Duplicate mount point in /Volumes after unexpected restart

If Mac OS X or Mac OS X Server is restarted unexpectedly, the current mount point listed in /Volumes may not be deleted and a new ("false") mount point with a " 1" appended to the name may appear (such as "My Volume 1"). This can cause issues for applications that rely on the path to certain files located in secondary volumes.

The following steps for Mac OS X Server will remove duplicate mount points from /Volumes. Note: The "false" mount point may or may not be the volume whose name ends with " 1". In the Finder, use Get Info (or on the command line, use du -sk) to determine which mount point is smaller in size--the smaller one is likely the "false" share point.

1. On the server, log into the Finder as root or an admin user.

2. If you logged in as root, open Workgroup Manager and log in as the local admin user, then stop all file services.

3. In the Finder, go to /Volumes.

4. Copy the incorrect ("false") mount point's folder to the desktop or different volume. This ensures that no data that was inadvertently placed in the false share point is lost.

5. Delete the empty "false" mount point folder from /Volumes. Authenticate if prompted.

6. Restart the server.

Command line alternative

Alternatively, you can use these steps and the command line.

1. Shut down and restart the server.

2. Start in single-user mode.

3. Type this command, followed by Return:

   mount -uw /

4. Type this command, followed by Return:

   cd /Volumes

5. Type this command, followed by Return: to move the contents of the false mount point:

   mv "FalseVolumeName" /

6. Type reboot followed by Return.

The computer will restart and mount the volume as expected.

Once you have all of the data from the "false" mount point copied back into the volume where it should reside, you can delete the folder "FalseVolumeName" from the boot volume.