Administration Reference

fs mkmount

Purpose

Creates a mount point for a volume

Synopsis

fs mkmount -dir <directory>  -vol <volume name>  [-cell <cell name>]
           [-rw]  [-fast]  [-help]
   
fs mk -d <directory>  -v <volume name>  [-c <cell name>]  [-r]  [-f]  [-h]

Description

The fs mkmount command creates a mount point for the volume named by the -vol argument at the location in the AFS file space specified by the -dir argument. The mount point looks like a standard directory element, and serves as the volume's root directory, but is actually a special file system object that refers to an AFS volume. When the Cache Manager first encounters a given mount point during pathname traversal, it contacts the VL Server to learn which file server machines house the indicated volume, then fetches a copy of the volume's root directory from the appropriate file server machine.

It is possible, although not recommended, to create more than one mount point to a volume. The Cache Manager can become confused if a volume is mounted in two places along the same path through the filespace.

The Cache Manager observes three basic rules as it traverses the AFS filespace and encounters mount points:

• Rule 1: Access Backup and Read-only Volumes When Specified

  When the Cache Manager encounters a mount point that specifies a volume with either a .readonly or a .backup extension, it accesses that type of volume only. If a mount point does not have either a .backup or .readonly extension, the Cache Manager uses Rules 2 and 3.

  For example, the Cache Manager never accesses the read/write version of a volume if the mount point names the backup version. If the specified version is inaccessible, the Cache Manager reports an error.

• Rule 2: Follow the Read-only Path When Possible

  If a mount point resides in a read-only volume and the volume that it references is replicated, the Cache Manager attempts to access a read-only copy of the volume; if the referenced volume is not replicated, the Cache Manager accesses the read/write copy. The Cache Manager is thus said to prefer a read-only path through the filespace, accessing read-only volumes when they are available.

  The Cache Manager starts on the read-only path in the first place because it always accesses a read-only copy of the root.afs volume if it exists; the volume is mounted at the root of a cell's AFS filespace (named /afs by convention). That is, if the root.afs volume is replicated, the Cache Manager attempts to access a read-only copy of it rather than the read/write copy. This rule then keeps the Cache Manager on a read-only path as long as each successive volume is replicated. The implication is that both the root.afs and root.cell volumes must be replicated for the Cache Manager to access replicated volumes mounted below them in the AFS filespace. The volumes are conventionally mounted at the /afs and /afs/cellname directories, respectively.

• Rule 3: Once on a Read/write Path, Stay There

  If a mount point resides in a read/write volume and the volume name does not have a .readonly or a .backup extension, the Cache Manager attempts to access only the a read/write version of the volume. The access attempt fails with an error if the read/write version is inaccessible, even if a read-only version is accessible. In this situation the Cache Manager is said to be on a read/write path and cannot switch back to the read-only path unless mount point explicitly names a volume with a .readonly extension. (Cellular mount points are an important exception to this rule, as explained in the following discussion.

There are three types of mount points, each appropriate for a different purpose because of the manner in which the Cache Manager interprets them.

• When the Cache Manager crosses a regular mount point, it obeys all three of the mount point traversal rules previously described. To create a regular mount point, include only the required -dir and -vol arguments to the fs mkmount command.

  Note:

  A regular mount point does not force the Cache Manager always to access read-only volumes (it is explicitly not a "read-only mount point"). If a volume is not replicated, the third traversal rule means that the Cache Manager still accesses the read/write volume when that is the only type available. However, if the Cache Manager is to access the read-only version of a replicated volume named by a regular mount point, all volumes that are mounted above it in the pathname must also be replicated.

• When the Cache Manager crosses a read/write mount point, it attempts to access only the volume version named in the mount point. If the volume name is the base (read/write) form, without a .readonly or .backup extension, the Cache Manager accesses the read/write version of the volume, even if it is replicated. In other words, the Cache Manager disregards the second mount point traversal rule when crossing a read/write mount point: it switches to the read/write path through the filespace.

