Linux · Logging interview questions

39 real Linux · Logging questions from the System Administration bank, as asked in Indian campus drives and tech interviews. Every question has a verified answer and an AI-tutor explanation on placd — free to start.

3. Which statement is correct?

Junior
  1. A.journalctl -u sshd -f — show log entries of priority error and above
  2. B.journalctl -u sshd -f — write a custom message to the system log
  3. C.journalctl -u sshd -f — follow live logs for the sshd unit
  4. D.journalctl -u sshd -f — follow the system log live
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6. Which statement is correct?

Junior
  1. A.journalctl -b — print kernel ring-buffer messages
  2. B.journalctl -b — follow live logs for the sshd unit
  3. C.journalctl -b — show log entries from the last hour
  4. D.journalctl -b — show logs since the last boot
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9. Which statement is correct?

Mid
  1. A.journalctl -p err — show log entries of priority error and above
  2. B.journalctl -p err — show log entries from the last hour
  3. C.journalctl -p err — follow live logs for the sshd unit
  4. D.journalctl -p err — write a custom message to the system log
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12. Which statement is correct?

Junior
  1. A.dmesg — write a custom message to the system log
  2. B.dmesg — show log entries from the last hour
  3. C.dmesg — print kernel ring-buffer messages
  4. D.dmesg — prune the journal to a maximum size
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13. What is logrotate?

Mid
  1. A.a log category like auth, cron, mail or kern
  2. B.the general system message log (RHEL)
  3. C.the tool that rotates, compresses and prunes log files
  4. D.the log file recording authentication and sudo events (RHEL)
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15. Which statement is correct?

Mid
  1. A.logrotate — the tool that rotates, compresses and prunes log files
  2. B.logrotate — a log category like auth, cron, mail or kern
  3. C.logrotate — the log file recording authentication and sudo events (RHEL)
  4. D.logrotate — the general system message log (RHEL)
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16. What is /var/log/secure?

Junior
  1. A.the general system message log (RHEL)
  2. B.keeping logs across reboots by creating /var/log/journal
  3. C.a log category like auth, cron, mail or kern
  4. D.the log file recording authentication and sudo events (RHEL)
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18. Which statement is correct?

Junior
  1. A./var/log/secure — the log file recording authentication and sudo events (RHEL)
  2. B./var/log/secure — keeping logs across reboots by creating /var/log/journal
  3. C./var/log/secure — the general system message log (RHEL)
  4. D./var/log/secure — the tool that rotates, compresses and prunes log files
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21. Which statement is correct?

Junior
  1. A.tail -f /var/log/messages — follow the system log live
  2. B.tail -f /var/log/messages — write a custom message to the system log
  3. C.tail -f /var/log/messages — show log entries of priority error and above
  4. D.tail -f /var/log/messages — print kernel ring-buffer messages
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24. Which statement is correct?

Junior
  1. A.logger 'test' — write a custom message to the system log
  2. B.logger 'test' — prune the journal to a maximum size
  3. C.logger 'test' — follow the system log live
  4. D.logger 'test' — show logs since the last boot
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27. Which statement is correct?

Mid
  1. A.journalctl --vacuum-size=500M — print kernel ring-buffer messages
  2. B.journalctl --vacuum-size=500M — follow the system log live
  3. C.journalctl --vacuum-size=500M — prune the journal to a maximum size
  4. D.journalctl --vacuum-size=500M — show log entries from the last hour
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30. Which statement is correct?

Mid
  1. A.journalctl --since '1 hour ago' — follow the system log live
  2. B.journalctl --since '1 hour ago' — show log entries from the last hour
  3. C.journalctl --since '1 hour ago' — follow live logs for the sshd unit
  4. D.journalctl --since '1 hour ago' — print kernel ring-buffer messages
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