010-160 Practice Test 22 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A developer is writing an application that performs heavy system-level calls. Why would they choose to use Linux for this development?

Accepted Answer

Because the source code is transparent, allowing for deep optimization and debugging.. Linux's open-source nature means developers can inspect, modify, and rebuild the kernel and system libraries, which is invaluable for debugging system-level calls, profiling performance, and optimizing code paths. This transparency enables deep visibility that closed-source operating systems cannot offer without vendor support.

Answer

Because it is the only operating system that supports multi-threading.

Answer

Because Linux has a graphical user interface that is mandatory for all applications.

Answer

Because Linux only runs on x86 hardware.

Question 2

A small business owner wants to reduce licensing costs and gain the ability to inspect and customize the software running on point-of-sale terminals. Which combination of characteristics best describes the type of software she should adopt?

Accepted Answer

Software distributed with source code that permits modification and redistribution. The owner needs two things at once: no licensing fees and the freedom to inspect and change the software. Only software distributed with source code under a license permitting modification and redistribution delivers both. Freeware, per-device proprietary licensing, and restricted shared-source models each block at least one of those requirements.

Answer

Software released under a shared-source license that forbids commercial use

Answer

Software provided as free-of-charge binaries without source code

Answer

Software licensed per device with vendor-controlled update channels

Question 3

To add a new user named 'guest' and set their home directory to '/home/guest', which command is correct?

Accepted Answer

useradd -m -d /home/guest guest. useradd -m -d /home/guest guest creates the account 'guest', sets its home directory to /home/guest via -d, and -m ensures the directory is actually created and populated with skeleton files from /etc/skel. Without -m, useradd would record the home path but not create it.

Answer

usermod -d /home/guest guest

Answer

useradd -h /home/guest guest

Answer

addhome guest

Question 4

You are reviewing a shell script and need to identify commands that are handled internally by the shell rather than by launching a separate executable. Which two of the following are shell builtins? (Choose two.)

Accepted Answer

cd. Builtins execute inside the shell process because they must alter shell state or avoid process overhead. cd changes the working directory of the shell itself, and export modifies the environment inherited by child processes. Neither effect could persist if the command ran as a separate executable, which is why both are implemented internally alongside others such as echo, pwd, and read.

Answer

tar

Answer

grep

Answer

ls

Question 5

Which THREE of the following are components of a standard network configuration?

Accepted Answer

Subnet mask. A standard network configuration on a host requires an IP address (B) to uniquely identify the interface on the network, a subnet mask (A) to define which portion of the address is the network prefix and which is the host portion (enabling local vs. remote delivery decisions), and a default gateway (E) so that traffic destined for networks outside the local subnet is forwarded to the next-hop router. These three values are the classic IPv4 host parameters (often delivered via DHCP or set statically with ip addr/ip route or ifconfig/route). By contrast, the shell prompt (C) is just the command-line interface indicator and has no bearing on network reachability, and the kernel version (D) describes the OS build rather than any addressing or routing parameter, so neither belongs in a network configuration.

Answer

Shell prompt

Answer

Kernel version

Question 6

Which of these is a common advantage of using a Linux-based operating system in a professional development environment?

Accepted Answer

It has native compatibility with standard development tools like GCC, Git, and Docker.. Linux distributions ship with or easily install the standard toolchain developers rely on, including GCC, Git, Docker, Python, and package managers like apt or yum. This native compatibility makes Linux the default environment for many development, CI/CD, and container workflows. The other options describe impossible or nonsensical benefits.

Answer

It prevents developers from making any syntax errors.

Answer

It automatically deploys code to production servers without testing.

Answer

It is the only OS that allows writing Python code.

Question 7

A systems administrator is documenting a server and wants to record which kernel release is currently running, including any distribution-specific patch level, for compatibility checks with a third-party driver. Which command should be used to display this information?

Accepted Answer

uname -r. The kernel release string, including distribution patch suffixes, is obtained with uname -r. Distribution identification tools and files describe the OS release rather than the kernel. When a third-party driver requires the exact running kernel release, uname -r is the direct and correct source.

Answer

lsb_release -a

Answer

hostnamectl status

Answer

cat /etc/os-release

Question 8

Which TWO of the following are common types of Linux career roles?

Accepted Answer

Site Reliability Engineer (SRE). Option A, Site Reliability Engineer (SRE), is correct because SRE is a well-established Linux-centric role that applies software engineering to operations, typically managing large-scale Linux fleets with automation, monitoring (e.g., Prometheus), and configuration management tools like Ansible or Terraform. Option B, System Administrator, is correct because administering Linux servers—user/group management, package management via apt/yum/dnf, systemd services, permissions, and networking—is one of the most common and traditional Linux career paths. Option C, Desktop Operating System Developer, is not a standard Linux career category; desktop development is a niche software-engineering specialization rather than a common Linux role. Option D, Proprietary Software Sales Manager, is a sales/business role unrelated to Linux technical administration or engineering. Option E, Database Hardware Architect, is a specialized hardware/database design role and not a commonly recognized Linux career track.

