# mount problem



## ruhat (Jun 24, 2010)

hi 
i have an open suse 11 live cd. sometimes i use it to see my files in hard disks which can not seen in windows. 
when i restart the pc with cd, it opens normally. then i connect the usb hard disk. it see the hard disk (samsung) with it's label (my archive). but when i want to see my files, it says* it can not mount the device*.

some other information. my pc is lenovo t400. the suse also can not mount my pc's hard disk (all of partion). but i have some other usb hard disk. most of them can be seen and mounted.

now what can i do, how can i mount my pc's hard disk and my usb hard disk (my archive)

best regards


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## wmorri (May 29, 2008)

Hi,

This is interesting. I am not sure why this is happening. I do know that you can try mounting the disk with the mount command. You just need to know which disk it is that you need. To find that out you will just need the output for the command.


```
fdsk -l
```
Cheers!


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## ruhat (Jun 24, 2010)

I run the terminal-super user mode from applications. I wrote the command fdisk -1. it says "absolute path to fdisk is /sbin/fdisk, so running it may require super user privileges (eg. root)" 
Then I tried to be root and wrote root but I couldn't.
I am not expert at linux please help me step by step 
Regards.


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## wmorri (May 29, 2008)

Hi,

Can you post what you typed cause I am a little confused at the moment.

Cheers!


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## shuuhen (Sep 4, 2004)

Running fdisk to just list information shouldn't require root privileges.

You can either run it with an absolute path like

```
/sbin/fdisk -l
```
or try to run with sudo like

```
sudo fdisk -l
```
*sudo* is a program that lets you run a command as another user (typically and by default root). Programs in /sbin are for system administration type tasks, so they are not in a normal user's PATH variable (the thing that says where to look for programs).


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## ruhat (Jun 24, 2010)

now i tried again
i typed *fdisk -l* again and it says


> "absolute path to fdisk is /sbin/fdisk, so running it may require super user privileges (eg. root)"


then i tried with knoppix live( i dowloaded it this morning) the knoppix saw my pc's hard disk and i can achieve my files. but again see my usb hard disk(my archive) but when i want to open it it says *'unable to mount'*

then from console i typed this



> [email protected]:/home/knoppix# fdisk -l
> 
> Disk /dev/sda: 250.1 GB, 250059350016 bytes
> 255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 30401 cylinders
> ...


as i understood sdb1 is my usb hard disk.
then i check the etc/fstap , it was like this



> # DEFAULT BASE FSTAB, UNCONFIGURED
> proc /proc proc noauto 0 0
> sysfs /sys sysfs noauto 0 0
> # Added by KNOPPIX
> ...


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## csayantan (Sep 3, 2009)

post

1)

```
#mount
and
#cat /etc/mntab

#cat /etc/fstab
#mount -a
```
2)
do you have autofs enabled??
3) try:


```
#mount -t ntfs `fdisk -l | tail -1 | awk '{print $1}'` /mnt

or

#mount `fdisk -l | tail -1 | awk '{print $1}'` /mnt
```
HTH

kind regards


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## ruhat (Jun 24, 2010)

i can not try right now because now i am in windows but after i understand some more thing i will try them
1) i will give the command *mount* and *cat* step by step, is it right?
2) i don't know what is autofs, how can i be sure about it?

regards


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## csayantan (Sep 3, 2009)

ruhat said:


> i can not try right now because now i am in windows but after i understand some more thing i will try them
> 1) i will give the command *mount* and *cat* step by step, is it right?
> 2) i don't know what is autofs, how can i be sure about it?
> 
> ...


yes


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## ruhat (Jun 24, 2010)

i tried all of your advices


> i am writing sudo fdisk -l
> it says fdisk : command not found





> i write /sbin/fdisk it gives fdisk usage menu
> then i write fdisk -l
> it says ... it may require superuser priviligies..
> i write sudo fdisk -l
> it says fdisk : command not found


then


> i write mount
> i write cat /etc/mntab
> it says cat : ... no such file or directory
> i write sudo cat /etc/mntab
> ...





