XK0-006 Troubleshooting Practice Question
An administrator is troubleshooting a service that fails to start. They want to trace the system calls made by the service binary. Which command should they use?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
strace
strace traces system calls and signals. It is used to debug what a program is doing at the kernel level.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
ltrace
Why it's wrong here
ltrace intercepts library calls, not kernel system calls, so it cannot show the service's open, execve or socket syscalls. It is tempting because it traces dynamic library invocations, which is the right tool when diagnosing failures inside shared libraries rather than kernel interactions.
- ✗
dmesg
Why it's wrong here
dmesg prints the kernel ring buffer, which records driver and hardware messages but not the syscalls a binary issues at runtime. It is tempting because boot-time kernel errors often explain why a service fails, making it the right choice when diagnosing hardware or module faults.
- ✓
strace
Why this is correct
strace attaches to the process and prints each system call with arguments and return values, exposing where startup fails, such as a missing file or denied permission. It satisfies the requirement to trace system calls made by the service binary.
- ✗
lsof
Why it's wrong here
lsof lists open file descriptors and network sockets held by running processes; it never records the syscall sequence a binary executes. It is tempting because a service failing to start often stems from a locked port or missing file, which lsof reveals.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
System Troubleshooting and Performance Tuning
Key term
Kernel
The kernel is the core program of an operating system that manages hardware resources and provides essential services for all other software to run.
Key term
Service
A service is a software component or system that performs a specific function and is available to be used by other programs or users over a network.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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