LPIC-2 File Sharing and Samba Practice Question
A company uses Samba to share files from a Linux server to Windows clients. After upgrading Samba from version 4.10 to 4.15, some users report they cannot access shares and receive 'Access denied' errors. The smb.conf has been verified and seems correct. What is the most likely cause?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often assume the upgrade preserved all default settings, but Samba silently changes critical security defaults between major versions, and the 'Access denied' error is easily misattributed to firewall or service issues.
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 'ntlm auth' parameter is set to 'no' in the new version.
Starting with Samba 4.11, the default value of the 'ntlm auth' parameter changed from 'yes' to 'no'. This disables NTLMv1 authentication, which many legacy Windows clients or configurations still rely on. Even though the smb.conf appears correct, the new default silently blocks NTLMv1, causing 'Access denied' errors after the upgrade.
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 firewall is blocking SMB ports.
Why it's wrong here
Firewall blocks would cause connection timeouts, not access denied.
- ✗
The users' passwords are too short.
Why it's wrong here
Password length is not a typical cause of access denied after upgrade.
- ✓
The 'ntlm auth' parameter is set to 'no' in the new version.
Why this is correct
Newer Samba versions default ntlm auth to no, breaking older clients.
- ✗
The Samba service is not running after upgrade.
Why it's wrong here
Service not running would cause 'network path not found', not access denied.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This LPIC-2 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-2 exam.