mounting ntfs filesystem in Red Hat Linux 9
 

I have a Pentium 4 PC. I have installed 2 OS in it - Windows XP and Red Hat Linux 9. I want to access my Windows partitions from Red Hat Linux 9. So I have configured the /etc/fstab file and specified "ntfs" for the file system type. But when "Red Hat Linux 9" loads the Windows drives are not mounted. When I try to mount the drives manually using the mount command, it shows the error "NTFS file system not supported". Do I nedd any other software in Linux for mounting Windows filesystem. If yes where to get the free software for "Red Hat Linux 9".

Thanks in advance.

First Redhat 9 is old and unsupported. It is over 5 years old. It uses 2.4 kernel and lacks ability for many new hardware and easier handling of new devices. I suggest upgrading to Fedora 8 if wishing to stay in the Redhat family of distros.

Now Redhat 9 does not support ntfs out of the box. There are rpms that can be installed to add ntfs read support from the kernel. Write I am not sure of. Forgotten alot about it. Now using the kernel ntfs filesystem for reading is fine but to write using the kernel ntfs is considered dangerous. It may work fine but one small glitch and one can trash an ntfs partition almost beyound recovery means.

Now what most users use for ntfs read and write support is ntfs-3g. Search the forum for ' ntfs-3g redhat '. I am not sure the limit of ntfs-3g in the redhat 9 with 2.4 kernel. The version you have may support it or you may need to upgrade to a newer 2.4 kernel.

Your best bet is to go Fedora 8 then you have nearly the latest 2.6 kernel with great support for hardware. You will still need to install ntfs-3g but many post here describe on how to install on a Fedora machine.

Brian

Thanks again for the help.