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Two of my USB sticks have stopped auto mounting. I can still mount them manually by running mount | grep /dev/sd and then looking for the device name to mount from but that's having to go a little out of the way. Not all USB stick have stopped auto mounting, just two of them. Any ideas?

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: since only two sticks fail while others still auto-mount, the problem is very likely specific to those devices (filesystem, partition layout, or a driver/udev/UUID conflict) rather than a global automount setting. pointed to the Ubuntu help page for general guidance; the checklist below focuses on targeted diagnostics and likely fixes.

A quick diagnostic flow (watch kernel logs, then inspect the block device):

sudo dmesg -w        # watch messages while inserting the stick
lsblk -f             # shows partitions, FS types, UUIDs
sudo blkid           # shows device UUID and type

Common findings and what they mean:

  • Kernel reports I/O errors or the device drops: the stick or its controller is failing or flaky USB port/cable. Try another port or machine.
  • Device appears but has no partition (only /dev/sdX, no sdX1): many automounters only mount partitions. Either create a partition table (recommended) or use a daemon that mounts whole-device filesystems.
  • Filesystem type is unsupported (older distros need ntfs-3g or exFAT userspace); install the appropriate driver.
  • Filesystem marked dirty or with errors: automounters often refuse to mount. Running fsck can fix this, but back up important data first.
  • Duplicate UUID or an /etc/fstab entry referencing that UUID/device with noauto or wrong options will prevent automount.

Additional notes and cautions:

  • Avoid running destructive fixes without a backup. If dmesg shows "EXT4-fs error" or similar, consider imaging the stick first.
  • If automount behavior differs across desktop environments, check the DE's removable-media automount preference rather than kernel settings.
  • If a stick works on one machine and not another, compare kernel logs and installed filesystem drivers to narrow the cause.

These steps should quickly separate hardware faults from filesystem/setting issues and point to the appropriate fix.

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