How to Mount an Allocated Device

Before You Begin

The user or role has allocated the device. To mount a device, the user or role must have the privileges that are required for mounting the device. To give the required privileges, see How to Authorize Users to Allocate a Device.

1. Assume a role that can allocate and mount a device.

   % su - role-name Password: <Type role-name password> $

2. Create and protect a mount point in the role's home directory.

   You only need to do this step the first time you need a mount point.

   $ mkdir mount-point ; chmod 700 mount-point

3. List the allocatable devices.

   $ list_devices -l List of allocatable devices

4. Allocate the device.

   Specify the device by device name.

   $ allocate device-name

5. Mount the device.

   $ mount -o ro -F filesystem-type device-path mount-point

   where

   -o ro

   Indicates that the device is to be mounted read-only. Use-o rw to indicate that you should be able to write to the device.

   -F filesystem-type

   Indicates the file system format of the device. Typically, a CD-ROM is formatted with an HSFS file system. A diskette is typically formatted with a PCFS file system.

   device-path

   Indicates the path to the device. The output of the list_devices -l command includes the device-path.

   mount-point

   Indicates the mount point that you created in Step 2.

Example 4–10 Allocating a Diskette Drive

In this example, a user assumes a role that can allocate and mount a diskette drive, fd0. The diskette is formatted with a PCFS file system.

% roles
devicealloc
% su - devicealloc
Password: <Type devicealloc password>
$ mkdir /home/devicealloc/mymnt
$ chmod 700 /home/devicealloc/mymnt
$ list_devices -l
...
device: fd0 type: fd files: /dev/diskette /dev/rdiskette /dev/fd0a
...
$ allocate fd0
$ mount -o ro -F pcfs /dev/diskette /home/devicealloc/mymnt
$ ls /home/devicealloc/mymnt
List of the contents of diskette

Example 4–11 Allocating a CD-ROM Drive

In this example, a user assumes a role that can allocate and mount a CD-ROM drive, sr0. The drive is formatted as an HSFS file system.

% roles
devicealloc
% su - devicealloc
Password: <Type devicealloc password>
$ mkdir /home/devicealloc/mymnt
$ chmod 700 /home/devicealloc/mymnt
$ list_devices -l
...
device: sr0 type: sr files: /dev/sr0 /dev/rsr0 /dev/dsk/c0t2d0s0 ...
...
$ allocate sr0
$ mount -o ro -F hsfs /dev/sr0 /home/devicealloc/mymnt
$ cd /home/devicealloc/mymnt ; ls
List of the contents of CD-ROM

Troubleshooting

If the mount command cannot mount the device, an error message is displayed: mount: insufficient privileges. Check the following:

• Make sure that you are executing the mount command in a profile shell. If you have assumed a role, the role has a profile shell. If you are a user who has been assigned a profile with the mount command, you must create a profile shell. The commands pfsh, pfksh, and pfcsh create a profile shell.

• Make sure that you own the specified mount point. You should have read, write, and execute access to the mount point.

Contact your administrator if you still cannot mount the allocated device.