Mounting Block Devices

This pages discuses the advanced details and underlying operation. For general usage, see fstab.

The mounting of block devices is handled by the block-mount source package, which contains the block-mount and block-hotplug packages. block-mount contains the code that does the actual mounting, and the mounting via /etc/init.d/fstab (i.e. on boot rather than when device is hotplugged), and block-hotplug takes care of mounting devices when the device is recognized by the system (.e.g. when modules are loaded and the partition detected).

The block-mount binary package (i.e. the one you actually install, rather than the source package containing block-mount and block-hotplug), contains three library scripts (in addition to /etc/init.d/fstab and the sample config file /etc/config/fstab). These three scripts are: block.sh, mount.sh, and fsck.sh.

As of r26314 block-extroot and block-hotplug have been merged with block-mount. That means that once you install block-mount the scripts for extroot mounting and hotplug mounting are installed. With r36988 the original package block-mount was removed. Technically, the new package ubox replaced its functionality. For Fstab configuration, the new block-mount package now contains the executable block which facilitates this. You can run block <info|mount|umount|detect>. See Fstab configuration.

With the new block mount mechanism you can run block info to get the same output that blkid delivered (however it only returns info for filesystems it supports). You can do “block mount” to mount all devices (same as what /etc/init.d/fstab restart used to do. If you run “block detect” you will get a sample uci file for the currently attached block devices. That way you can do “block detect | uci import fstab” to store it

block info cannot detect btrfs (added r43868), xfs , jfs, ntfs, exfat, and some other FS. Use manual scripting to mount them.

For ntfs mount read here

root@OpenWrt:~# blkid
/dev/sda1: TYPE="ext2" 
/dev/sda2: UUID="890c87d4-e276-4fb0-a34a-296db408d792" TYPE="ext4" 
/dev/sdb1: LABEL="OPENWRT-BTRFS" UUID="2412e056-a1d8-4710-bf0e-d54b8ff0662f" UUID_SUB="edd04b0f-ccf6-4978-9d76-1fa17921fe58" TYPE="btrfs" 
root@OpenWrt:~# block info
/dev/sda1: VERSION="1.0" TYPE="ext2"
/dev/sda2: UUID="890c87d4-e276-4fb0-a34a-296db408d792" VERSION="1.0" TYPE="ext4"

• info → get the same output that blkid delivered (including mtdblock)

/dev/mtdblock2: UUID="0906f1b4-51688c99-666b11b5-71d70575" VERSION="4.0" TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/mtdblock3: TYPE="jffs2"
/dev/sda1: UUID="e81a771e-249f-4f9e-ab30-b2fb73789744" LABEL="overlay" NAME="EXT_JOURNAL" VERSION="1.0" TYPE="ext4"
/dev/sda2: UUID="090b67fa-afbb-4771-8efd-7a515c742c18" LABEL="swap" VERSION="2" TYPE="swap"
/dev/sda5: UUID="91f1-f7ed" LABEL="TRANSPORT" VERSION="FAT32" TYPE="vfat"
/dev/sda6: UUID="b01791a5-647a-4ab0-9adf-5b626ee5407c" LABEL="daten" NAME="EXT_JOURNAL" VERSION="1.0" TYPE="ext4"
/dev/sda7: UUID="9f822714-fb75-40c3-9382-f1df42343229" LABEL="rest" NAME="EXT_JOURNAL" VERSION="1.0" TYPE="ext4"

• mount → mount all devices listed in fstab
• umount → unmount all devices listed in fstab
• detect → get a sample uci file for the currently attached block devices

config 'global'
	option	anon_swap	'0'
	option	anon_mount	'0'
	option	auto_swap	'1'
	option	auto_mount	'1'
	option	delay_root	'5'
	option	check_fs	'0'

config 'mount'
	option	target	'/mnt/sda1'
	option	uuid	'e81a771e-249f-4f9e-ab30-b2fb73789744'
	option	enabled	'0'

config 'swap'
	option	uuid	'090b67fa-afbb-4771-8efd-7a515c742c18'
	option	enabled	'0'

config 'mount'
	option	target	'/mnt/sda5'
	option	uuid	'91f1-f7ed'
	option	enabled	'0'

config 'mount'
	option	target	'/mnt/sda6'
	option	uuid	'b01791a5-647a-4ab0-9adf-5b626ee5407c'
	option	enabled	'0'

config 'mount'
	option	target	'/mnt/sda7'
	option	uuid	'9f822714-fb75-40c3-9382-f1df42343229'
	option	enabled	'0'
	option	options	'lazytime,noatime,background_gc=off,gc_merge'

you can do “block detect | uci import fstab” to store it as a sample config file (already with UUID )

Block hotplug consists of three scripts, 10-swap, 20-fsck, and 40-mount. When a block devices is added these scripts are executed in the order listed. So, first the device is checked for being a swap section, or to attempt to mount as swap, if it is not a defined section for swap or mount (this is known as anon_swap or anonymous swap). Then 20-fsck checks if the device is listed as enabled_fsck and if so, attempts to check/repair the filesystem, and, finally, we check if the device should be mounted, either named, or anonymously (i.e. not listed in any section).