HOWTO: NTFS with read/write support using ntfs-3g (easy method)

[thm]

gvm call pmount-hal, which will choose the fs according to what suggest hal.
Since my patched package provide an hal rule to choose ntfs-3g for ntfs, pmount-hal would choose ntfs-3g automatically. What give u :

pmount-hal /dev/sda1

Also, cheek that the hal rule is there :
For dapper : /usr/share/hal/fdi/policy/10osvendor/15-ntfs-policy.fdi
For edgy : /etc/hal/fdi/policy/15-ntfs-policy.fdi

Thanks for the pointers givré. I have /etc/hal/fdi/policy/15-ntfs-policy.fdi in place, content looks fine:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?> <!-- -*- SGML -*- -->

<deviceinfo version="0.2">

<!-- mount ntfs volume with the ntfs-3g driver. If you want to change this policy to
use the read only ntfs driver for default instead, just replace ntfs-3g by ntfs -->

        <device>

        <match key="volume.fstype" string="ntfs">
        <merge key="volume.policy.mount_filesystem" type="string">ntfs-3g</merge>
                </match>

        </device>


<!-- if ntfs-3g, we need some special option (don't touch this policy if you change
the default policy to ntfs above. In any way, **don't touch this policy**)-->

        <device>

        <match key="volume.fstype" string="ntfs-3g">
        <append key="volume.mount.valid_options" type="strlist">nonempty</append>
        <merge key="storage.policy.mount_option.nonempty" type="bool">true</merge>
        <merge key="volume.policy.mount_option.nonempty" type="bool">true</merge>
        </match>

        </device>
</deviceinfo>

And everything works fine, when I don't use LUKS. Then, ntfs-3g is used to mount ntfs-formatted volumes, both automatically and when I manually call pmount.

However, as soon as I use LUKS, another path in the program must be used and transparency breaks (using LUKS should be transparent). When I unmount the automatic mount (that uses ntfs) and say "pmount /dev/sdb1", I get the output shown in https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=1029, pmount asks me for the passphrase and mounts with ntfs, not ntfs-3g. When I use pmount-hal I get

$ pmount-hal /dev/sdc1 -d
resolved /dev/sdc1 to device /dev/sdc1
mount point to be used: /media/usbdisk
no iocharset given, current locale encoding is UTF-8
locale encoding uses UTF-8, setting iocharset to 'utf8'
Cleaning lock directory /var/lock/pmount_dev_sdc1
device_whitelist: checking /etc/pmount.allow...
device_whitlisted(): nothing matched, returning 0
find_sysfs_device: looking for sysfs directory for device 8:33
find_sysfs_device: checking whether /dev/sdc1 is on /sys/block/sdc (8:32)
find_sysfs_device: major device numbers match
find_sysfs_device: minor device numbers do not match, checking partitions...
find_sysfs_device: checking whether device /dev/sdc1 matches partition 8:32
find_sysfs_device: checking whether device /dev/sdc1 matches partition 8:33
find_sysfs_device: -> partition matches, belongs to block device /sys/block/sdc
device_removable: corresponding block device for /dev/sdc1 is /sys/block/sdc
get_blockdev_attr: value of /sys/block/sdc/removable == 1
policy check passed
spawnv(): executing /sbin/cryptsetup '/sbin/cryptsetup' 'isLuks' '/dev/sdc1'
spawn(): /sbin/cryptsetup terminated with status 0
spawnv(): executing /sbin/cryptsetup '/sbin/cryptsetup' 'luksOpen' '/dev/sdc1' '_dev_sdc1'
Enter LUKS passphrase: 
spawn(): /sbin/cryptsetup terminated with status 0
locking mount point directory
mount point directory locked
spawnv(): executing /bin/mount '/bin/mount' '-t' 'udf' '-o' 'nosuid,nodev,user,async,atime,exec,uid=1000,gid=1000,umask=000,iocharset=utf8' '/dev/mapper/_dev_sdc1' '/media/usbdisk'
spawn(): /bin/mount terminated with status 32
spawnv(): executing /bin/mount '/bin/mount' '-t' 'udf' '-o' 'nosuid,nodev,user,async,atime,exec,uid=1000,gid=1000,umask=000' '/dev/mapper/_dev_sdc1' '/media/usbdisk'
spawn(): /bin/mount terminated with status 32
spawnv(): executing /bin/mount '/bin/mount' '-t' 'iso9660' '-o' 'nosuid,nodev,user,async,atime,exec,uid=1000,gid=1000,iocharset=utf8' '/dev/mapper/_dev_sdc1' '/media/usbdisk'
spawn(): /bin/mount terminated with status 32
spawnv(): executing /bin/mount '/bin/mount' '-t' 'iso9660' '-o' 'nosuid,nodev,user,async,atime,exec,uid=1000,gid=1000' '/dev/mapper/_dev_sdc1' '/media/usbdisk'
spawn(): /bin/mount terminated with status 32
spawnv(): executing /bin/mount '/bin/mount' '-t' 'vfat' '-o' 'nosuid,nodev,user,quiet,shortname=mixed,async,atime,exec,uid=1000,gid=1000,umask=077,iocharset=utf8' '/dev/mapper/_dev_sdc1' '/media/usbdisk'
spawn(): /bin/mount terminated with status 32
spawnv(): executing /bin/mount '/bin/mount' '-t' 'vfat' '-o' 'nosuid,nodev,user,quiet,shortname=mixed,async,atime,exec,uid=1000,gid=1000,umask=077' '/dev/mapper/_dev_sdc1' '/media/usbdisk'
spawn(): /bin/mount terminated with status 32
spawnv(): executing /bin/mount '/bin/mount' '-t' 'ntfs' '-o' 'nosuid,nodev,user,async,atime,exec,uid=1000,gid=1000,umask=077,iocharset=utf8' '/dev/mapper/_dev_sdc1' '/media/usbdisk'
spawn(): /bin/mount terminated with status 0
unlocking mount point directory
mount point directory unlocked

So pmount-hal also uses ntfs, not ntfs-3g (the only difference seems to be that I get a better mountpoint). It seems to me that pmount(?, pmount-hal?, ...?) does not look at the volume's filesystem (again) _after_ "cryptsetup luksOpen" but it should. So is that a bug or could I tweak some other configuration anywhere?

