how do i auto mount?

alright here is my situation:

this is my thied week in learning linux. i just figured out how to mount my fat32 partition so that rh 7.3 could read as well as w2k, but i have no idea how to make it so that i dont have to mount it every time........

i know that i can have it auto mount but i have no idea how to accomplish that. i think that i have to add something to the fstab but i dunno how. can someone tell me how to do that ??

thank you

oops wrong forum.....
i hit the wrong one. i meant to post this in the newbie question.......

Ok here's what you do:
Open up the file "/etc/fstab" in your favourite text editor. What you'll see is a file with a format like this:
device mount point filesystem options
/dev/hda1 / ext2 defaults 0 0
....
....
....
At the last line of the file, type in the following
/dev/hda4 /mnt/shared vfat defaults 0 0

This should work.
Cheers,
cgkanchi

what text editor should i use and what are the commands for that editor???
i am new to the linux environment..........

Do you have X installed? If so just start up KDE and run any of the programs in the "Editors" sub-menu. I think the commands are self-explanatory for those.
Cheers,
cgkanchi

open the file /etc/fstab using vi editor..for that at the prompt, as root, type
vi /etc/fstab
then in insert mode type in the line that is mentioned above in some of the replies

that is, towards the end of the fstab file add the following entry..(i assume your fat32 partition is /dev/hda1


/dev/hda1 /mnt/win1 defaults 0 0

for the above you have to create the directory win1 under /mnt, though you do have the option to mount it anywhere....you said you are a newbie..if you dont know to use vi then i think you should first get in touch with how to use vi or any editor in linux
i hope this helps

i am sorry but i have a smalll correction to make

add the following line

/dev/hda1 /mnt/win1 vfat defaults 0 0

i missed " vfat " in the previous reply..
once again sorry

hmm easier solution for a newbie:
you have X installed?
make yourself root in a terminal window (command line) with
su -
then type
linuxconf

it opens linuxconf:
goto filesystems -> access local drives -> add mount

you can add / edit / delete mounts select add to add a new mount definition, you enter all the info in the required fields, the default is to mount at boot time, I think, if not change it in options by clicking on the mount definition you added.

VictorKaum,
LinuxConf isn't installed by default under RedHat 7.x and above. RedHat is trying to phase out LinuxConf and you have to install it from Disc 2 to get it. AFAIK you don't even get LinuxConf with a full install.
Cheers,
cgkanchi

hmm... I have it on all my redHat linuxboxes installed that confused me... thx cgkanchi

we are both right

linuxconf
< RH 7.2

no linuxconf
> RH 7.2

let's quote redhat: (http://www.redhat.com/advice/ask_pbrown2.html)

Q: Where is linuxconf? I notice this command is missing in Red Hat Linux 7.2.

The various functions of LinuxConf are being replaced by new configuration tools that are more tightly integrated into the rest of Red Hat Linux.

Sorry VK, my mistake. Linuxconf is not installed only on RedHat 7.2 and above and not 7.x.
My bad.
Cheers,
cgkanchi

no problem, I was a little confused with your post cause I was sure I had linuxconf on my RH installs...
I edited my previous post to make things clear...

cheers,

VK

i use Mandrake 8.2, i love it....but I often wish I had RedHat, is it really that great? I'm thinking about getting it.

lol, one of my friends has a huge redhat pro off-the-shelf distro, he had to pay $600, then he realized that he could have just taken a few days to download it.........

sorry, I should point out that the reason i don't ask my friend how good Redhat is is that he lives 3 hours away, and gets on his comp about once a week......

btw, what is w00t?

Scorpion's reply is the best solution. It has two primary benefits...

1) The /etc/fstab file is universal across linux distributions therefore, scorpion's solution work no matter which version of linux you have.

2) Any time you work from the command prompt rather than a gui control panel, you will gain a better understanding of how your machine works and you will possibly be able to answer your own questions next time.

VictorKaum - This is the story as best I understand it from talking to a guy from RedHat. (Poetic license heavily used)

In the beginning was the command line, and it was good. The mystical linux gurus danced around the command line in funny little hats administering their boxes and grew great and powerful in the land. But the masses said "I don't like typing, can't I just click something?" and "It's too hard to use, it'll never be popular." So in an attempt to please the masses, the gurus put their heads together and created a creature we now know as linuxconf. At first, linuxconf was a friendly little creature that helped the masses administer a few features of their boxes and help the masses get used to linux slowly. The masses loved linuxconf and fed it goodies by giving it more and more access. But as they gave linuxconf more goodies, it grew larger and larger and began to take over other areas of their systems. Eventually, linuxconf grew so large that it began to tell the masses what they could and couldn't administer on their own. One poor user tried to configure his network card on his own. Another tried to manually add an entry to his fstab. But the next time linuxconf went by, he saw the changes to the configuration files and said to himself "I didn't authorize these changes, I'll set them back to what they were the last time I was here." So linuxconf continued for a while wreaking havok on manual configurations until eventually the mystical linux gurus decided that he had grown too large. Even though they loved their creation, they knew that it had to go. There was sadness in the land at the death of linuxconf, but it was replaced with mirth when the masses discovered that linuxconf's children were much better behaved but just as friendly.

The only problem with scorpion's reply is that you have to use vi. After using Linux for over four years (on and off) , I'm still not totally comfortable with it. I try to use pico or one of the editors in X whenever possible and only use vi when I don't have any other choice (eg. I'm stuck on a SCO system without X). So, IMO, you can't really expect a newbie to use vi without pointing him to a tutorial on it.
Cheers,
cgkanchi

what are the commands for vi???

thanks

in the terminal type ->

mount -t /dev/hda1 /home/usernameyouhave

frednirk > Did you actually read the post? He's already figured out how to mount the drive. He's trying to figure out how to make it automount every time the computer boots up. Which means either editing the fstab file or running some program to do it for you. It's cool that you wanted to be helpful, but next time try to read the post a little closer first.

thank you everyone for your input
i finally got around to automounting and go it to work

thank you again for all the help!!!!!!!!!