mediumMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
XK0-006 Practice Question: An administrator runs 'systemctl list-units' and…
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit. UNIT LOAD ACTIVE SUB DESCRIPTION sshd.service loaded active running OpenSSH Daemon httpd.service loaded failed failed Apache HTTP Server
An administrator runs 'systemctl list-units' and sees that httpd.service is in a failed state. To quickly see the error message that caused the failure, which command should be used?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse `systemctl status` with `journalctl -u` or `systemctl show`, thinking they need a separate log-viewing command, but `systemctl status` already provides the most recent error output directly, making it the fastest diagnostic tool for a failed service.
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
✓
systemctl status httpd.service
The `systemctl status httpd.service` command displays the current state of the service, including the most recent log entries from the journal that show the error messages causing the failure. This is the quickest way to see the failure reason without filtering or additional options, as it directly outputs the relevant error lines from the service's unit.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
systemctl show httpd.service -p ExecMainStatus
Why it's wrong here
This shows the exit status of the main process, but not the error message or log output.
- ✗
journalctl -p err -u httpd.service
Why it's wrong here
This shows only error messages, but systemctl status provides the most relevant output for a quick diagnosis.
- ✓
systemctl status httpd.service
Why this is correct
systemctl status shows the unit status along with the last few log entries that led to the failure.
- ✗
systemd-analyze blame
Why it's wrong here
This shows service start times and does not help with a failed service.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Logical Volume Management (LVM)
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.
Key term
systemctl
systemctl is the command-line tool used to inspect, start, stop, enable, or disable services managed by the systemd init system in Linux.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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