How do you use drones?

[PvK]

Ya, kind of, although they'll only hurt things arriving at that planet - not things sitting there, or leaving. Unless this is a booby trap for an ally you expect to lose, there will be a combat round involved, which if you survive to lay mines, the enemy will still see your ship layout, so if he's awake and notices, he may guess what you are doing, count your mine-laying capacity, and assign an appropriate sweeping effort.

All of this is entirely unlike drones (the point of the question I was answering), and reminds me of another difference: mines can guard a location indefinitely, while drones will either expire, or require cargo space.

Also is the count towards the units in space limit. 1000 mines is like 10-30 defended sectors that can be penetrated easily with enough minesweepers, while 1000 drones is extreme power, offensive or defensive.

PvK