This LPIC-2 practice question tests your understanding of advanced networking configuration. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A system administrator recently configured two NICs in a bonding interface (bond0) using mode 1 (active-backup). Although both links appear up, traffic never fails over when the primary link goes down. Which command should the administrator use to diagnose the bonding status and determine the root cause?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "primary"
Why it matters: Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
Clue: "which command"
Why it matters: Tests specific CLI syntax. Recall the exact command and its required context — near-synonyms and partial matches are common distractors.
Clue: "never"
Why it matters: Absolute qualifier. True only if the statement has zero exceptions — be cautious of options that seem obvious but break down in edge cases.
netstat -i
Why wrong: Shows interface statistics but no bonding details.
cat /proc/net/bonding/bond0
Shows bonding driver status: active slave, link failures, MII status.
ifconfig bond0
Why wrong: Only shows basic interface statistics, not bonding-specific info.
ethtool bond0
Why wrong: Shows link status but does not report bond failover state.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
cat /proc/net/bonding/bond0
Option B is correct because /proc/net/bonding/bond0 is the kernel-level interface that exposes the current bonding driver state, including active slave, link status, and failover counters. In mode 1 (active-backup), this file shows whether the primary interface is actually marked as 'up' by the bonding driver and whether the backup interface is ready to take over. The administrator can check for issues such as the primary link being stuck in a 'down' state due to misconfigured MII monitoring or missing 'miimon' parameter.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
netstat -i
Why it's wrong here
Shows interface statistics but no bonding details.
cat /proc/net/bonding/bond0
Why this is correct
Shows bonding driver status: active slave, link failures, MII status.
Clue confirmation
The clue words "primary", "which command", "never" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
ifconfig bond0
Why it's wrong here
Only shows basic interface statistics, not bonding-specific info.
ethtool bond0
Why it's wrong here
Shows link status but does not report bond failover state.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates assume ifconfig or ethtool showing 'UP' means the bonding driver will failover, but bonding relies on its own link monitoring (miimon or arp_interval) which must be explicitly configured and verified via /proc/net/bonding/bond0.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
Shows interface statistics but no bonding details.
Detailed technical explanation
The bonding driver uses the MII (Media Independent Interface) monitoring protocol, configured via the 'miimon' parameter, to periodically check link status of each slave. If 'miimon' is not set (default 0), the driver never polls link state, so failover never triggers even if the physical link drops. Real-world scenarios often involve misconfigured 'arp_interval' or 'arp_ip_target' instead of MII monitoring, which can also prevent failover if ARP targets are unreachable.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A practitioner preparing for the LPIC-2 exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
What to study next
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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FAQ
Advanced Networking Configuration — This question tests Advanced Networking Configuration — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: cat /proc/net/bonding/bond0 — Option B is correct because /proc/net/bonding/bond0 is the kernel-level interface that exposes the current bonding driver state, including active slave, link status, and failover counters. In mode 1 (active-backup), this file shows whether the primary interface is actually marked as 'up' by the bonding driver and whether the backup interface is ready to take over. The administrator can check for issues such as the primary link being stuck in a 'down' state due to misconfigured MII monitoring or missing 'miimon' parameter.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Yes — watch for: "primary", "which command", "never". Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 25, 2026
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.
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