LPIC-1 Essential System Services and Networking Practice Question
An administrator wants systemd-journald logs to persist across reboots. What must be created?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers assume editing the configuration file /etc/journald.conf is sufficient, but without the actual directory /var/log/journal existing, systemd-journald will not switch to persistent storage unless Storage=persistent is explicitly set and the directory is created.
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
✓
The directory /var/log/journal
By default, systemd-journald stores logs in a volatile tmpfs at /run/log/journal, which is cleared on reboot. To make logs persistent, the directory /var/log/journal must be created. When systemd-journald detects this directory exists, it automatically switches to persistent storage, writing logs to /var/log/journal and preserving them across reboots.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The directory /run/log/journal
Why it's wrong here
/run is a tmpfs cleared at every boot, so journal files written there vanish on restart. It is tempting because journald does use /run/log/journal for volatile storage, and that path would be correct when only current-boot logs are wanted, not persistence.
- ✗
The file /etc/journald.conf
Why it's wrong here
journald.conf configures storage mode, retention, and forwarding, but the file alone does not create persistent storage; the directory /var/log/journal must exist. It is tempting because Storage=persistent is set there, and editing that file would be correct once the journal directory is already present.
- ✓
The directory /var/log/journal
Why this is correct
Journald writes to /run/log/journal (tmpfs) by default, so logs vanish on reboot. Creating /var/log/journal on disk switches storage to persistent mode, satisfying the requirement that entries survive restarts. The directory must exist before journald starts using it.
- ✗
The directory /var/spool/journal
Why it's wrong here
journald never reads /var/spool/journal; its persistent storage location is /var/log/journal, so creating this directory changes nothing. It is tempting because /var/spool holds other daemons' queued data, and a spool path would be correct for a service that queues jobs rather than storing journals.
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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.