yay!).

So, should I remove the sdb2 entry from /media? If so, is there a special way of doing it, or can I just drag the file to the trash?

On a related question, I do see a couple of partitions for my Windows boot in my sidebar; is there a way to remove these, or is this just the way it's going to be?

Thanks for all the help, guys.

[drs305]

OK, I made that change to the /etc/fstab file, and the system now boots without incident (yay!).

So, should I remove the sdb2 entry from /media? If so, is there a special way of doing it, or can I just drag the file to the trash?

You can remove it - just make sure it's empty before actually deleting the /media/sdb2 folder. The side panes are just shortcuts, so you may be able to remove the sdb2 folder by right clicking and deleting. If you can't, open nautilus as root, make sure there is nothing in the folder, then move up one level and remove/delete the 'sdb2' folder.

mount # Check that sdb2 is not mounted on /media/sdb2 (or any other partition, for that matter)
gksu nautilus /media/sdb2

On a related question, I do see a couple of partitions for my Windows boot in my sidebar; is there a way to remove these, or is this just the way it's going to be?

I don't use Windows so I'll defer to someone who does since I don't know how they are displayed.

[mzimmers]

Thanks, drs. I just deleted it using Terminal (it was indeed empty).

Don't sweat the Windows partitions; that was just an aside. I consider this solved.

Is there a short tutorial somewhere on /dev, /media and /mnt? I'm not sure I really understand the nuances of these directories.

Thanks again for all the help.

[drs305]

Is there a short tutorial somewhere on /dev, /media and /mnt? I'm not sure I really understand the nuances of these directories.

I don't have any great links. Generally the distinctions between /media and /mnt have diminished over time. Years ago there were users who would get upset using /mnt for a removable drive or /media for a permanent device.

Here is one link regarding the way the Linux file structure is tailored.
http://swift.siphos.be/linux_sea/ch05.html

I'll throw in two more minor observations. Your partition is formatted ext2. You can use it as ext3 without any changes other than the fstab entry. ext4 is now the default for Ubuntu and is very stable for most users (not that you would notice the difference). If you ever make a new partition, I'd recommend formattting it to ext4 rather than ext2.

Also, your label for sdb2 is "ubuntu backups". Labels are great and can really make things simpler. Having spaces in the name - not so much. If you ever want to change the name, you can do it with this command. Just change fstab to match if you change it.

sudo tune2fs -L somenamewithoutspaces /dev/sdb2

[mzimmers]

Thanks for the observations. I'm curious, though...the label "Ubuntu backups" doesn't appear anywhere in /etc/fstab. What am I supposed to change to "match" whatever I do with tune2fs?

I'll remember your comment about ext2/3/4, too.

[drs305]

Thanks for the observations. I'm curious, though...the label "Ubuntu backups" doesn't appear anywhere in /etc/fstab. What am I supposed to change to "match" whatever I do with tune2fs?

I'll remember your comment about ext2/3/4, too.

Sorry for the confusion. I use labels in fstab but forgot you didn't. UUIDs are better than "/dev/sdXY", but for me labels are even better since they mean something. An fstab entry for a label would replace UUID with the label name, such as for "ubuntu_backups"

LABEL=ubuntu_backups /mnt/<mountpoint> ext3 ........

You can use a label with spaces by "escaping it". For "ubuntu backups":

LABEL=ubuntu\040backups /mnt/<mountpoint> ext3 ........

[mzimmers]

Done. I ran tune2fs and changed /etc/fstab, and restarted. It appears to have worked. (I used a label with no spaces, too.) Thanks again!