> then i write
> sudo mount -t ntfs `fdisk -l | tail -l |awk '/dev/sdb1'` /mnt (i wrote /dev/sdb1 as just a predict)
> it gives the usage of mount


now what can i do?
i think to install permanantly suse to one of my pc. i couldn't do it with this live cd because i have an 32 bit samsung nc 10 netbook and this cd doesn't install it (i suppose it isn't compatible with 32 bit)
can you advice me a link to dowload and install open suse for this netbook. i think then i will be busy with it better

best regards


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## csayantan (Sep 3, 2009)

you must have a root and root password to do such administrative work.

run with knopix you may have better luck:4-dontkno

http://software.opensuse.org/113/en


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## ruhat (Jun 24, 2010)

thanks
i tried by knoppix, unfortunately i couldn't get the result. 
i will download opensuse, normal installation file
regards


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## hal8000 (Dec 23, 2006)

Your Live CD is micro knoppix:

From your earlier post:

[email protected]:/home/knoppix# fdisk -l

Disk /dev/sda: 250.1 GB, 250059350016 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 30401 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x3acf5b36

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 * 1 192 1534976 7 HPFS/NTFS
Partition 1 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sda2 192 14732 116794368 7 HPFS/NTFS
Partition 2 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sda3 14732 27852 105385984 7 HPFS/NTFS
Partition 3 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sda4 27852 30402 20481024 f W95 Ext'd (LBA)
Partition 4 does not end on cylinder boundary.
/dev/sda5 27852 30402 20480000 7 HPFS/NTFS



This means that 4 NTFS partitions have been detected. The message about cylinder boundary means that when you partitioned using windows the partition did not end on a cylinder but a sector. You will have a little unused space at the end of each partition that's all.


This error:

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 1 7301 58645251 7 HPFS/NTFS
[email protected]:/home/knoppix# mount /dev/sdb1/media
mount: can't find /dev/sdb1/media in /etc/fstab or /etc/mtab
[email protected]:/home/knoppix# mount/dev/sdb1/media
bash: mount/dev/sdb1/media: No such file or directory
[email protected]:/home/knoppix# 

are complete lines of typos by you. (You are missing spaces)

mount /dev/sdb1 /media

Note where space occurs would mount partition sdb1 in /media (as long as you created mountpoint /media).

What I would have done is create several mount points:
su
(enter root password and enter)
mkdir /media/sda1
mkdir /media/sda2

etc for other partitions.

To mount them (you are still root)
mount /dev/sda1 -t ntfs /media/sda1

Commands should work on all linux systems.


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## ruhat (Jun 24, 2010)

I tried your directives at knoppix 
I wrote this command 


> mount /dev/sdb1 /media
> mount: special device /dev/sdb1 does not exist


*I wrote the command 
mkdir for sda1, sda2, sdb1 in media. now all of them exist
*

then


> mount /dev/sdb1 -t ntfs /media/sdb1 (because when I click my harddisk it seems /media/sd1b)
> Failed to write lock '/dev/sdb1': Resource temporarily unavailable
> Error opening '/dev/sdb1': Resource temporarily unavailable
> Failed to mount '/dev/sdb1': Resource temporarily unavailable


This is the last result, still I can't open my harddisk. I will try these commands at suse too. I will let you know.


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## ruhat (Jun 24, 2010)

i tried it with suse on my lenovo, suse doesn' mount lenovo's hard disk and the external hard (my archive). i wrote the commands you said and it mounted the lenovo's hard but couldn't mount the ext hard. it gives an error. i am writing all my commands on console below. as i understand the ext hard has a fault. but i can't chkdsk on windows. because windows can't see it anyway...please check it...


> [email protected]:~> su
> linux:/home/linux # fdisk -l
> 
> Disk /dev/sda: 250.1 GB, 250059350016 bytes
> ...


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## csayantan (Sep 3, 2009)

ruhat said:


> i tried it with suse on my lenovo, suse doesn' mount lenovo's hard disk and the external hard (my archive). i wrote the commands you said and it mounted the lenovo's hard but couldn't mount the ext hard. it gives an error. i am writing all my commands on console below. as i understand the ext hard has a fault. but i can't chkdsk on windows. because windows can't see it anyway...please check it...



you need to issue:

mkdir -p /media/sda2

it should bw an regular directory.

mount -t <type of file system{try with ntfs-3g}> /dev/<your device path> <reguler directory path>


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## ruhat (Jun 24, 2010)

You asked me to do this: 


> mkdir -p /media/sda2


but the disk which I want to mount and gives error is sdb1. Do I type like this: *mkdir -p /media/sdb1*
Regards.


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## hal8000 (Dec 23, 2006)

ruhat said:


> You asked me to do this:
> 
> but the disk which I want to mount and gives error is sdb1. Do I type like this: *mkdir -p /media/sdb1*
> Regards.


In this case -p creates the parent directory /media which you have already created so
mkdir /media/sdb1

will create the mount point. Mount partition like this (as root or sudo):

mount /dev/sdb1 -t ntfs /media/sdb1

If mounted ok you will not see an error.
Then as root type
kdesu konqueror

This will open konqueror with root privilidges so you can browse contents of the drive.


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