GNU/Linux uses a logical method to name partitions. First, when numbering the partitions, it ignores the file-system type of any partition you may have. Second, it names the partitions according to the disk on which they are located. This is how the disks are named:
The primary master and primary slave IDE devices (whether they be hard disks, CD-ROM drives or anything else) are called /dev/hda and /dev/hdb respectively.
On the secondary interface, the master is called /dev/hdc and the slave is /dev/hdd.
If your computer contains other IDE interfaces (for example, the IDE interface present on some Soundblaster™ cards), the disks will be called /dev/hde, /dev/hdf, etc. You may also have additional IDE interfaces if you have RAID controllers.
SCSI disks are called /dev/sda, /dev/sdb, etc., in the order of their appearance on the SCSI chain (depending on the increasing IDs). The SCSI CD-ROM drives are called /dev/scd0, /dev/scd1, always in the order of their appearance on the SCSI chain.
The partitions are named after the disk on which they're found, in the following way (in our example, we've used partitions on a primary master IDE disk):
So GNU/Linux will name the partitions as follows:
With this knowledge in hand, you should be able to name your various partitions and hard disks when you need to manipulate them. You'll also see that GNU/Linux names the partitions even if it doesn't know how to manage them initially (it ignores the fact that they're not native GNU/Linux partitions).
![]() | Note |
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Mandrakelinux now uses udev (refer to the udev FAQ for more information). It ensures full compatibility with the scheme described above and with standards like the Linux Standards Base Project. Each device is dynamically added to the system as soon as it becomes available or needed. |