This EX200 practice question tests your understanding of essential tools. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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.
Which TWO of the following are valid examples of using redirection and pipes in bash to append the output of a command to a file while also displaying it on the terminal? (Choose exactly two.)
command 2>&1 | tee file
Why wrong: Redirects stderr to stdout, then pipes to tee, but tee truncates file.
command | tee -a file
tee -a appends to file and writes to stdout.
command > file
Why wrong: Truncates file, does not append.
command |& tee -a file
|& pipes both stdout and stderr, tee -a appends to file.
command >> file
Why wrong: Only appends output to file, does not display on terminal.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
command | tee -a file
Option B is correct because `tee -a file` reads from stdin and writes both to stdout and appends to the named file. The pipe `|` sends the stdout of `command` to `tee`, so the output is displayed on the terminal and appended to `file`. The `-a` flag ensures append mode, not overwrite.
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.
command 2>&1 | tee file
Why it's wrong here
Redirects stderr to stdout, then pipes to tee, but tee truncates file.
command | tee -a file
Why this is correct
tee -a appends to file and writes to stdout.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
command > file
Why it's wrong here
Truncates file, does not append.
command |& tee -a file
Why this is correct
|& pipes both stdout and stderr, tee -a appends to file.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
command >> file
Why it's wrong here
Only appends output to file, does not display on terminal.
Common exam traps
Red Hat often tests the distinction between `|` (stdout only) and `|&` (stdout and stderr), and the requirement for `-a` to append rather than overwrite, causing candidates to miss that option A lacks `-a` and option D correctly uses `|&` with `-a`.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
Only appends output to file, does not display on terminal.
Detailed technical explanation
The `tee` command uses buffered I/O and writes to both stdout and the file(s) specified; with `-a`, it opens the file in append mode (O_APPEND) rather than truncating. The `|&` operator in bash (option D) is a shorthand that redirects both stdout and stderr through the pipe, equivalent to `2>&1 |`, so `command |& tee -a file` correctly appends both streams to the file while displaying them on the terminal. This is useful for logging all output of a script without losing error messages.
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 EX200 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
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FAQ
Essential Tools — This question tests Essential Tools — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: command | tee -a file — Option B is correct because `tee -a file` reads from stdin and writes both to stdout and appends to the named file. The pipe `|` sends the stdout of `command` to `tee`, so the output is displayed on the terminal and appended to `file`. The `-a` flag ensures append mode, not overwrite.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 30, 2026
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