External mounts are file system mounts created by Kubernetes for containerized compliance engines running in Kubernetes. Unlike NFS and CIFS mounts which you create in DCT, external mounts are managed by Kubernetes and automatically discovered by DCT.
How external mounts work
When a containerized engine is registered in an orchestrator, DCT automatically discovers available external mounts on that engine. DCT pulls mount information every 5 minutes to track which mounts are present and their health status across all nodes in the orchestrator.
Once external mounts are discovered and pulled into DCT, they appear in the mount dropdown when you create a file connector and select mount as the connection method.
Creating external mounts
You do not create external mounts in DCT. External mount creation is not supported through DCT APIs. Instead, configure external mounts in Kubernetes (for example, through Kubernetes configuration files or Helm chart values) when setting up your containerized engine infrastructure. Kubernetes attaches the mounts to the container, and the containerized engine discovers them automatically.
Once the engine is registered in DCT, external mounts are discovered and available for use in file connectors.
Lifecycle management
Unlike NFS and CIFS mounts where DCT manages the mount lifecycle, the containerized engine and Kubernetes manage the lifecycle of external mounts. DCT simply tracks and monitors them every 5 minutes.
Because of this model, external mounts cannot be deleted through DCT APIs. Delete or unmount them through Kubernetes or your Helm-managed configuration.
This means external mounts persist as long as they are mounted by Kubernetes, regardless of whether compliance jobs are running.