How do you know if it is safe to remove a usb

[Aere Greenway]

On 01/12/2015 07:32 AM, Linda wrote:
> I have a script  that uses cp -a to create a backup to a mounted usb 
> volume.  In the past I have used Ubuntu and nautilus. In Nautilus when 
> you unmount the usb drive after finishing the script it gives you a 
> warning that it is writing to disk and it is not safe to remove the 
> usb drive. In PCManFM does not give this message so in PCManFM how do 
> you know when it is done writing the content that was cached and is 
> actually safe to remove the usb drive?  Is it when the drive 
> disappears from the file list?
>                            Thanks
>                             Linda
>
Linda:

In my own experience, I notice two different behaviors, for the two 
types of USB drives I use.

In the file browser (PCManFM), when I click (in the left pane, the entry 
for the partition) the "eject" icon, if it's a flash drive (including a 
flash drive with multiple partitions), its partition(s) disappear from 
the left pane of the file browser.

If it's an external (USB) hard drive, it stays in the left pane, but its 
"eject" icon disappears.  Its additional partitions are un-affected 
(still mounted) - you need to click on the "eject" icon of those 
partitions as well.

You can verify it is un-mounted by right-clicking on the entry in the 
left pane, and if you see the choice to "mount" the partition, it is 
un-mounted.

When all partitions of the external hard-drive have been un-mounted (as 
described above), it is safe to un-plug the USB external hard-drive (at 
least, this practice has worked for me for years without any problems).

-- 
Sincerely,
Aere