LPIC-1 Administrative Tasks Practice Question
To enable disk quotas for user quotas on a filesystem, which line should be added to /etc/fstab's mount options?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse 'usrquota' with the generic term 'quota' or the incorrect 'userquota', assuming any word containing 'quota' will work, but the Linux kernel strictly requires the exact 'usrquota' string for user quotas.
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
✓
usrquota
The 'usrquota' mount option is the standard Linux kernel parameter used to enable user disk quotas on a filesystem. When added to the fourth field of an /etc/fstab entry, it instructs the kernel to track per-user disk usage, allowing the quota system (via quotacheck, edquota, etc.) to enforce limits.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
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grpquota
Why it's wrong here
grpquota enables group quotas only, leaving per-user limits unenforced on that filesystem. It is tempting because it is the paired quota keyword and appears alongside usrquota in documentation, and it would be the correct choice where group-level consumption, not individual users, must be capped.
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userquota
Why it's wrong here
The correct mount option is usrquota; userquota is not a recognised ext4 mount flag, so the mount fails or quotas stay disabled. It is tempting because the name mirrors the userquota naming used by other quota tools, but on Linux filesystems the per-user option is spelled usrquota.
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quota
Why it's wrong here
The quota option enables both user and group quotas, so it does not isolate user quotas as the stem requires. It is tempting because quota is the generic keyword administrators recall, and it would be correct where both user and group limits are wanted on the filesystem.
- ✓
usrquota
Why this is correct
usrquota in the mount options column activates per-user quota accounting and enforcement on that filesystem when it is mounted. grpquota covers groups instead, so usrquota is the entry needed, after which quotacheck initialises the quota files.
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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.