Auto mount ntfs drive in Ubuntu 8.04?

[fuzzyl0g1c]

So I used wubi to install Ubuntu 8.04 from vista, and it doesn't automatically mount a ntfs drive with music I need. I know how to manually mount it, but how do I set up to do this at boot? Thanks!

[cold_fu5ion]

Hi there,

Someone may have to correct this, but I just set up my NTFS drives to auto-mount by doing the following: (note this will allow NTFS write)

1: Open up Terminal (Applications - Accessories - Terminal) and type the following:

sudo fdisk -l

you will be asked for the root password (password you chose at setup) and will be presented with a list that looks similar to this:

Disk /dev/sdb: 320.0 GB, 320072933376 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 38913 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x000e4abf

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/sdb2   *           1       38913   312568641    7  HPFS/NTFS

this tells us that the drive is 320GB and is located at /dev/sdb2, you will need to remember the location of the drive.

2: In terminal again, type

sudo gedit /etc/fstab

You will be presented with your fstab file, which basically tells Ubuntu where to mount the drives listed.

3: At the bottom of the fstab file paste the following:

/dev/sdb2       /media/wimpy ntfs-3g  defaults  0   0

You will need to adjust 2 things: the name /dev/sdb2 to the drive that is specific to your computer, and the name /media/wimpy. The name I chose "wimpy" the directory where the drive will be mounted. Save the file

4: to create the mount point, open Terminal and type:

sudo mkdir /media/wimpy

where "wimpy" matches the name you used in the fstab file.

5. To test that it works, type:

sudo mount -a

This will mount all the drives listed in the fstab file.
I think that you will then need to do a restart to notice the changes if you add more drives.

You can also change the drive name using:

sudo ntfslabel /dev/sdb3 wimpy

Although the drive has to be unmounted first.


Hope that helps.

[MrMarc]

Thank you! That sorted out one niggle for my install! Now my desktop wallpaper from my NTFS drive always displays on startup.

By the way I know this is irrelevant but how do I thank somebody for their post without actually posting a new message?

[DagMan]

You click on this thing that's located at the bottom right of their post

[MrMarc]

Cool thanks for that, although the icon wasn't shown on cold_fu5ion's post! Oh well not to worry, thanks again!

[VitaminBB]

This is something im trying to do myself.

I have a drive in a usb enclosure that I plug into my laptop, it is formatted in NTFS and has my images and mp3s etc, if I can get Ubuntu to "see" it that would be a great setup.

Following the information above I did the fdisk-l and I cant see anything pointing to the NTFS drive, it is plugged in and Ubuntu sees the drive, just says it cant mount because its NTFS.

This is the info I get after typing sudo fdisk -l in terminal ...

Disk /dev/sda: 120.0 GB, 120034123776 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 14593 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x34fe34fd

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 * 1 14264 114575548+ 83 Linux
/dev/sda2 14265 14593 2642692+ 5 Extended
/dev/sda5 14265 14593 2642661 82 Linux swap / Solaris

Disk /dev/sdc: 120.0 GB, 120034123776 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 14593 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0xdfb68f5d

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdc1 * 1 11300 90767218+ 6 FAT16
/dev/sdc2 11301 14593 26451022+ f W95 Ext'd (LBA)
/dev/sdc5 11301 14593 26450991 b W95 FAT32

Any ideas?

[VitaminBB]

Ok somethings wrong here ...

I tried to follow the HOWTO setup here ... http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=217009

But I cant find the NTFS device when im in terminal anywhere, im lost *L*

I can see the NTFS drive under "Places" but when I click on it I am told "unable to mount volume 'Osmosis' " (thats the name of the drive.

Now, it gets even more confusing, on this same external drive I have a small fat16 drive and something I have done has forced this drive to appear on the desktop even when the external drive is unplugged and when the drive is plugged in I see two 'PS3' volumes (the fat16 partition on the NTFS external drive).

Im fricking confused.

I want to get my Ubuntu to recognize NTFS so I can grab files and explore on that volume, I also want to get Ubuntu to stop mounting the fat16 volume on the drive when I unlug the external drive.

Anyone?

[drs305]

I've written a tutorial on how to use pysdm, a gui-based app to edit fstab. It got a little long so I put a "3 Minute Guide" at the top of it. If you are interested, you can get to it via the link in my signature.

[VitaminBB]

Right on, first thing to report, it worked! I can now see my files, thanks for that ...

There is one problem though, the devices seem to be breeding ...

I am getting multiples of the volumes that arent disappearing when I disconnect and theres no option i see to unmount these phantom volumes ...

[drs305]

Right on, first thing to report, it worked! I can now see my files, thanks for that ...
I am getting multiples of the volumes that arent disappearing when I disconnect and theres no option i see to unmount these phantom volumes ...

That is interesting. I can offer a few suggestions although they are not necessarily 'fixes':

1. If you run "sudo umount -a" do the icons disappear? Then "sudo mount -a" and see if only one reappears.

2. You could change the mount point to something other than /media/XXX. Devices mounted in /media display on the desktop by default. Those on /mnt or anywhere else won't by default.

3. You can run this command to hide mounted volumes.

gconftool-2 --type bool --set /apps/nautilus/desktop/volumes_visible 'false'

Change the value to 'true' to restore them to the desktop.