LPIC-1 Practice Test 26 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A junior administrator needs to install the package 'nginx' on an Ubuntu 22.04 server. They want to ensure all required dependencies are automatically resolved and installed. Which command should they use?

Choose an answer to begin — your selection is scored in the full session.

Accepted Answer

apt-get install nginx. The correct answer is apt-get install nginx. On Ubuntu, apt-get is the high-level package manager that downloads packages from repositories and resolves dependencies automatically. It ensures nginx and all required libraries are installed and configured properly.

Answer

dpkg -i nginx

Answer

yum install nginx

Answer

rpm -ivh nginx

Question 2

A minimal Linux system boots using a legacy BIOS with GRUB 2 installed in the MBR of /dev/sda. The administrator wants to install a new boot loader configuration that writes the boot code to the MBR and also places core.img in the gap between the MBR and the first partition. Which command accomplishes this?

Accepted Answer

grub-install /dev/sda. Installing GRUB 2 for legacy BIOS boot requires writing code to the disk's master boot record and embedding the core image in the space before the first partition. Passing the whole disk device to the installer achieves both. Configuration generators such as grub-mkconfig or its wrapper only rebuild the menu file and never modify the MBR, and targeting a partition instead of the disk writes to the wrong location.

Answer

grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg

Answer

grub-install /dev/sda1

Answer

update-grub

Question 3

A technician is diagnosing a server that fails to reach the expected multi-user target. The technician wants to gather evidence about kernel ring buffer messages and the systemd journal for the current boot. Which TWO commands provide this diagnostic information? (Choose two.)

Accepted Answer

journalctl -b. Kernel and service boot messages live in two complementary places on a systemd host. The kernel ring buffer, read with dmesg, holds low-level hardware and driver messages from early boot. The journal, queried with journalctl -b for the current boot, aggregates kernel and unit messages with timestamps and context. Together they give the technician the evidence needed to find why the multi-user target was not reached.

Answer

systemctl status

Answer

uptime

Answer

last reboot

Question 4

A Linux server uses a systemd-based init and has several custom services. The administrator wants to inspect the runtime state and configuration of a unit named backup.service without starting or stopping it. Which TWO commands provide information about this unit? (Choose two.)

Accepted Answer

systemctl status backup.service. Inspecting a systemd unit without altering it calls for read-only commands. systemctl status shows the unit's active state, recent journal entries, and loaded properties, while systemctl cat prints the unit file and any drop-ins that define its effective configuration. Commands such as start, restart, and enable change state or configuration and therefore do not meet the requirement.

Answer

systemctl enable backup.service

Answer

systemctl restart backup.service

Answer

systemctl start backup.service

Question 5

A technician is troubleshooting a server whose /var partition is reported as full by applications, but df -h shows the filesystem at only 40 percent usage. The technician suspects deleted files are still held open by running processes. Which command best identifies the process holding a deleted file open on that filesystem?

Accepted Answer

lsof +L1. When a file is unlinked while a process still holds it open, the blocks remain allocated but the name disappears from the directory tree, so df shows usage that du cannot account for. lsof with the +L1 filter enumerates files whose link count has dropped below one, exposing the process responsible and allowing the administrator to restart it and reclaim space.

Answer

fuser -m /var

Answer

df -i /var

Answer

du -sh /var

Question 6

A junior administrator accidentally deleted a large log file that is still being written to by a running process. The file no longer appears in directory listings, but `df -h` shows the filesystem is still nearly full. Which command will reclaim the space without interrupting the running process?

Accepted Answer

truncate -s 0 /proc//fd/ using the file descriptor path. An unlinked file that remains open keeps its inode and data blocks allocated until the last descriptor closes. Truncating the file through its /proc//fd/ descriptor zeroes the content and frees the blocks while the process continues running, satisfying the requirement of no interruption. Diagnostics like lsof help locate the descriptor, but the reclamation itself must act on the open file.

Answer

Run sync to flush dirty pages and free the deleted file's blocks

Answer

lsof | grep deleted, then kill the process holding the file

Answer

Run fsck on the filesystem to release orphaned inodes

Question 7

A server has a dedicated disk /dev/sdc that will store application logs. The administrator wants the filesystem to be checked automatically only after 30 mounts or 60 days, whichever comes first, and wants to reduce the reserved block percentage to 1 percent. Which single command accomplishes both changes on the existing ext4 filesystem?

Accepted Answer

tune2fs -c 30 -i 60d -m 1 /dev/sdc. Adjusting existing ext filesystem behavior is the job of tune2fs, which writes superblock fields such as maximum mount count, check interval, and reserved block percentage. Formatting tools would destroy data, and checking or reporting tools cannot alter policy. The single command combining -c, -i, and -m meets both requirements.

Answer

dumpe2fs -c 30 -i 60d -m 1 /dev/sdc

Answer

e2fsck -c 30 -i 60d -m 1 /dev/sdc

Answer

mkfs.ext4 -c 30 -i 60d -m 1 /dev/sdc

Question 8

An administrator is preparing a new USB drive for use as a portable ext4 data disk. After writing the partition table, the administrator wants to confirm the partition layout and the filesystem type currently on the device before formatting. Which command displays both the partition table and the detected filesystem types for /dev/sdd?

