easyMultiple Choice
XK0-006 Practice Question: Based on the exhibit, how often does the…
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit. ``` $ crontab -l */5 * * * * /usr/local/bin/healthcheck.sh ```
Based on the exhibit, how often does the healthcheck.sh script run?
⚠ Common exam trap
CompTIA often tests the distinction between cron fields: candidates confuse the minute field with the hour field, thinking `*/5` means every 5 hours instead of every 5 minutes, especially when the context is a health check that might logically run less frequently.
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
✓
Every 5 minutes
The cron expression `*/5 * * * *` in the crontab file means the script runs every 5 minutes. The `*/5` in the minute field triggers execution every 5 minutes, while the asterisks in the hour, day, month, and weekday fields mean every hour, every day, every month, and every day of the week, respectively.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Every 5 days
Why it's wrong here
A value of 5 in the day-of-month field would mean the fifth day of each month, not every five days. The exhibit places 5 in the hour position, which triggers the script once per hour at that hour, so daily or five-day intervals are not represented.
- ✓
Every 5 minutes
Why this is correct
The crontab entry `*/5 * * * *` in the exhibit triggers healthcheck.sh at five-minute intervals, satisfying the stem's scheduling constraint. The `*/5` step value in the minute field means cron executes the job at minutes 0, 5, 10, and so on throughout every hour, giving twelve runs hourly.
- ✗
Every 5 hours
Why it's wrong here
The schedule expression in the exhibit specifies a five-hour interval, but the question asks how often the script runs, and the correct interpretation depends on the cron or interval syntax shown; a plain 'every 5 hours' reading ignores whether the field denotes hours or minutes. Five hours is tempting because it matches the numeric value, yet the unit field determines the actual cadence.
- ✗
Every 5 seconds
Why it's wrong here
Five seconds is not expressible in a standard five-field cron expression, whose smallest granularity is one minute; the seconds field exists only in extended six-field variants. The value 5 in the hour position instead denotes the fifth hour, making hourly execution the actual cadence.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
File Transfer and Remote Access
Key term
cron
Cron is a time-based job scheduler in Unix-like operating systems that automatically runs commands or scripts at specified dates and times.
Key term
crontab
Crontab is a time-based job scheduler in Unix-like operating systems that allows users to automate the execution of scripts or commands at specified intervals.
About these practice questions
This XK0-006 question is part of Courseiva's 781-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This XK0-006 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the XK0-006 exam.