supermount question

[phunni]

I am tempted to disable supermount until it really is properly and permanently fixed (if ever!) I hope this isn't a dumb question (although I think it probably will be) but am I right in thinking that it only affects things like CDROM and floppies etc... My hard drive is not affected by supermount?

 

[DragonMage]

Depending on how your /etc/fstab is, supermount will not affect your hd. Disabling supermount using the command basically just rewrote your /etc/fstab so that supermount line disappeared. From that knowledge, I write my own /etc/fstab line enabling supermount for my cdroms but not my floppies (zip and floppy). I barely use my floppies but use my cdroms all the time and mounting the cdroms manually is a bit of a pain for me.

 

I really wonder why supermount doesn't work for you though.. the upgraded 9.0 kernel fix all my supermount issues.

[phunni]

Is this the kernel that came with 9.0 or an updated version from since then? I saw a post about some kind of fix, but it said it was experimental - not sure how old that post was

 

If it's an update - where do I get it from?

[Counterspy]

There is a new kernel, 19.24 2 which fixes supermount on the Mandrake update mirrors. It is not shown in Mandrake Update to prevent new users from installing it improperly and then having to reinstall. The instructions are here: http://www.mandrakesecure.net/en/kernelupdate.php and one update mirror is here: http://ftp.sunet.se/pub/os/Linux/distribut...dates/9.0/RPMS/ .

 

There are several versions so download the correct one for your system.

 

Counterspy

[Guest ndeb]

Depending on how your /etc/fstab is, supermount will not affect your hd.

Supermount is for removable media. So it makes no sense to have supermount enabled for your hard-drive partitions, assuming that is possible in the first place. Also, since it is very buggy, you should keep your hard-drives away from such experimental and unreliable features.

 

There is a new kernel, 19.24 2 which fixes supermount on the Mandrake update mirrors.

It fixes some bugs, not all. There are quite a few known bugs with supermount even now. If supermount had been that reliable, why is Linus not accepting it as part of the standard linux kernel ? It is because it is truly unreliable.

[SoulSe]

Unfortunately the kernel upgrade is not a reliable solution for supermount, in many cases though, it will make supermount run acceptably, but not perfectly.

 

I wouldn't despair though, I reckon that it should be fixed up once and for all by the time 9.1 final is released. Redhat seem to have the whole issue sorted out as I have not seen any problems with the supermounting system in RH 8.0

 

I prefer mounting things myself - that's the way we are intended to do things under Linux for several reasons. Why not just create a link on your desktop with, for example

$ mount /mnt/cdrom

and then you can just hit it whenever you want to mount your cdrom? Please don't tell me we have people too lazy to do that?

[phunni]

I run fluxbox, which doesn't support icons - although I think there are some dockable apps which do similar things.

 

The problem with simply saying that we should all mount manually is that, if we ever want linux to succeed on the desktop, it has to be easier to use - this means automatic mounting of removable media. Your average PC user will not want to mount drives as they need them

[SoulSe]

I run fluxbox, which doesn't support icons - although I think there are some dockable apps which do similar things.

Fluxbox can do icons, http://www.fluxbox.org/fbdesk/ There is also a dockapp to do it.... the name escapes me, but it only does mounting of the CDROM (who uses floppys anymore? anyone?)

 

The problem with simply saying that we should all mount manually is that, if we ever want linux to succeed on the desktop, it has to be easier to use - this means automatic mounting of removable media.  Your average PC user will not want to mount drives as they need them

Very true. Unfortunately, for Linux to become "user-friendly" enough to take on the desktop market, we are going to have to lose some of the things that make it so stable. Although, the mac market never had a problem with mounting

 

That and some marketing... God knows where that will come from...

[qnr]

Actually, you can use icons with fluxbox, just install some of the add-ons.

 

I understand your point about the desktop, but when you think about it, years from now, people will be finding things to complain about when they send a telepathic command to their equivalent of a PC.

 

Here's one thing you can do right now.

