LFCS Storage Management Practice Question
A system administrator is tasked with setting up a new 2TB disk for a database server. The database requires high read/write performance and redundancy. The server has a hardware RAID controller, but the administrator wants to use Linux software RAID for flexibility. Which of the following RAID levels should the administrator choose to maximize performance while providing fault tolerance, assuming the disk will be part of a larger array in the future?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently choose RAID 5 or RAID 6 thinking they offer a good balance of performance and redundancy, but they overlook the significant write penalty and the fact that RAID 10 actually provides superior performance for write-intensive database workloads.
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
✓
RAID 10
RAID 10 (striping of mirrors) provides both high read/write performance and fault tolerance by combining the speed of RAID 0 striping with the redundancy of RAID 1 mirroring. Since the administrator plans to add more disks to the array in the future, RAID 10 scales well with additional pairs, maintaining performance and redundancy without the parity calculation overhead of RAID 5 or RAID 6.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
RAID 5
Why it's wrong here
RAID 5 has write performance penalty due to parity calculation.
- ✗
RAID 0
Why it's wrong here
RAID 0 offers no fault tolerance, data loss if one disk fails.
- ✗
RAID 6
Why it's wrong here
RAID 6 has even greater write penalty than RAID 5.
- ✓
RAID 10
Why this is correct
RAID 10 combines mirroring and striping for performance and redundancy.
Quick reference
RAID Level Comparison
| RAID Level | Min Disks | Fault Tolerance | Read | Write | Usable Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAID 0 | 2 | None | Excellent | Excellent | 100% |
| RAID 1 | 2 | 1 disk | Good | Moderate | 50% |
| RAID 5 | 3 | 1 disk | Good | Moderate | 67–94% |
| RAID 6 | 4 | 2 disks | Good | Lower | 50–88% |
| RAID 10 | 4 | 1 disk per mirror | Excellent | Good | 50% |
RAID is not a backup strategy — it protects against disk failure but not against accidental deletion, ransomware, or site-level events.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
One of 507 original LFCS practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.