Mount warning on SCO XENIX

[Dominic Dunlop]

In article <164 at scovert> stephm at sco.COM (Stephen P. Marr) writes:
>In article <284 at sysco> chapman (Brian Chapman) writes:
>>In article <10120 at mimsy.UUCP> meyer at mimsy.UUCP (John R. Meyer) writes:
>>< 	I am using SCO XENIX 2.2 to mount some filesystems on
>>< empty directories.  However, when I try to mount on directories
>>< that are not one level down from root (that is, /usr/src instead
>>< of /src), I get the message
>>< 
>>< 	mount: WARNING!! - mounting: <src> as <usr/s>
>>< 
>>The super user can re-assign the name field
>>of a file system with fsname(M).  (Please read the manual
>>before invoking new utilities at your filesystems).

The corresponding System V command is  labelit.  In addition to the six-
character name, it can set a six-character ``volume number''.  This has
some significance to the dcopy program, I seem to recall.  I tend to use it
for the date I built the filesystem (eg 880202).

>>
>>"mkdev fs" put the original name there.  I guess it
>>put "src" instead of "usr/src" there.
>
>What is so is that the space allowed for the filesystem name is
>six bytes (including the null).  mkdev fs uses the device name
>to presume the name of the filesystem...  In order to
>properly use this feature, the pathname of the mount point must
>not exceed 5 chars excluding the leading /.  To annihilate the
>thing altogether, you can change the name of an unmounted filesystem
>by incanting fsname -s "" /dev/block_filesystem_device  e.g
>fsname -s "" /dev/src

Yes.  The six character limit is DUMB.  System V, release 3 mount makes
life a bit more livable by checking the basename of the mount point
against the filesystem name on the disk pack/partition, and not
squawking provided that the first six characters match.  This means
that I can now mount a partition called news on /usr/spool/news without
complaint.  However, I also get no complaint if I mount a partition
called invent on /usr/inventions when I should have been mounting it on
/usr/inventory...

I guess that the merging of XENIX and V.3 will mean that XENIX mount
will soon inherit this still imperfect but less anti-social behaviour
from AT&T.
-- 
Dominic Dunlop
domo at sphinx.co.uk  domo at riddle.uucp