Before you can access the files on a file system, you need to mount the file system. When you mount a file system, you attach that file system to a directory (mount point) and make it available to the system. The root (/) file system is always mounted. Any other file system can be connected or disconnected from the root (/) file system.
Most file systems are automatically mounted by SMF services at system boot time. Generally, you do not need to mount or unmount file systems manually. For more information about mounting different file system types, see Mounting and Unmounting Oracle Solaris File Systems.
When you mount a file system, any files or directories in the underlying mount point directory are unavailable as long as the file system is mounted. These files are not permanently affected by the mounting process. They become available again when the file system is unmounted. However, mount directories are typically empty because you usually do not want to obscure existing files.
For step-by-step instructions on how to mount file systems, see Mounting and Unmounting Oracle Solaris File Systems.