Accepted Answer

lsblk -f /dev/sdd. Verifying a device before formatting requires both the partition layout and any existing filesystem signatures. lsblk with the -f option merges block device topology from sysfs with filesystem metadata detected by libblkid, showing each partition's type, label, UUID, and mount point in a single tree view, which covers both needs at once.

Answer

partprobe /dev/sdd

Answer

fdisk -l /dev/sdd

Answer

blkid /dev/sdd

Question 9

An administrator must configure persistent mounts for two filesystems on a database server. One is an ext4 volume that should be mounted at boot without failing the whole boot process if it is unavailable. The other is a swap partition that must be activated at boot. Which TWO entries belong in /etc/fstab to meet these requirements? (Choose two.)

Accepted Answer

UUID=5678-efgh /data ext4 defaults,nofail 0 2. Persistent mounts are declared in /etc/fstab using the device, mount point, filesystem type, options, dump, and fsck pass fields. The ext4 volume needs nofail so an unavailable device does not halt boot, while swap uses the mount point none, type swap, and option sw. The two entries matching those patterns are correct.

Answer

UUID=1234-abcd /data ext4 defaults,noauto 0 2

Answer

UUID=90ab-cdef /swap swap defaults 0 2

Answer

UUID=5678-efgh /data ext4 defaults 1 1

Question 10

A Linux server uses a custom udev rule to assign a persistent name to a USB-to-serial adapter. After a kernel update, the adapter is no longer recognized by its custom name, and the administrator finds that the rule file is still present. Which command should be used to reload the udev rules and trigger them for existing devices without rebooting?

Accepted Answer

udevadm control --reload-rules && udevadm trigger. To apply modified udev rules to devices that are already connected, the rules must be reloaded into the udev daemon and then existing devices must be re-triggered. The command udevadm control --reload-rules performs the reload, and udevadm trigger replays events for all devices. Together they activate the new rule without requiring a reboot or physical reconnection.

Answer

udevadm info --query=all --name=/dev/ttyUSB0

Answer

systemctl restart systemd-udevd

Answer

udevadm monitor --kernel --property

Question 11

A help-desk technician must determine which shell built-in will display the absolute path of the directory the user is currently working in, so it can be captured in a support script. Which command should the technician use?

Accepted Answer

pwd. pwd is the standard utility for reporting the current working directory as an absolute path. Because it is also implemented as a shell built-in, it reflects the shell's tracked state and works reliably inside scripts. Redirecting or capturing its output gives the technician the exact directory path to include in a support record.

Answer

dirname

Answer

ls

Answer

cd

Question 12

An administrator is examining a file with 'ls -l' and sees the permission string '-rwSr--r--' on an executable owned by root. What does the capital S in the owner execute position indicate?

Accepted Answer

The set-user-ID bit is set, but the owner execute bit is not set.. The execute slot for each permission class also encodes a special bit. For the owner it is set-user-ID, shown as s when execute is also granted and as S when execute is withheld. Seeing '-rwSr--r--' therefore means setuid is set but the owner cannot execute the file, which is an unusual and often ineffective configuration.

Answer

The file has an extended ACL entry that grants the owner additional rights.

Answer

The sticky bit is set, and it prevents other users from deleting the file.

Answer

The set-group-ID bit is set, but the group execute bit is not set.

Question 13

An administrator must grant a contractor temporary, passwordless sudo access to run only /usr/bin/systemctl restart nginx on a production web server. Which entry in a file under /etc/sudoers.d/ best meets this requirement while limiting privilege escalation?

Accepted Answer

contractor ALL=(root) NOPASSWD: /usr/bin/systemctl restart nginx. Least privilege requires specifying both the permitted binary and its exact arguments. Listing the full command with its unit argument confines the contractor to restarting nginx as root without a password, while the absence of wildcards prevents reusing the rule for other services. A dedicated file under /etc/sudoers.d keeps the change auditable and easy to revoke.

Answer

contractor ALL=(ALL) NOPASSWD: /usr/bin/systemctl

Answer

contractor ALL=(root) NOPASSWD: /usr/bin/systemctl restart *

Answer

%contractor ALL=(root) NOPASSWD: /usr/bin/systemctl restart nginx

Question 14

A junior administrator needs to add a new user account named 'tester' to a Linux server. The account must have a home directory created at /home/tester, and the default shell should be set to /bin/bash. The administrator runs 'useradd tester' but later finds that no home directory was created and the shell is /bin/sh. Which command should have been used to meet both requirements?

Accepted Answer

useradd -m -s /bin/bash tester. The correct command is useradd -m -s /bin/bash tester. The -m flag ensures the home directory is created, and -s specifies the login shell. Other options either fail to create the home directory, use non-standard syntax, or attempt to modify a non-existent user. This single command meets both stated requirements.

Answer

usermod -m -s /bin/bash tester

Answer

useradd -d /home/tester -s /bin/bash tester

Answer

adduser tester --home /home/tester --shell /bin/bash

Question 15

A Linux administrator needs to check the current status of the systemd service named sshd, including whether it is active and its recent log entries. Which command should she run?

Accepted Answer

systemctl status sshd. The systemctl status command provides a concise overview of a unit's state, including whether it is active, the main PID, and recent journal entries. It is the standard systemd tool for checking both status and recent logs, making it the most complete and appropriate choice for the administrator's needs.

Answer

journalctl -u sshd

Answer

service sshd status

Answer

systemctl is-active sshd