LPIC-1 GNU and Unix Commands Practice Question
Exhibit
USER PID %CPU %MEM VSZ RSS TTY STAT START TIME COMMAND root 1 0.0 0.1 22564 4500 ? Ss Jan01 0:00 /sbin/init user1 1234 0.0 0.0 0 0 ? Z Jan01 0:00 [defunct] user1 1235 0.0 0.1 12345 2000 ? S Jan01 0:00 bash
Refer to the exhibit. The process with PID 1234 is in state 'Z'. What is the most likely cause and appropriate action?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers confuse zombie ('Z') with stopped ('T') or sleeping ('S') states, leading them to choose a recovery action like sending SIGCONT or simply waiting, rather than recognizing that a zombie requires the parent to reap it or be terminated.
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 process is a zombie; the parent process must be killed or wait for it to be reaped.
In Linux process states, 'Z' indicates a zombie process, which is a child process that has terminated but whose exit status has not yet been read by its parent process via the wait() system call. The correct action is to either kill the parent process (so that the zombie is reaped by init) or ensure the parent calls wait() to reap the child. Option D correctly identifies this.
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 process is stopped; use kill -CONT to continue.
Why it's wrong here
State 'Z' means the process is dead, not stopped; stopped processes show 'T' and resume with kill -CONT. The zombie's parent must reap it with wait(), or be terminated so init adopts and reaps the child. Confusing 'Z' with 'T' is the trap.
- ✗
The process is a daemon; it should be restarted.
Why it's wrong here
A zombie has already terminated, so restarting is meaningless; daemons normally run in 'S' state and are managed through systemd or init scripts. This tempts because daemons are long-running background processes, but the correct fix is reaping the dead child via its parent.
- ✗
The process is sleeping; wait for it to become ready.
Why it's wrong here
State 'Z' is a zombie: the process has terminated but its parent has not reaped the exit status via wait(). Sleeping processes show 'S' or 'D'. Waiting achieves nothing; the parent must call wait(), or be killed so init adopts and reaps the child.
- ✓
The process is a zombie; the parent process must be killed or wait for it to be reaped.
Why this is correct
A 'Z' state means the process has terminated but its exit status remains in the process table because the parent has not called wait(). Killing the parent, or letting it reap the child, removes the zombie entry.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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