This LPIC-1 practice question tests your understanding of devices, filesystems and fhs. Compare every option against the stated constraints before choosing — the best answer satisfies all requirements, not just the most obvious one. 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 system administrator needs to locate the largest directories under /var to free up disk space. Which command is most appropriate?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "which command"
Why it matters: Tests specific CLI syntax. Recall the exact command and its required context — near-synonyms and partial matches are common distractors.
df -h /var
Why wrong: df shows filesystem-level usage, not per-directory.
find /var -size +100M
Why wrong: find with -size only lists files exceeding the size, not the cumulative size of directories.
ls -lS /var
Why wrong: ls -lS sorts files by size but does not include subdirectory contents.
du -sk /var/* | sort -rn
du reports disk usage per directory; sort -rn sorts numerically descending.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
du -sk /var/* | sort -rn
Option D is correct because `du -sk /var/* | sort -rn` calculates the disk usage in kilobytes for each top-level item under /var, then sorts them numerically in reverse order, showing the largest directories first. This directly addresses the need to locate the largest directories to free up space, as `du` reports actual disk usage (including subdirectories) rather than file sizes.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
df -h /var
Why it's wrong here
df shows filesystem-level usage, not per-directory.
find /var -size +100M
Why it's wrong here
find with -size only lists files exceeding the size, not the cumulative size of directories.
ls -lS /var
Why it's wrong here
ls -lS sorts files by size but does not include subdirectory contents.
du -sk /var/* | sort -rn
Why this is correct
du reports disk usage per directory; sort -rn sorts numerically descending.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "which command" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse `df` (filesystem-level usage) with `du` (directory-level usage), or mistakenly think `ls -lS` can show directory sizes, when in fact `ls` only shows the size of the directory entry itself (typically 4 KB), not its contents.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
df shows filesystem-level usage, not per-directory.
Detailed technical explanation
The `du` command (disk usage) traverses the directory tree and sums the sizes of all files, using the `st_blocks` field from the `stat` system call to account for actual disk blocks (typically 512-byte blocks, but `-k` forces 1 KB blocks). The `sort -rn` pipeline is critical because `du` output is unsorted; without sorting, the administrator would have to manually scan the list. In real-world scenarios, combining `du` with `sort` and `head` (e.g., `du -sk /var/* | sort -rn | head -10`) is a common pattern for quickly identifying space hogs.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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FAQ
Devices, Filesystems and FHS — This question tests Devices, Filesystems and FHS — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: du -sk /var/* | sort -rn — Option D is correct because `du -sk /var/* | sort -rn` calculates the disk usage in kilobytes for each top-level item under /var, then sorts them numerically in reverse order, showing the largest directories first. This directly addresses the need to locate the largest directories to free up space, as `du` reports actual disk usage (including subdirectories) rather than file sizes.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Yes — watch for: "which command". Tests specific CLI syntax. Recall the exact command and its required context — near-synonyms and partial matches are common distractors.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 25, 2026
This LPIC-1 practice question is part of Courseiva's free LPI 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 LPIC-1 exam.
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