Including an AutoFS Map in Another AutoFS Map

To include the contents of an AutoFS map in another AutoFS map, add a plus sign (+) before the map name; see the following example:

# /etc/auto_home file
# local mount point mount options remote server:directory
 
basil -nosuid         basil:/export/home/basil
+auto_home

Assume that the /etc/auto_home map is listed in the master map with the following line:

/home           /etc/auto_home

This example causes the following:

The plus sign (+) indicates that AutoFS must look into a different map for the information it needs to mount the directory. If the map name following the plus sign begins with a slash, it is a local file for AutoFS. If the map name contains no slashes, AutoFS uses the Name Service Switch to determine whether it is a file or an NIS map. For more information, see the "Configuring the Name Service Switch" chapter of NFS Services Administrator’s Guide.

	NOTE: You can include an AutoFS map inside a local file but not inside an NIS map.

For more information, see the following man pages: automount(1M) or nsswitch.conf(4).