EX200 Deploy, configure, and maintain systems Practice Question
A user reports that they cannot create files in their home directory. The administrator checks permissions and sees drwxr-xr-x. What is the likely cause?
⚠ Common exam trap
Red Hat often tests the misconception that group membership alone grants write access, but here the group lacks write permission (`r-x`), so even being in the group does not allow file creation; the trap is focusing on group membership rather than the actual permission bits.
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 user is not the owner of the directory
The permissions `drwxr-xr-x` mean the owner has read, write, and execute (rwx) access, while group and others have only read and execute (r-x). Since the user cannot create files (which requires write permission), the user must not be the owner of the directory. Only the owner (or root) can write to it, so the likely cause is that the user is not the owner.
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 directory has the sticky bit set
Why it's wrong here
The sticky bit, when applied to a directory, only affects the deletion or renaming of files inside it, restricting those operations to the file's owner, the directory's owner, or root. It imposes no restriction whatsoever on creating new files; in fact, a world-writable directory with the sticky bit still permits any user to create files. The reported symptom of being unable to create files would remain exactly the same even if the sticky bit were absent, so its presence or absence is irrelevant to this failure.
- ✗
The filesystem is read-only
Why it's wrong here
A read-only filesystem is a global mount condition that produces the 'Read-only file system' error (EROFS) on every write attempt, regardless of which user attempts it. Since only this single user cannot create files while other users presumably can, the filesystem is clearly mounted with write access. Additionally, a read-only mount would also prevent deletion and modification of existing files, not merely creation, which is a much broader symptom than the one described.
- ✓
The user is not the owner of the directory
Why this is correct
If the user is not the owner of their home directory, the owner permission set (typically rwx) does not apply to them. Depending on whether they belong to the directory's group, they fall under the group or other permissions, which in this case are r-x, lacking write permission. Write access to the directory is a prerequisite for creating a new entry, so without 'w' in the effective permission bits, the create operation fails with 'Permission denied'. The ownership mismatch is therefore the direct cause.
- ✗
The user is not in the group
Why it's wrong here
Even if the user were a member of the group that owns the directory, the group permissions are shown as r-x, which does not include write permission. Therefore, group membership alone would not grant the ability to create files, making the user's group membership irrelevant to the denial. The actual problem is that the directory's owner is someone else; if the user were the owner, the rwx owner permissions would apply and writing would succeed.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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