Final answer:
Knowing what drives have been mounted is essential for data management, installing applications, system backups, and troubleshooting. It also ensures system security by confirming that only authorized devices are accessible.
Step-by-step explanation:
Understanding what drives have been mounted is crucial because it provides information about the storage devices that are currently accessible by a computer's operating system. Mounting a drive makes its file system recognizable and allows the operating system to read and write data from and to the drive. This knowledge is essential for various tasks, such as data management, application installation, system backups, and troubleshooting.
For instance, in a Linux operating system, the mount command is utilized to attach file systems to certain points in the directory tree. Failure to properly keep track of mounted drives could lead to data loss, as users might accidentally write data to a device that is not actually present, or they might overlook backing up important data stored on external or network drives. Knowing the status of mounted drives also helps maintain system security by ensuring that only authorized devices are attached to the system.