[givré]

Ok, see the point.
It's seams that pmount-hal can't get the fs from hal (probably because it's encypted, don't really know much on that) so it use the classical pmount method : mount with different fs until it works.
I put ntfs-3g after ntfs in the list, so it's why it use ntfs.
I'll prepare a package with the change so you could test to know if it make it work.
Do you use edgy or dapper ?

[jdarias]

First of all excuse me for my bad english. I want to be able to read and write my two ntfs partitions, but the instructions given in the first post of the thread didn't work for me. The drive disappears and cannot be accessed, please give me a hand with my config
Here's how my fstab looks like:

# /etc/fstab: static file system information.
#
# <file system> <mount point>   <type>  <options>       <dump>  <pass>
proc            /proc           proc    defaults        0       0
# /dev/hda3
UUID=1b2b4efd-197e-442e-8d8d-4d5062408ae8 /               ext3    defaults,errors=remount-ro 0       1
# /dev/hda1
UUID=E844661E4465F02C /media/hda1     ntfs    defaults,nls=utf8,umask=007,gid=46 0       1
# /dev/hda5
UUID=E60096EE0096C549 /media/hda5     ntfs    defaults,nls=utf8,umask=007,gid=46 0       1
# /dev/hda4
UUID=8f26cd14-92ba-4160-85e0-5a5f7901a4d2 none            swap    sw              0       0
/dev/hdd        /media/cdrom0   udf,iso9660 user,noauto     0       0
/dev/hdc        /media/cdrom1   udf,iso9660 user,noauto     0       0
/dev/           /media/floppy0  auto    rw,user,noauto  0       0

How should i modify it?

[givré]

Change that

# /dev/hda1
UUID=E844661E4465F02C /media/hda1     ntfs    defaults,nls=utf8,umask=007,gid=46 0       1
# /dev/hda5
UUID=E60096EE0096C549 /media/hda5     ntfs    defaults,nls=utf8,umask=007,gid=46 0       1

to

# /dev/hda1
UUID=E844661E4465F02C /media/hda1     ntfs-3g    defaults,locale=en_US.utf8 0       1
# /dev/hda5
UUID=E60096EE0096C549 /media/hda5     ntfs-3g    defaults,locale=en_US.utf8 0       1

You can also adjust the locale to your need by looking at the output of locale -a to know which one are supported by your system.
Save the change and reboot.

[jdarias]

Thank you very much!
I enabled both partitions. I tried before enabling just the hda5 but it didn't work. That's weird.

[bodhi.zazen]

Nice How-to



This thread has been added to the UDSF wiki.



bodhi.zazen

[thm]

Ok, see the point.
It's seams that pmount-hal can't get the fs from hal (probably because it's encypted, don't really know much on that) so it use the classical pmount method : mount with different fs until it works.
I put ntfs-3g after ntfs in the list, so it's why it use ntfs.
I'll prepare a package with the change so you could test to know if it make it work.
Do you use edgy or dapper ?

Hi givré, wow, thanks, I am on edgy. What are you planning to do? Just swap ntfs and ntfs-3g in the list of file systems that pmount tries? Is this hardcoded or is there a config file that can be changed (trying to take the burden to produce a package off you)? Regards, Thomas.

[givré]

Hi givré, wow, thanks, I am on edgy. What are you planning to do? Just swap ntfs and ntfs-3g in the list of file systems that pmount tries? Is this hardcoded or is there a config file that can be changed (trying to take the burden to produce a package off you)? Regards, Thomas.

Ok, i'll do it right now. It's hardcoded.
Hang On 8)

[givré]

Ok, So i just put ntfs-3g before ntfs.
Test it, and it seams to work.
Tell me how it works for you. If it's ok, i'll put in the repo.

Thanks

[jdarias]

Yesterday worked fine after reboot.
Today none of both partitions appear.
What a grief
my fstab:

# /etc/fstab: static file system information.
#
# <file system> <mount point>   <type>  <options>       <dump>  <pass>
proc            /proc           proc    defaults        0       0
# /dev/hda3
UUID=1b2b4efd-197e-442e-8d8d-4d5062408ae8 /               ext3    defaults,errors=remount-ro 0       1
# /dev/hda1
UUID=E844661E4465F02C /media/hda1     ntfs-3g    defaults,locale=es_CO.utf8 0       1
# /dev/hda5
UUID=E60096EE0096C549 /media/hda5     ntfs-3g    defaults,locale=es_CO.utf8 0       1
# /dev/hda4
UUID=8f26cd14-92ba-4160-85e0-5a5f7901a4d2 none            swap    sw              0       0
/dev/hdd        /media/cdrom0   udf,iso9660 user,noauto     0       0
/dev/hdc        /media/cdrom1   udf,iso9660 user,noauto     0       0
/dev/           /media/floppy0  auto    rw,user,noauto  0       0