mount (redirected from mountable)

mount

To cause a file on a remote workstation or server to be available for access locally. For example, in NFS (Network File System), a server maintains a list of its directories that are available to clients. When a client mounts a directory on the server, that directory and its subdirectories become part of the client's directory hierarchy. See automounting.

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mount¹

1. a horse for riding

2. a slide used in microscopy

3. Philately

a. a small transparent pocket in an album for a postage stamp

b. another word for hinge

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mount²

1. a mountain or hill: used in literature and (when cap.) in proper names

2. (in palmistry) any of the seven cushions of flesh on the palm of the hand

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(file system)

mount - To make a file system available for access. Unix does this by associating the file system with a directory (the "mount point") within a currently mounted file system. The "root" file system is mounted on the root directory, "/" early in the boot sequence. "mount" is also the Unix command to do this, "unmount" breaks the association. E.g., "mount attaches a named file system to the file system hierarchy at the pathname location directory [...]" -- Unix manual page mount(8). File systems are usually mounted either at boot time under control of /etc/rc (or one of its subfiles) or on demand by an automounter daemon. Other operating systems such as VMS and DOS mount file systems as separate directory hierarchies without any common ancestor or root directory. Apparently derived from the physical sense of "mount" meaning "attach", as in "head-mounted display", or "set up", as in "always mount a scratch monkey, etc." Unix manual page: mount(8).