I'm diving into Arch Linux and I'm trying to figure out how to effectively mount my additional drives and partitions. I know the mount command is essential for that and I'll need to set up an fstab file for permanence. My root partition is on Btrfs because I want to take advantage of the snapshot feature. However, I don't plan to use snapshots for my other partitions—can I format them as ext4 instead? If I go down that road, would it be fine to store snapshots on an ext4 filesystem? Also, I'm curious about mount points. Do they have to strictly be in /mnt, or can I create them in my home directory or the root directory? Lastly, I have a partition that's on the same drive as my root but I want them to remain separate. Does that matter?
3 Answers
To answer your specific questions: No, ext4 doesn’t support snapshots, so don’t worry about that. Also, Btrfs snapshots can't be stored on ext4. And yes, mounting can be done outside /mnt—it’s flexible! So feel free to create your partitions as you see fit.
You can absolutely create ext4 partitions alongside your Btrfs root without needing snapshots. Just keep in mind that Btrfs snapshots save space by only storing changes, so if you're thinking of backing them up on ext4, it might not be the best move. As for mount points, they don’t strictly have to be in /mnt. Traditionally, /mnt is used for temporary mounts, while /media/username/ is better for removable drives. Feel free to mount your partitions wherever you want, like in your home directory, and symbolic links can help if you want things to appear in specific locations.
Adding an ext4 filesystem can limit some advantages of Btrfs, mainly because you're splitting up available space rather than fully utilizing Btrfs's volume management. You can mount partitions pretty much anywhere as long as permissions are set correctly. If you're considering switching, why ext4 instead of just sticking with Btrfs? It keeps things simpler without having to manage multiple formats. Just curious!
Related Questions
How To Get Your Domain Unblocked From Facebook
How To Find A String In a Directory of Files Using Linux