Make second internal SSD usable

[mts]

Hi everyone,
in my system there are two SSDs, one on which Manjaro is installed, and one that is intended to be used mainly for data storage:

$ lsblk
NAME        MAJ:MIN RM   SIZE RO TYPE MOUNTPOINTS
nvme0n1     259:0    0 465,8G  0 disk 
├─nvme0n1p1 259:1    0   300M  0 part /boot/efi
└─nvme0n1p2 259:2    0 465,5G  0 part /
nvme1n1     259:3    0   1,8T  0 disk 
└─nvme1n1p1 259:4    0   1,8T  0 part /run/media/<my-user-name>/64264aae-2607-4bcf-afbe-dcc0b9fc33b1

I managed to create an ext4 partition for the second SSD and it is automatically mounted in /run/media, but only accessible for root.

I want to have the second drive permanently mounted at boot to /home/<my-user-name>/Data and have full rights for my user account, i.e. read/write/execute/access through programs, for everything on this drive, just as with the drive where the OS is installed on.

Unfortunately, after reading through a lot of answers to similar questions, reading and watching tutorials, I’m just more confused than I was before. It seems that in one way or the other, this should involve editing the /etc/fstab file, but for someone who’s not an expert in this matter, this seems incredibly dangerous, since one error can brick the system. (Which some users seeking help reported to have happened to them, after following advice …)

Some guidance on how to make this second SSD usable would be highly appreciated!

[keesk]

Install gnome-disk-utility.

[mithrial]

@mts

Unfortunately, after reading through a lot of answers to similar questions, reading and watching tutorials, I’m just more confused than I was before. It seems that in one way or the other, this should involve editing the /etc/fstab file, but for someone who’s not an expert in this matter, this seems incredibly dangerous, since one error can brick the system. (Which some users seeking help reported to have happened to them, after following advice …)

This is the way to go.

Add this to the bottom of the file

/dev/nvme1n1p1 /home/$USER/Data ext4 defaults 0 2

(Obviously change the username to your username.)

Then, you claim ownership: sudo chown $USER:$USER -R /home/$USER/Data

[varikonniemi]

yes, and since OP did not figure this out themselves, they should look up what everything in that line means, and realize why it is a good suggestion.

As they said, messed up fstab can sadly lead to unbootable system so better to know what things there do.

[andreas85]

Some relevant info:

Fstab

You can trust, what the manjaro or arch wiki says !

[root tip] [How To] Mount partition using fstab

Make a permanent mountpoint. Linux Foundation Refererence The FHS document has a limited scope: Local placement of local files is a local issue, so FHS does not attempt to usurp system administrators. FHS addresses issues where file placements need to be coordinated between multiple parties such as local sites, distributions, applications, documentation, etc. So for the sake of this article there is no standard as we are talking about Local placement of local files is a local issue and …

You always can trust what linux-aarhus says !

[mts]

Thanks for the suggestion! I actually already installed this tool, but from the docs (and internet search) it wasn’t clear to me how to use it in order to accomplish what I want.

[Mirdarthos]

@varikonniemi

As they said, messed up fstab can sadly lead to unbootable system so better to know what things there do.

This is very true.

That is why I recommend rather doing it with Systemd. Mine is done with it, and it works like a charm. See:

[root tip] [How To] Use systemd to mount ANY device

Difficulty: ★☆☆☆☆ Disk device recognition Manjaro uses udev (see Arch Wiki) to load devices at boot time. The loading of devices is arbitrary and therefore you cannot predict which device will be available at a given path. But static device names do exist and you can assign specific locations to your device and thus ensure e.g. scripts will work as expected. What to learn Overview of system mount units Structure and Content of a mount unit Mount at boot (immediate mount) Mount on demand (m…

And:

[root tip] [How To] systemd mount unit samples

Difficulty: ★★☆☆☆ Example mount units for systemd The examples here are a supplement to the guide on systemd mount units Remember to remove the comments placed in the units - they are not writing for copy-paste but as examples. (comments is text beginning with a #) [root tip] [How To] Use systemd to mount ANY device Only use an automount unit if the device is not readily available at boot like removable devices and network locations. Important rule …

[mts]

Thanks for the adivce! As @varikonniemi suggested, I’ll look up what everything in that line means.

[eddier]

If you use KDE then the partition manager, when being used to format, has the option for ‘Root access’ only or ‘All Users’.

[maycne.sonahoz]

@mts

It seems that in one way or the other, this should involve editing the /etc/fstab file, but for someone who’s not an expert in this matter, this seems incredibly dangerous, since one error can brick the system.

You check whether your /etc/fstab is correctly configured by applying it immediately, without rebooting:

mount -a

If it produces errors or doesn’t mount as expected, you can fix right away.