Once you mount a file system, how do you read and write the files?

Question

I understand that a file system can be visualized as a "tree" of files and directories. I also understand that "mounting" a file system means to placing or rooting that tree within an existing directory. https://askubuntu.com/questions/20680/what-does-it-mean-to-mount-something

With that said, I have a fuse system "mounted" and I'm trying to understand how to query and use it. I know that it is mounted because when I type this command I see this...

$mount 
...
FuseHandler on /home/memsql/mount

So I have mounted a fuse system. How do I add files, remove files, list files, etc. In other words, how do I use a mounted file system?

If I cd into /home/memsql/mount I get a flashing cursor as if I am at a prompt.

Answer 1

The whole idea behind "mounting" something into the filesystem is that you can use the standard interface (API) that you're used to when dealing with the mounted entity.

So if it's a website, FTP, SSH session, etc. that is mounted via FUSE, you interact with it using the standard command cd, ls, etc.

Example - FUSE/sshfs

If you want to remotely mount some distant directory you can simply do the following:

# make mountpoint
$ mkdir ~/blah

# mount remote dir. through sshfs
$ sshfs root@somehost:/root ~/blah

# use it

....
Now you can use any tools such as gvim/vim to 
access files through this FUSE mountpoint, 
~/blah
....

# umount when done
$ fusermount -u blah

With the above mounted I could use the standard tools cp, ls, or any text editor to use the files through this interface in the same way I would if the folder was directly mounted from a local disk.

Answer 2

I would start with cd /home/memsql/mount

Or more generally Unix considers everything a file, and where that file is, is determined by its path, so all files under /home/memsql/mount are part of that file system unless you mount something else under it.

Bottom line, you use it like it is part of the filesystem, because it is.