This LFCS practice question tests your understanding of essential commands. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A cron job runs a script every hour but sometimes fails because the script cannot find commands like 'tar' and 'gzip'. The script works when run manually from a terminal. What is the best fix?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Use absolute paths for all commands in the script.
Option C is correct because cron jobs run in a minimal environment with a restricted PATH (often just /usr/bin:/bin). When the script uses commands like 'tar' and 'gzip' without absolute paths, the shell cannot locate them. Using absolute paths (e.g., /bin/tar, /bin/gzip) ensures the script always finds the commands regardless of the environment.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Run the cron job as root.
Why it's wrong here
Running as root does not solve the PATH issue; root's PATH may still be limited.
✗
Modify the script to source the user's .bashrc.
Why it's wrong here
Sourcing .bashrc may introduce unexpected variables and is not a robust solution.
✓
Use absolute paths for all commands in the script.
Why this is correct
Absolute paths ensure the script finds the commands regardless of the environment's PATH.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Add a PATH statement to the cron job definition.
Why it's wrong here
While setting PATH in the crontab can help if the script is called directly, it's better to handle PATH within the script.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates think adding a PATH to the cron job definition (Option D) is the best fix, but the LFCS exam emphasizes absolute paths as the more robust and portable solution for scripts run by cron.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Cron executes jobs with a sparse environment; the default PATH is typically set by the cron daemon to /usr/bin:/bin. Commands like 'tar' and 'gzip' may reside in /bin or /usr/bin, but if the script relies on a broader PATH (e.g., /usr/local/bin) or a user-specific PATH, it will fail. Using absolute paths eliminates this dependency entirely and is the most portable solution, especially when scripts are deployed across different systems or run from different cron contexts (e.g., system crontab vs. user crontab).
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A small business has 20 workstations on the 192.168.1.0/24 network and one public IP from its ISP. The router uses PAT (NAT overload) so all 20 devices share one public address using different source ports. NAT questions test whether you understand the four address terms and which direction each translation applies.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Essential Commands — This question tests Essential Commands — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use absolute paths for all commands in the script. — Option C is correct because cron jobs run in a minimal environment with a restricted PATH (often just /usr/bin:/bin). When the script uses commands like 'tar' and 'gzip' without absolute paths, the shell cannot locate them. Using absolute paths (e.g., /bin/tar, /bin/gzip) ensures the script always finds the commands regardless of the environment.
What should I do if I get this LFCS question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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This LFCS practice question is part of Courseiva's free Linux Foundation 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 LFCS exam.
Question Discussion
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