How to Manually Mount/unmount USB Devices on Ubuntu

Learning how to manually mount/unmount USB devices on ubuntu doesn't have to be complicated. This updated guide presents a clear workflow, practical checks, and troubleshooting advice you can use while completing the process.

How to Mount USB on Ubuntu

Follow these steps to manually mount the USB to your system:

Step 1: Plug the USB into an available port.

Step 2: Run the following command as sudo in the Terminal application to check the available storage devices on the system and the file system they are using:

$ sudo fdisk -l

Your USB device will usually be listed at the end of the output, usually as sdb-(number). In the example case, it is listed as sdb1, running the FAT32 file system.

Step 3: Create a mount point for your USB device using the following command:

Syntax:

$ sudo mkdir /media/[mountPointName]

Note: Your mount point name can't include spaces; you can separate words with underscores '_'.

For instance:

$ sudo mkdir /media/USB

The mount point will be created now.

Step 4: Now, we will mount the USB storage device to the created mount point. We will use the following command to mount the FAT32 device:

$ sudo mount -t vfat /dev/sdb1 /media/USB -o [securityoption]

The security option is required and allows you to grant/receive access to the USB by specifying one of the following values ​​to grant permission:

• Uid=1000
• Gid=1000
• Utf8
• Dmask=027
• Fmask=137

This example grants access control to a user (current user) by specifying the user id:

For NTFS, use the following command:

$ sudo mount -t ntfs-3g /dev/sdb1 /media/USB

Step 5: The USB is now mounted. You can access it through your media folder.

You can also access the USB through the file manager. In the following image, the 16 GB Volume listed just above Other Locations is the mounted USB storage device.

How to Unmount USB on Ubuntu

It is best to also unmount it manually if you have mounted the USB manually.

Step 1: Use the following command to unmount USB:

$ sudo umount /dev/sdb1

Or:

$ sudo umount /media/USB

In the above command, specify the mount point if it is different from the 'USB' mount point used.

The USB will be unmounted from your system:

Step 2: You will need to manually delete the USB mount point folder as follows if you don't plan to use it again in the future:

Step 3: Remove USB from the system.

You should be able to successfully mount and unmount USB storage devices in and out of your system after following the steps described in this article. This will help if your system doesn't automatically allow USB access and use.

Final Thoughts

The most reliable way to handle manually mount/unmount USB devices on ubuntu is to follow the process in order, verify each important setting, and test the result before moving on. Use the guidance above as a practical reference, then adjust the details for your device, software version, or specific goal.