Mounting NTFS Disks on Arch Linux and Fixing fsck.ntfs Error
🇬🇧 Technical solution for 'fsck.ntfs not found' and 'Error mounting' when mounting NTFS partitions on Arch Linux, and how to mount NTFS partitions permanently.
If, on your Arch Linux system, you tried to mount a Windows NTFS partition and saw these typical error messages:
Helper Program Error:
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fsck: fsck.ntfs not found; ignore /dev/nvme0n1p5
Mount Error:
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An error occurred while accessing 'Local Disk', the system responded:
The requested operation has failed:
Error mounting /dev/nvme0n1p5 at /run/media/user/Local Disk:
wrong fs type, bad option, bad superblock, missing codepage or helper program, or other error
This usually happens because of missing NTFS support or because the partition has a dirty flag. The solution steps are detailed below.
💾 Install the required package for NTFS support: ntfs-3g
A minimal Arch Linux install often does not include NTFS filesystem drivers for full read/write support. Install the ntfs-3g package. It provides tools like ntfsfix, mount.ntfs, and fsck.ntfs.
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sudo pacman -S ntfs-3g
🛠️ Check and repair the partition: ntfsfix
An unexpected shutdown of Windows (power loss, crash) or Windows “Fast Startup” can leave NTFS metadata inconsistent. Linux may refuse to mount the partition to protect data.
Use ntfsfix to fix basic inconsistencies and clear the dirty flag.
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sudo ntfsfix /dev/nvme0n1p5
Example successful output:
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Mounting volume... OK
Processing of $MFT and $MFTMirr completed successfully.
NTFS volume version is 3.1.
NTFS partition /dev/nvme0n1p5 was processed successfully.
📂 Manual mount
After installing the package and repairing the partition, you can mount the NTFS partition manually.
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Create a mount point:
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sudo mkdir -p /mnt/winfck
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Mount the partition:
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sudo mount -t ntfs-3g /dev/nvme0n1p5 /mnt/winfck
You can now access the partition at /mnt/winfck.
🔁 Automatic mount at boot: /etc/fstab configuration
This is optional. In fact, it is not recommended for security reasons. To mount the partition automatically at boot, add an entry to /etc/fstab. It is more reliable to use the partition’s UUID instead of the device name.
Find the UUID:
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lsblk -f
Example line to add to /etc/fstab:
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UUID=XXXX-XXXX /mnt/winfck ntfs-3g defaults 0 0
⚙️ Technical explanation and preventive measures
❗ Core reason for the error
When the kernel needs a filesystem check (fsck), it looks for the helper program for that filesystem (for example, fsck.ntfs or fsck.ext4). The fsck.ntfs helper is actually a link to the ntfsfix tool. If ntfs-3g is missing, that helper is not present and the mount can fail because of this safety check.
⚠️ Important preventive measure: Windows “Fast Startup”
Windows “Fast Startup” (hybrid shutdown) does not fully shut down the system. It can leave NTFS metadata in a state that looks “dirty” to Linux. This prevents Linux from safely mounting the partition (even read-only). Disable Fast Startup in Windows to avoid this. This is especially important if you dual-boot with Linux or regularly access Windows NTFS partitions from Linux.
See you in another post. Stay safe.