How to Mount ISO File on Linux

Introduction

An ISO file is an archive file (disk image) of an optical disc using a conventional ISO (International Organization for Standardization) format that typically contains the complete image of a CD or DVD.

For example, most operating systems such as Windows, Linux, and macOS are distributed as ISO images.

ISO image files typically have a file extension of .ISO.

The name “ISO” comes from the ISO 9660 file system used with CD-ROM or DVD media, but an ISO image can also contain UDF file system because UDF is backward-compatible to ISO 9660.

ISO files can be extracted using popular archive programs, mounted on a loop device, and written to a USB flash drive or blank CD disc.

It is possible to specify transfer functions (for encryption/decryption or other purposes) using loop device.

This page explains how to mount ISO files on Linux.

Step# 1

Start by creating the mount point, it can be any location you want.

$ sudo mkdir /media/data

Step# 2

Mount the ISO file to the mount point by typing the following mount command.

$ sudo mount /path/to/documents.iso /media/data -o loop

What is important here is the -o loop option.

It tells the command to map a loop device to the specified ISO file and mount that device on the specified mount point.

Don’t forget to replace /path/to/documents.iso with the path to your ISO file.

Step# 3

To view the ISO image content, use the ls command.

$ ls /media/data

You can also open a file manager to view the ISO contents.

How to unmount an ISO file in Linux

Unmount the ISO file by using the umount command followed by the directory where the image has been mounted.

$ sudo umount /media/data

Important Options

  • -t : This argument is used to indicate the given filesystem type.
  • ISO 9660 : It describes standard and default filesystem structure to be used on CD/DVD ROMs.
  • -o : Options are necessary with a -o argument followed by a separated comma string of options.
  • loop: The loop device is a pseudo-device that often used for mounting CD/DVD ISO image and makes those files accessible as a block device.

Conclusion

I hope that now you have a good understanding of How to Mount ISO File on Linux.

If anyone does have any questions about what we covered in this guide then feel free to ask in the comment section below and I will do my best to answer those.

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