LPIC-1 Administrative Tasks Practice Question
A user reports that a file cannot be saved due to 'No space left on device'. Which command should the administrator use to verify disk usage?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse 'df -h' (disk free, human-readable) with 'du -sh' (disk usage summary) or 'df -i' (inode usage), not recognizing that the error message directly points to block space exhaustion, which 'df -h' is designed to check.
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
✓
df -h
The 'df -h' command displays disk space usage in human-readable format (e.g., GB, MB) for all mounted filesystems. When a user encounters 'No space left on device', the most direct verification is to check available disk space with 'df -h', which shows used and available blocks. Option D is correct because it specifically addresses the space shortage indicated by the error.
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 /
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: shows disk usage of root directory, not overall partition space.
- ✗
fdisk -l
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: shows partition tables.
- ✗
df -i
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: shows inode usage, not space.
- ✓
df -h
Why this is correct
Correct: shows disk space usage.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.