microsoft / microsoft/WSL

Error `wsl: Processing /etc/fstab with mount -a failed.` printed on first opening of WSL terminal after boot to mount Google Drive

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Description

### Windows Version

Microsoft Windows [Version 10.0.26100.6725]

### WSL Version

2.6.1.0

### Are you using WSL 1 or WSL 2?

- [x] WSL 2
- [ ] WSL 1

### Kernel Version

6.6.87.2-microsoft-standard-WSL2

### Distro Version

Ubuntu 25.04

### Other Software

Google Drive Version: 114.0.1.0

### Repro Steps

My WSL2 Ubuntu distro prints the error on the first line of opening the terminal right after booting. I configured .wslconfig to automount my fstab so it mounts the G: drive which is Google Drive to /mnt/g as configured on `/etc/fstab`.

Right after my terminal opens, if I type manually `sudo mount -a` the `/mnt/g` mountpoint is correctly mounted. I wonder whats failing so it doesn't mount on open/boot. I wonder if maybe when the WSL2 VM boots, the G: drive is still not available and created by Google Drive.

```sh
❯ cat /etc/fstab
LABEL=cloudimg-rootfs / ext4 defaults 0 0
G: /mnt/g drvfs metadata,rw,umask=22,fmask=11,case=dir,uid=1000,gid=1000 0 0
```

My `.wsl.conf`:

```ini
[automount]
enabled = true
mountFsTab = true
root = /mnt/
options = "metadata,rw,umask=22,fmask=11,case=dir,uid=1000,gid=1000"

[network]
generateHosts = true
generateResolvConf = true

[interop]
enabled = true
appendWindowsPath = true

[user]
# default = $USER

[boot]
systemd = false
```

My `.wslconfig`:

```ini
[wsl2]
networkingMode=mirrored

[experimental]
sparseVhd=true
```

I don't use systemd as it increases startup time and also brings issues with Podman. After some minutes of starting, it deletes the XDG_RUNTIME_DIR that points to `/run/user/1000` and breaks other stuff.

Versions:
```
╰─ wsl.exe --version 3
WSL version: 2.6.1.0
Kernel version: 6.6.87.2-1
WSLg version: 1.0.66
MSRDC version: 1.2.6353
Direct3D version: 1.611.1-81528511
DXCore version: 10.0.26100.1-240331-1435.ge-release
Windows version: 10.0.26100.6725
```

### Expected Behavior

G drive to be automatically mounted.

### Actual Behavior

Automount doesn't work.

### Diagnostic Logs

[WslLogs-2025-10-03_16-50-42.zip](https://github.com/user-attachments/files/22687334/WslLogs-2025-10-03_16-50-42.zip)

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

Research direction

Start with the reported /etc/fstab entry and the [automount] settings in .wsl.conf, then compare the first terminal startup with a manual `sudo mount -a`. Review the attached diagnostic logs and .wslconfig settings for the startup ordering involved. Done means the G: drive mounts automatically on the first WSL launch without printing the fstab error.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
linux, ubuntu
Domain
operating-systems
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
3/5
Estimated time
1-2 days
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
45/100

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