How to Mount a Folder in Linux: A Step-by-Step Guide

Well now, if you’re lookin’ to mount a folder in Linux, it ain’t no big deal, I tell ya. It’s just a couple of simple steps. Let me walk ya through it, nice and easy. So, first thing you need to know is that in Linux, “mounting” is like takin’ a folder and hookin’ it up to another place, so you can get to the stuff inside that folder whenever ya need it. It’s kinda like hangin’ a picture on the wall, just puttin’ it where you can see it and use it.

Step 1: Create a Mount Point

Now, before you do anything, you gotta have a spot to put the folder, right? You need to make a place to mount it, what they call a “mount point”. It’s just a fancy word for a folder where the other folder is gonna show up. You can make this folder anywhere you like. Maybe call it “/mnt/myfolder” or “/home/myuser/newfolder”. Ain’t nobody stoppin’ you, as long as it’s a place where the computer can get to.

To create a folder, you use the mkdir command. Here’s what it looks like:

sudo mkdir /mnt/myfolder

That’s it! Now you got a nice empty folder where you can mount another folder. It’s like gettin’ a shelf ready to hold your pots and pans.

Step 2: Mount the Folder

Next, you wanna take the folder you wanna mount, and hook it up to that mount point you just made. It’s like takin’ a bucket of apples and settin’ it on the table where you can reach ’em. To mount a folder, you use the mount command like this:

sudo mount /path/to/folder /mnt/myfolder

Now, that “/path/to/folder” part is where the folder you want to mount is. It could be on another drive, or maybe just another folder on the same drive. The “/mnt/myfolder” is where it’s gonna show up. Once you do this, all the stuff in that folder will be available at the mount point you set up. It’s just like having a window into another place on your computer.

Step 3: Check That It’s Mounted

Now, how do you know if it worked? Well, you can use the mount command all by itself. It’ll show you all the places that are mounted right now. Look for your mount point in the list. If you see it there, you’re good to go!

mount

Step 4: Unmount the Folder

If you want to unmount the folder later, you just use the umount command. This one’s just as simple as the other one. You can unmount either by the folder name or by the device name, like this:

sudo umount /mnt/myfolder

That’s it. You’re done. The folder is unmounted and no longer available where you had it.

Important Tip: Making It Stick After a Restart

Now, if you want this mount to stick around after you restart the computer, you gotta do a little more work. By default, when you mount something, it ain’t permanent. It’s like putting your shoes by the door—when you turn off the lights, they ain’t gonna be there next time unless you make sure they stay. To make it permanent, you gotta add it to a file called /etc/fstab. But don’t worry, it’s not too hard.

First, open up the file with a text editor like this:

sudo nano /etc/fstab

Then, at the end of the file, you’ll add a line like this:

/path/to/folder /mnt/myfolder none bind 0 0

What this does is tell the computer to mount the folder there every time it starts up. It’s like makin’ sure the apples are always on the table in the morning, ready for ya.

Wrapping Up

So, you see, mounting a folder in Linux ain’t all that complicated. You just make a mount point, mount the folder, and you’re good to go. If you want it to last through a restart, you’ve got to tell the computer to do it again by adding it to /etc/fstab. With a few simple commands, you can hook up folders from all over your system and have everything right where you need it. Now, go on and give it a try yourself!

Tags：[mount a folder in linux, linux mount tutorial, how to mount a folder in linux, linux mount command, mount folder tutorial]