 

First, ensure that users are allowed to mount removable devices in your /etc/fstab --- note that I'm using devfs:

sh-2.05b$ cat /etc/fstab | grep cdrom

/devices/cdroms/cdrom0          /mnt/cdrom iso9660      defaults,ro,user,noauto 0 0

 

Second, make sure you're part of the cdrom group:

sh-2.05b$ cat /etc/group | grep cdrom

cdrom:x:24:terry

 

Third, edit your /etc/sudoers

--- this is what I would add:

Cmnd_Alias CDMNT=/bin/mount /mnt/cdrom,/bin/umount /mnt/cdrom,/usr/bin/eject

%cdrom ALL=NOPASSWD: CDMNT

 

Now, edit your fluxbox menu (~.fluxbox/menu):

[submenu] (Removable Media)

       [submenu] (CDROM)

               [exec] (Mount) {mount /mnt/cdrom}

               [exec] (UMount) {sudo umount /mnt/cdrom}

               [exec] (Eject) {sudo eject /mnt/cdrom}

               [exec] (Close Tray) {eject -t /mnt/cdrom}

       [end]

[end]

 

Now, that is a little bit of work, but all you have to do is add users to the cdrom group as you want them to be able to mount, and whatnot.

 

Note that you'll have to install eject to use it :) -- also, if you don't use sudo in the Eject command, you'll have to umount the cdrom before ejecting it.

[aru]

The problem with simply saying that we should all mount manually is that, if we ever want linux to succeed on the desktop, it has to be easier to use - this means automatic mounting of removable media. Your average PC user will not want to mount drives as they need them

 

I don't agree with that, what has to do the average user is to get used to the system he is using. For example, it is contradictory to complaint about the unfriendliness of mounting removable media while you are using a high unfriendly window manager such as fluxbox (and I assume that you are happy using it because there are other friendlier wm/dm). ;)

 

As qnr has said, while you can't use icons in fluxbox you can edit the menu to include shortcuts for mounting/unmountig things.

[aru]

....

First, ensure that users are allowed to mount removable devices in your /etc/fstab  --- note that I'm using devfs:

...

Second, make sure you're part of the cdrom group:

...

things about sudoing

...

 

my fstab; I also use devfs

arusabal@mandrakeusers ~$ grep cd /etc/fstab 

/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target2/lun0/cd /mnt/cdrw iso9660 nosuid,exec,user,ro,noauto,nodev 0 0

 

I don't need to be part of any special group

arusabal@mandrakeusers ~$ egrep "^cdrom|^cdwriter" /etc/group

cdrom:x:22:

cdwriter:x:80:root

arusabal@mandrakeusers ~$ groups

arusabal audio internet

 

I don't have sudo

arusabal@mandrakeusers ~$ sudo

bash: sudo: command not found

arusabal@mandrakeusers ~$ su -c sudo

Password: 

bash: line 1: sudo: command not found

 

... and I can use the eject command even w/o unmounting first

arusabal@mandrakeusers ~$ mount -v /mnt/cdrw/

/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target2/lun0/cd on /mnt/cdrw type iso9660 (ro,noexec,nosuid,nodev,user=tete)



arusabal@mandrakeusers ~$ eject -v /mnt/cdrw/

eject: device name is `/mnt/cdrw'

eject: expanded name is `/mnt/cdrw'

eject: `/mnt/cdrw' is not mounted

eject: `/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target2/lun0/cd' can be mounted at `/mnt/cdrw'

eject: `/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target2/lun0/cd' is not a multipartition device

eject: trying to eject `/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target2/lun0/cd' using CD-ROM eject command

eject: CD-ROM eject command succeeded



arusabal@mandrakeusers ~$ eject -tv /mnt/cdrw/

eject: device name is `/mnt/cdrw'

eject: expanded name is `/mnt/cdrw'

eject: `/mnt/cdrw' is not mounted

eject: `/dev/scsi/host0/bus0/target2/lun0/cd' can be mounted at `/mnt/cdrw'

eject: closing tray

arusabal@mandrakeusers ~$  

(Obviously I dont use to run those commands in verbose mode)

