The correct answer is to modify the database.service unit file to add `After=var-lib-database.mount` and `Requires=var-lib-database.mount`. This works because systemd’s dependency system uses mount units (derived from mount points like `/var/lib/database`) to order and require filesystem availability; by explicitly declaring both `After` and `Requires` on the mount unit, you force systemd to start the mount before the database service and to treat a mount failure as a hard dependency failure, preventing the service from running without the filesystem. On the LPIC-1 exam, this tests your understanding of systemd unit dependencies and mount unit naming conventions—a common trap is confusing `Wants` (soft dependency) with `Requires` (hard dependency), or forgetting that `After` alone does not enforce a startup requirement. Remember the mnemonic: “Requires for life, After for timing”—use both to ensure the mount is not only started first but also kept alive for the service.
LPIC-1 Administrative Tasks Practice Question
This LPIC-1 practice question tests your understanding of administrative tasks. 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 medium-sized company runs a web application on a Linux server. The server uses systemd and has the following configuration: the web application service (webapp.service) is configured to start after network.target and requires a database service (database.service) to be running. The database service has a Restart=on-failure directive. Recently, the server experienced a power outage. Upon reboot, the system administrator notices that the web application fails to start because the database service is in a failed state. The administrator checks the status of database.service and sees 'inactive (dead)' with no recent attempts to restart. The journal shows that the database service failed to start because a required filesystem (mounted at /var/lib/database) was not mounted when the database service tried to start. The filesystem is listed in /etc/fstab with the nofail option. The administrator wants to ensure that in future reboots, the database service starts successfully and the web application comes up without manual intervention. Which of the following is the best course of action?
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
✓
Modify the database.service unit file to add 'After=var-lib-database.mount' and 'Requires=var-lib-database.mount'
Option C is correct because the database service failed due to a missing mount at /var/lib/database. By adding 'After=var-lib-database.mount' and 'Requires=var-lib-database.mount' to the database.service unit, systemd will ensure the mount unit is started before the database service and that the database service is stopped if the mount fails. This directly addresses the root cause—the filesystem not being ready—without altering the restart behavior or the fstab nofail option, which is appropriate for allowing the system to boot even if the mount fails.
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.
✗
Change the Restart directive in database.service to 'always'
Why it's wrong here
Even with Restart=always, the service will fail repeatedly if the filesystem is not mounted.
✗
Remove the nofail option from /etc/fstab for /var/lib/database
Why it's wrong here
Removing nofail may cause the system to fail to boot if the filesystem is missing; not a robust solution.
✓
Modify the database.service unit file to add 'After=var-lib-database.mount' and 'Requires=var-lib-database.mount'
Why this is correct
This ensures the database service waits for the mount unit to be active before starting.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Modify the webapp.service unit file to add 'After=database.service' and 'Requires=database.service'
Why it's wrong here
Webapp already requires database; the issue is database failing, not ordering.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often focus on restart policies (Option A) or fstab options (Option B) without realizing that systemd's dependency system must be used to enforce ordering between services and mount units, especially when nofail is present.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Systemd automatically generates mount units from /etc/fstab entries, naming them after the mount point path with hyphens (e.g., var-lib-database.mount). By explicitly adding 'After' and 'Requires' on this mount unit, the database service will wait for the mount to complete before starting, and if the mount fails, the database service will be placed in a failed state rather than attempting to start without the filesystem. This is a common pattern for services that depend on specific filesystems, especially when the fstab entry uses nofail, which tells systemd to not treat a missing mount as a boot failure but still allows other units to depend on it via explicit ordering.
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 practitioner preparing for the LPIC-1 exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
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.
Administrative Tasks — This question tests Administrative Tasks — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Modify the database.service unit file to add 'After=var-lib-database.mount' and 'Requires=var-lib-database.mount' — Option C is correct because the database service failed due to a missing mount at /var/lib/database. By adding 'After=var-lib-database.mount' and 'Requires=var-lib-database.mount' to the database.service unit, systemd will ensure the mount unit is started before the database service and that the database service is stopped if the mount fails. This directly addresses the root cause—the filesystem not being ready—without altering the restart behavior or the fstab nofail option, which is appropriate for allowing the system to boot even if the mount fails.
What should I do if I get this LPIC-1 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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Question Discussion
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