Mount Windows PC drives
 

I'm trying to create a mount drive from my Windows PC to access photos via the Nokia 770

I have used the instructions from the "How To Access Windows CIFS" guide at
http://maemo.org/maemowiki/HowToAccessWindowsCIFS

I was able to do everything in this "how to" guide except actually getting the drive to mount.

For refernce here's the command I used:
mount -t cifs //192.168.1.112/Nokia770 myPC -o domain=MSHOME,user=gs,password=secretpassword

When I executed this command I got the following error:

Can't find //192.168.1.112/Nokia770 in /etc/fstab

I'm a NOOB using linux but from this error I suspect that I need to edit the /etc/fstab file.

I'm not sure what needs to be added to this file. Any clues, suggestions etc will be appreciated.
THX

I had the same issue. Make sure you're root when you try it. (I could swear I was when I did it but it worked later on)

'sudo gainroot'

Also, make sure you've run 'insmod cifs.ko' in the same shell instance you're trying to mount in.

(Lemmie know if that's not clear, since you got the cifs module installed I assume ya know a bit)

the //w.x.y.z/Nokia770 is the IP and shared folder name on the Windows box, not the 770. "myPC" is the name of the mount location on the 770 where you want the connection to be made. and, you should already have a folder of that name (ie, mkdir myPC)

I am the author of that Howto. It reflects my personal experience and can certainly be improved if something is missing or unclear ; however, I can confirm that it works for me and I have never touched the fstab file :-)

Anyone have odd issues like system font changing size after mounting a share using the said cifs method?

System font in what, the shell or the GUI? (In either case, no.)

Thanks for all the input, I was able to successfully mount Windows PC folders :) !!!

However, I have not been able to mount a Drive at the Top level such as the shared drive "E:" with the Sharing and Security label of "Files (E)"

I tried mount....//192.168.1.112/E.........
mount....//192.168.1.112/Files E..........
mount....//192.168.1.112/Files (E)..........
None of these worked

Is there a special way to handle the top level of a drive or does the cifs.ko work only on shared folders?

As always TIA

Try E$ as the share name.

One last question, is there a batch file, script or file that I can edit to enable these shared drives during startup and maintain them at all times?

You mean on the WIndows side ? They should be persistent between reboots until you disable them yourself...

Probably on the 770 side... there's a script in the Samba thread that I've begun playing with. You can use Gnuite's load/run command applet (on Maemo.org) to store the commands to mount it.

Find the code in the Samba thread and modify it to your settings.
Save it somewhere on your 770.
As root, run 'chmod 755 scriptname' to set it as executable
To test it, 'sh scriptname'. If it mounts you're good to go.
In Gnuite's Load/Run Command app, enter 'sh /path/scriptname' as the command and it'll store it.

The only thing I don't like about that app is that you can't (easily? (never poked around)) remove erroneous commands once you put them in. I just uninstalled. :)

I load the kernel module in /etc/init.d/minircS
I have the share defined in /etc/fstab
Then mount when I want with a script in the Load/run app.(as described in the Samba thread)
You can't mount it at boottime because you need your network connection first.

Hedgecore, to remove unwanted commands from the load/run app,
edit /var/lib/gconf/apps/loadplugin/%gconf.xml

Ah thank god for XML. Thanks man!

Your share credentials are still in the fstab though right? Or do you have your script prompt for a PW?
(I've been thinking about it and I'm not overly worried about anyone getting into my 770...)

MP3 Playback off mounted windows drive
 

I have mounted a windows share on my 770 using cifs.

File copy works fine, but, if i play an ogg or mp3 file off the share, I get a blip about every 10 seconds.

Strangely, video seems to be better, I assume because the video player buffers more.

Playing audio files worked fine over nfs, but the cifs mount is a better solution for me, since it can access a "normal" PC without linux or nfs addon software.

So, questions:

A> Has anybody had the same problem?

B> Does anyone have a solution?

Thanks

Jon

JonFowler, yes, I get the same audio pauses every few seconds. I haven't looked around but there should be a setting somewhere to tweak the buffer. I'll look around.

Hedgecore, Yeah, I put the credentials right there in the fstab file. My share is only accessable from my home network behind my firewall so I'm not worried about it. On my Fedora Linux box, my fstab entry has a credentials=/root/filename option that the 770 doesn't support.