  To create a read/write mount point, include the -rw flag on the fs mkmount command. It is conventional to create only one read/write mount point in a cell's filespace, using it to mount the cell's root.cell volume just below the AFS filespace root (by convention, /afs/.cellname). See the IBM AFS Quick Beginnings for instructions and the chapter about volume management in the IBM AFS Administration Guide for further discussion.

  Creating a read/write mount point for a read-only or backup volume is acceptable, but unnecessary. The first rule of mount point traversal already specifies that the Cache Manager accesses them if the volume name in a regular mount point has a .readonly or .backup extension.

• When the Cache Manager crosses a cellular mount point, it accesses the indicated volume in the specified cell, which is normally a foreign cell. (If the mount point does not name a cell along with the volume, the Cache Manager accesses the volume in the cell where the mount point resides.) The Cache Manager disregards the third mount point traversal rule when crossing a regular cellular mount point: it accesses a read-only version of the volume if it is replicated, even if the volume that houses the mount point is read/write. Switching to the read-only path in this way is designed to avoid imposing undue load on the file server machines in foreign cells.

  To create a regular cellular mount point, include the -cell argument on the fs mkmount command. It is conventional to create cellular mount points only at the second level in a cell's filespace, using them to mount foreign cells' root.cell volumes just below the AFS filespace root (by convention, at /afs/foreign_cellname). The mount point enables local users to access the foreign cell's filespace, assuming they have the necessary permissions on the ACL of the volume's root directory and that there is an entry for the foreign cell in each local client machine's /usr/vice/etc/CellServDB file. In the output of the fs lsmount command, the cell name and a colon (:) appear between the initial number sign and the volume name in a regular cellular mount point name.

Options

-dir

Names the directory to create as a mount point. The directory must not already exist. Relative pathnames are interpreted with respect to the current working directory.

Specify the read/write path to the directory, to avoid the failure that results from attempting to create a new mount point in a read-only volume. By convention, the read/write path is indicated by placing a period before the cell name at the pathname's second level (for example, /afs/.abc.com). For further discussion of the concept of read/write and read-only paths through the filespace, see the Description section of this reference page.

-vol

Specifies the name or volume ID number of the volume to mount. If appropriate, add the .readonly or .backup extension to the name, or specify the appropriate volume ID number.

-cell

Names the cell in which the volume resides (creates a cellular mount point). Provide the fully qualified domain name, or a shortened form that disambiguates it from the other cells listed in the local /usr/vice/etc/CellServDB file.

If this argument is omitted, no cell indicator appears in the mount point. When the Cache Manager interprets it, it assumes that the volume named in the mount point resides in the same cell as the volume that houses the mount point.

-rw

Creates a read/write mount point. Omit this flag to create a regular mount point.

-fast

Prevents the Volume Location (VL) Server from checking that the volume has a VLDB entry and printing a warning message if it does not. Whether or not this flag is included, the File Server creates the mount point even when the volume has no VLDB entry.

-help

Prints the online help for this command. All other valid options are ignored.

Examples

The following command creates a regular mount point, mounting the volume user.smith at /afs/abc.com/usr/smith:

   % cd /afs/abc.com/usr
      
   % fs mkmount -dir smith -vol user.smith
   

The following commands create a read/write mount point and a regular mount point for the ABC Corporation cell's root.cell volume in that cell's file tree. The second command follows the convention of putting a period at the beginning of the read/write mount point's name.

   % fs mkmount -dir /afs/abc.com -vol root.cell
   
   % fs mkmount -dir /afs/.abc.com -vol root.cell -rw
   

The following command mounts the State University cell's root.cell volume in the ABC Corporation cell's file tree, creating a regular cellular mount point called /afs/stateu.edu. When a ABC Corporation Cache Manager encounters this mount point, it crosses into the State University cell on a read-only path.

   % fs mkmount -dir /afs/stateu.edu -vol root.cell -c stateu.edu
   

Privilege Required

The issuer must have the i (insert) and a (administer) permissions on the ACL of the directory that is to house the mount point.

Related Information

CellServDB (client version)

fs lsmount

fs rmmount