Answer

Desktop Operating System Developer

Answer

Proprietary Software Sales Manager

Answer

Database Hardware Architect

Question 9

Which command is used to display the current directory path in the terminal?

Accepted Answer

pwd. The 'pwd' command (print working directory) outputs the absolute path of the directory the shell is currently in. It reads the shell's current directory state and prints it to standard output, which is exactly what the question asks for.

Answer

ls

Answer

dir

Answer

cd

Question 10

Which THREE of the following are fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the Free Software Definition?

Accepted Answer

Freedom to run the program for any purpose. Option A is correct because the Free Software Definition's Freedom 0 guarantees the freedom to run the program as you wish, for any purpose. Option B is correct because Freedom 1 guarantees the freedom to study how the program works and change it, with access to the source code being a precondition. Option C is correct because Freedom 2 guarantees the freedom to redistribute copies to others, and Freedom 3 covers distributing modified versions. Option D is not part of the definition because forbidding others from copying directly contradicts the freedom to redistribute copies. Option E is not part of the definition because making the program proprietary would restrict the freedoms to study, modify, and redistribute, which the Free Software Definition requires.

Answer

Freedom to forbid others from copying the code

Answer

Freedom to make the program proprietary

Question 11

Which TWO of the following commands help you move within the directory structure?

Accepted Answer

cd. Option C, cd, is correct because it is the shell built-in that changes the current working directory, allowing you to move up, down, or across the directory tree (e.g., cd /var/log or cd ..). Option E, popd, is correct because it removes the top entry from the directory stack and changes the current working directory to the newly exposed directory, effectively moving you within the directory structure. Option A, cat, is wrong because it concatenates and displays file contents rather than changing your location. Option B, ls, is wrong because it only lists directory contents without changing the working directory. Option D, mv, is wrong because it moves or renames files and directories, not the shell's current working directory.

Answer

cat

Answer

ls

Answer

mv

Question 12

Which THREE of the following represent ways to gain practical experience with Linux?

Accepted Answer

Installing and configuring Linux in a virtual machine. Option A is correct because installing and configuring Linux in a virtual machine (e.g., using VirtualBox, VMware, or KVM) gives hands-on practice with partitioning, package management, bootloaders, and system configuration in a safe, disposable environment. Option C is correct because setting up a home lab server (for example, running services like SSH, Apache/Nginx, Samba, or DNS on a spare machine or Raspberry Pi) builds real operational skills in networking, permissions, and service management. Option D is correct because contributing code to an open source project requires working with Linux-based toolchains such as git, make, gcc, and shell scripting, and often involves reading and modifying real codebases under Linux. Option B is not correct because a pre-configured, locked-down appliance hides the underlying Linux internals and offers little to no administrative or configuration practice. Option E is not correct because passively reading documentation without using the terminal does not develop the practical command-line and troubleshooting experience the question asks for.

Answer

Buying a pre-configured, locked-down appliance

Answer

Only reading documentation without using the terminal

Question 13

Which THREE of the following commands are used for viewing file metadata or status?

Accepted Answer

ls -l. Option A, `ls -l`, is correct because the long-listing format displays file metadata such as permissions, hard-link count, owner, group, size, and modification timestamp for each file. Option B, `stat`, is correct because it explicitly reports file status/metadata including inode number, size, block count, access/modify/change times, and device information. Option C, `file`, is correct because it inspects file content and reports the file type (e.g., ASCII text, ELF binary, directory), which is file status information. Option D, `cat`, is not correct because it concatenates and prints file contents rather than showing metadata. Option E, `cd`, is not correct because it changes the shell's current working directory and displays no file metadata or status.

Answer

cat

Answer

cd

Question 14

A Linux administrator needs to check which shell is currently assigned to the user account 'jdoe' in the system's user database, without logging in as that user. Which command will display this information?

Accepted Answer

grep jdoe /etc/passwd. User account information, including the login shell, is stored in the /etc/passwd file. Searching that file for the username jdoe reveals the shell assigned to that account. Other commands either report the current user's environment, current identity, or running processes, none of which reliably show another user's configured login shell from the system database.

Answer

echo $SHELL

Answer

ps -u jdoe

Answer

whoami

Question 15

A user is in '/var/log' and wants to copy the file 'app.log' to '/tmp/archive' while preserving its original permissions, ownership, and timestamps. Which command accomplishes this?

Accepted Answer

cp -a app.log /tmp/archive/. Preserving permissions, ownership, and timestamps during a copy requires cp with the archive option, which bundles recursive copying and full attribute preservation. A plain copy resets attributes, moving removes the source, and creating a symbolic link does not duplicate data. Only the archive-mode copy produces an independent file with metadata intact.

Answer

mv -a app.log /tmp/archive/

Answer

cp app.log /tmp/archive/

Answer

ln -s app.log /tmp/archive/