I have been trying to automate the mounting process for a couple of days and have made minimal progress. I have created a script file to mount the Windows PC drive WHEN I have gained root access and call it from the directory in which I have placed it. For example my script file is called "foto1" and placed in /home/user/MyDocs/.documents.

However, when I run the same script without having root access ( which does include a callout to "sudo gainroot" ) I get an error "sh: Can't open foto1" .

I thought by adding /home/user/MyDocs/.documents to my PATH statement within the /usr/sbin/gainroot file that it would locate this file.

As I mentioned earlier I'm a linux NOOB and would appreciate a little guidance.
Thx

This may be a stupid question, but I haven't tried the howto yet:

Does this only work with assigned (static IP-addresses) or can it be done when DHCP is on on the router?

The IP address used in the script is that of the Windows PC offering the network share.
If the address of that PC is fixed then you can use the script even if the tablet's is obtained by DHCP.
If the PC also has a dynamic address then you'll have to manually issue the mount command line using the current address.
The thing is, we're not using full Samba here, so there is no Netbios name resolution that could abstract the IP address to a workgroup/domain name.

I can't seem to call the script from the Load/Run app. Bombs out on Error 1 or 127. I can however run it from the command line no problems.

Is there an issue with it that it prompts for a password and a tty hasn't been spawned? I can hard code it if that's the case. Permissions on the script are 755 so 'user' should have execution rights. Bizarre.

Another thing, slightly related. I removed all entries in the .xml file containing the saved Run commands under the Load/Run app but they won't disappear even under a reboot. What the hell? :)

Hedgecore: My understanding from earlier messages within this posting (and the Samba's posting) was that you were able to use the Load/Run app. Is this not correct? From your last message it show's you having issues similar to what I'm facing.

I'm struggling finding a way to simplify the mounting of drives.
To date I have been able to:
gainroot
Then I have to "cd /home/user/MyDocs/.documents" so I can run the mounting scriptfile.
And then within xterm run "sh scriptfile"
This work fine but I'm looking for a one button/click solution to mount.

Is there an easier way to open xterm and the script file together? I thought the Load/Run app would do this but apparently there are issues getting this to work.


Another noob question: How do I add a path of where my script file is located ( in this case it's /home/user/MyDocs/.documents ) so when I open Xterm all I have to do is type in sh scriptname.

Also, if I wanted to copy my "scriptfile" to /usr/sbin how do I do that. When I try the folder is protected ( even with root access ).

Thanks for the help!

OK, thanks. I'll probably switch away from DHCP then, once I've got everything set up in the new home.

Not too sure about the other bits but I've never gotten it to run with the Load/Run app.

My script is called mount_floorPC.sh and I've dumped it in /root. (Bad, I know)

The commandline for the Load/Run app is '/root/mount_floorPC.sh'. I've tried 'sh /root/mount_floorPC.sh' as well but no dice.

So far as setting the path (Dunno if this'll work on the 770, Redhat accepts this tho):

PATH=/mydir1:/mydir2:/mydir3; export PATH;

Whats the process to dumping the script into /root

When I try to do this I don't have permission even though I have gainroot access.
Could you provide a detailed method to do so, please excuse my ignorance of linux. I have been cruising the net/ forums / newgroups etc on ways to do this. But unfortunetly I'm resorting to gravelling for the answer.

TIA

After you've run 'sudo gainroot' run 'su -' which'll put you in actual root mode (so far as I know). Try it then. (That'll load root's environment variables, etc)

It doesn't have to be all or nothing. You can very well use a fixed address on your main PC (outside the router's DHCP range) and keep DHCP for the rest (tablet, visiting laptops etc.). That's what I do at home.

Yes, I got that; your explanation was very clear. However, the network structure we have in mind doesn't so much have one dedicated server, than several server-like workstations. So going all fixed addresses might be better.

Thanks again.

Here's how I did it Samba thread post 43

I think the trick is to put the scripts to mount and unmount in a directory that's in both root and user's PATH. I use /usr/bin

Has anyone figured out mounting another drive besides C? I get a permission denied error when I try to mount a drive - even though it is shared and can be used by other computers.

I've done various shares using smbbrowser.
https://garage.maemo.org/projects/smbbrowser/
The program is unstable, but I was able to create the mount and it still worked even after the program crashed. This given I was using a local admin and password for the login. I'm not sure if you can get it to connect using a blank password.