Solaris and Removable Media (CD-ROM, floppy disks)

General Information (for all users):
------- -----------
  Solaris uses a "new and improved" way of handling removable media like 
  floppy disks and CDs.  In short, when you insert a CD into the drive it 
  should be automatically mounted on /cdrom/cdrom0; when you stick in a 
  floppy, it *might* be automatically mounted on /floppy/floppy0.

  Unfortunately, for most drives, the system doesn't know when you insert a 
  floppy; you have to tell it to check the drive by executing 'volcheck'.  In
  summary:

  TO USE A CD:

    Mounting:    Insert CD.  If it contains a filesystem, it will be mounted 
		 on /cdrom/cdrom0.  (Audio CD's are never mounted.)
    Unmounting:  Do 'eject cdrom'.


  TO USE A FLOPPY DISK:
  
    Mounting:    Insert floppy, then do 'volcheck'.  If the floppy disk 
		 contains a valid DOS or Unix filesystem, it will be mounted 
		 on /floppy/floppy0.
    Unmounting:  Do 'eject floppy'.

  Note that in order to unmount (eject) a CD or floppy disk, it must be
  "idle".  (For instance, if you have a file on the floppy open and try
  to do 'eject floppy', the system will tell you the filesystem is busy.)


Green Square Details (for Unix beginners):
----- ------ -------
  (I will assume you know what a directory is, how to change directories, and
  how to use directory names in basic Unix commands.  If you don't know these
  things, I suggest you pick up one of the many Unix beginner books from the
  student store.)

  In DOS, filesystems are kept completely separate; for instance, 
  "C:/WINDOWS/PROGMAN.INI" refers to a file on the "C:" drive.  To refer to a
  file on a floppy drive, you prefix the name with "A:" (or "B:").  Unix allows
  disk filesystems to be "mounted" on other filesystems, making them look like
  a single filesystem.

  For instance, if I "mount" a floppy disk on /mnt, then anything I do in 
  the /mnt directory will actually happen to the floppy.  That is, I can 
  create directories in /mnt, copy files to /mnt, or delete files from /mnt
  and I will actually be creating directories, copying files to, or deleting
  files from the floppy disk.
  


Black Diamond Details (for advanced users):
----- ------- -------
  Solaris uses a Volume Management Daemon, 'vold', to monitor removable media.
  When you insert a CD-ROM into a CD drive, the drive notifies vold that new
  removable media is in the drive.  vold looks in /etc/vold.conf to see what
  to do; in the case of CD-ROM and floppy disks, it runs the Removable Media
  Mounter, 'rmmount'.  
  
  rmmount mounts the media based on drive type: floppy disks are mounted on
  /floppy/floppy0.  (They're actually mounted on /floppy/<volume name>, and a
  'floppy0' symbolic link to that directory is created.)  Then, depending on
  what's in /etc/rmmmount.conf, rmmmount takes appropriate action (e.g.
  starting Sun's File Manager tool if you're running OpenWindows).  The Volume
  Management Daemon keeps track of what's mounted with a virtual filesystem,
  /vol.


As always, please direct questions or comments to <bugs@math.ucla.edu>