What is the /etc/fstab.d directory used for, I noticed it on my desktop.

[bonkers]

There is nothing in there, can I delete this directory safetly? Does it override normal /etc/fstab ?

[claydoh]

You probably can, and it is probably safe to do so. If it is ever utilized in the future, it would likely be recreated anyway.

But really, why bother?

Sent from my Verizon HTC Droid DNA Android smartphone running LiquidSmooth Rom, with Kit Kat 4.4.4, via Tapatalk, as if phone stats really matter

[Snowhog]

Please do not go about deleting anything that was installed. The fact that the directory in question is empty is exactly as it should be on a new installation.

The one thing you need to understand, or at least accept, is that all the files and directories created during installation are all necessary and required.

[SteveRiley]

It isn't used for anything. There was a proposal in January 2012 to add support for fstab.d. But after some discussion, it was eventually dropped. It would likely break tens of thousands of scripts that expect a single file that defines all mounts.

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Q. In general, what's the difference between /etc/foobar.conf and /etc/foobar.conf.d?

A. Many system programs and services require configuration files. For certain programs and services, there are sane defaults that make sense to include in packages. These defaults should be declared in files contained inside a dedicated subdirectory named like /etc/foobar.conf.d. Moreover, the names of these files should be preferenced with numbers. The system will read the files in numeric order, and apply configuration directives successively.

Other programs and services have no out-of-the-box default configuration files, because the configuration will be system-specific -- it is required for the system administrator to create them. In this case, the configuration should be in a single file named like /etc/foobar.conf. The file shouldn't be included in any package. Instead, it should be created during installation with the help of user prompts or manually by the user after installation.

Now, apply this thinking to fstab. There is no scenario in which distributions could predict file system configurations and incorporate them in packages. File system configuration is entirely dependent on the system's characteristics. Thus, a single /etc/fstab is all that's needed. Having a /etc/fstab.d makes no sense.