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Date: Mon, 31 Aug 2015 09:32:07 -0400
From: Quartz <quartz@sneakertech.com>
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Subject: Re: Stop using a SATA drive
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> The remaining question is: Is it technically valid to
> remove a device special file from the devfs file system
> corresponding to a device that currently is not in use
> (anymore), but is _present_ (attached to the system in
> some way)?

I keep using OSX as a point of reference, but the way they do it is that 
once the drive has been "ejected", it's effectively not present anymore. 
Their mental model is that a drive can be physically attached without 
being 'connected' software-wise, just that the process of establishing 
that connection when a device is plugged in has been automated.

Personally I've never had a problem with this mental model. Many 
different things can be physically plugged into a computer without 
actually functioning (ie; network cable) so I don't see why drives 
should have special rules. Any anyway, when I eject a drive it's because 
I'm about to physically remove it.