LPIC-1 System Architecture Practice Question
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit. $ systemctl status sshd.service ● sshd.service - OpenSSH Daemon Loaded: loaded (/usr/lib/systemd/system/sshd.service; disabled; vendor preset: disabled) Active: inactive (dead)
The administrator wants the sshd service to start automatically at boot. Which command should be used?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse `systemctl start` (immediate, one-time activation) with `systemctl enable` (persistent boot-time activation), leading candidates to choose option A when the question asks for automatic startup at boot.
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
✓
systemctl enable sshd.service
The `systemctl enable sshd.service` command creates the necessary symlinks in the systemd unit configuration directories (e.g., `/etc/systemd/system/multi-user.target.wants/`) so that the sshd service is automatically started when the system boots into its default target. This is the correct way to enable a service to start at boot in a systemd-based Linux distribution.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
systemctl start sshd.service
Why it's wrong here
Starts the service immediately but does not enable automatic start on boot.
- ✗
systemctl daemon-reload
Why it's wrong here
Reloads systemd configuration but does not enable services.
- ✗
systemctl set-default multi-user.target
Why it's wrong here
Changes the default system target, not related to sshd.
- ✓
systemctl enable sshd.service
Why this is correct
Enables the service to start automatically at boot.
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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.