 

Check your /etc/fstab file is right, and check that it allows user's to mount/umount and they'll be able to eject w/o sudoing or anything special

 

I agree with the rest of your post indeed :D

[DragonMage]

I don't agree with that, what has to do the average user is to get used to the system he is using. For example, it is contradictory to complaint about the unfriendliness of mounting removable media while you are using a high unfriendly window manager such as fluxbox (and I assume that you are happy using it because there are other friendlier wm/dm). ;)

 

As qnr has said, while you can't use icons in fluxbox you can edit the menu to include shortcuts for mounting/unmountig things.

 

Well, the average user will use kde or gnome for their windows manager, not fluxbox.. Fluxbox is reserved for someone more adventurous I think. Heck, I have been using linux as my primary OS since 2000 and I still use kde as my primary desktop. (That's because I can cope with the resource drain and dammit.. kde just looks good) :)

[qnr]

I don't need to be part of any special group  

...

I don't have sudo  

...

... and I can use the eject command even w/o unmounting first

 

Well, considering this is a Mandrake-centric board, yours is obviously the way to go.

 

The group was actually for convenience more than anything (although I do remember being part of a group that allowed me access to the CD in Mandrake-but I might be imagining it). And, by convenience I meant so that new users could be added easily (apparently a moot point for you, but useful for other distros). I could just as easily have used

 

terry ALL=NOPASSWD: CDMNT

in place of

%cdrom ALL=NOPASSWD: CDMNT

 

(for those not familiar with sudoers, note the "%" -- it indicates a group.

 

As far as not having sudo installed, you don't seem to need it anyway. Here's mine:

sh-2.05b$ mount -v /mnt/cdrom

/devices/cdroms/cdrom0 on /mnt/cdrom type iso9660 (ro,noexec,nosuid,nodev,user=terry)

sh-2.05b$ eject -v /mnt/cdrom

eject: device name is `/mnt/cdrom'

eject: expanded name is `/mnt/cdrom'

eject: `/devices/cdroms/cdrom0' is mounted at `/mnt/cdrom'

eject: unmounting `/devices/cdroms/cdrom0'

umount: only root can unmount /devices/cdroms/cdrom0 from /mnt/cdrom

eject: unmount of `/devices/cdroms/cdrom0' failed

 

Our systems just happen to be set up a little differently. Now people can see two ways of doing it, just like I showed piping to grep and you showed using grep alone (well, egrep)

[Ixthusdan]

I agree with SoulSe, that maybe the icon thing is the best approach for noobies. I like gui, and made some icons at around 8.1? that are still working for mounting and ejecting. It was not hard to "get used" to, and I like it better than windigers, because I hate putting a cdrom in the drive and having it take off doing whatever to my computer. OK, so I am a little paranoid, but I have had bad experiences with poorly written software attacking my system! I also think supermount needs to be not installed by default.

[phunni]

I don't agree with that, what has to do the average user is to get used to the system he is using. For example, it is contradictory to complaint about the unfriendliness of mounting removable media while you are using a high unfriendly window manager such as fluxbox (and I assume that you are happy using it because there are other friendlier wm/dm). ;)

 

As qnr has said, while you can't use icons in fluxbox you can edit the menu to include shortcuts for mounting/unmountig things.

 

I wasn't compaining about user unfriendliness - I'm happy with the way things are, but it's not the most obvious approach for some one coming from a windows system.

 

The thing is, that whilst you are right about people adapting to a different system, why would anyone if they are used to windows and perceie the linux way to be more complex.

 

None of this is to say that I think linux should be more windows like - or that we should sacrifice stability and security for stability. Actually more GUI config tools and being able to do more without needing to use the command line would be a huge step.

 

This doesn't bother me - I'm thinking of the future Linux newbies.

 

I love linux anbd I love fluxbox - and, for the those who said I could install icons on fluxbox, I already knew that - and I don't want to! One of the things I love about fluxbox is the simplicity.