LFCS Storage Management Practice Question
An administrator wants to see the disk usage of the /var directory in a human-readable format. Which command should be used?
⚠ Common exam trap
Watch out — candidates often confuse `du` (directory usage) with `df` (filesystem usage), leading candidates to pick `df -h /var` because it shows space in human-readable format, but it does not measure the directory's own consumption.
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
✓
du -sh /var
The `du -sh /var` command is correct because `du` (disk usage) estimates file and directory space usage, and the `-s` flag summarizes the total for `/var` while `-h` provides human-readable output (e.g., KiB, MiB, GiB). This directly shows the disk space consumed by the `/var` directory and its contents.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
du -sh /var
Why this is correct
Correct command.
- ✗
df -h /var
Why it's wrong here
Shows filesystem disk usage, not directory.
- ✗
fdisk -l /var
Why it's wrong here
Fdisk works on block devices, not directories.
- ✗
ls -lh /var
Why it's wrong here
Lists files, not directory total.
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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.