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Exam 201: Detailed Objectives

This is a required exam for LPI certification Level 2. It covers advanced skills for the Linux professional that are common across all distributions of Linux.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: These are the current 201 objectives, which are valid effective 2009-04-01.

Each objective is assigned a weighting value. The weights range roughly from 1 to 10 and indicate the relative importance of each objective. Objectives with higher weights will be covered in the exam with more questions.

Objectives: Exam 201

Topic 201: Linux Kernel

201.1 Kernel Components

Weight

2

Description

Candidates should be able to utilise kernel components that are necessary to specific hardware, hardware drivers, system resources and requirements. This objective includes implementing different types of kernel images, identifying stable and development kernels and patches, as well as using kernel modules.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Kernel 2.6.x documentation

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /usr/src/linux
  • /usr/src/linux/Documentation
  • zImage
  • bzImage

201.2 Compiling a kernel

Weight

2

Description

Candidates should be able to properly configure a kernel to include or disable specific features of the Linux kernel as necessary. This objective includes compiling and recompiling the Linux kernel as needed, updating and noting changes in a new kernel, creating an initrd image and installing new kernels.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • /usr/src/linux/
  • GRUB configuration files
  • Kernel 2.6.x make targets

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • mkinitrd
  • mkinitramfs
  • make
  • make targets (config, xconfig, menuconfig, oldconfig, mrproper, zImage, bzImage, modules, modules_install)

201.3 Patching a kernel

Weight

1

Description

Candidates should be able to properly patch a kernel to add support for new hardware. This objective also includes being able to properly remove kernel patches from already patched kernels.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Kernel Makefiles

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • patch
  • gzip
  • bzip2

201.4 Customise, build and install a custom kernel and kernel modules

Weight

2

Description

Candidates should be able to customise, build and install a 2.6 kernel for specific system requirements, by patching, compiling and editing configuration files as required. This objective includes being able to assess requirements for a kernel compile as well as build and configure kernel modules.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Customize the current kernel configuration.
  • Build a new kernel and appropriate kernel modules.
  • Install a new kernel and any modules.
  • Ensure that the boot manager can locate the new kernel and associated files.
  • /usr/src/linux/
  • Module configuration files

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • patch
  • make
  • module tools
  • /usr/src/linux/*
  • /usr/src/linux/.config
  • /lib/modules/kernel-version/*
  • /boot/*
  • make targets: all, config, menuconfig, xconfig, gconfig oldconfig, modules, install, modules_install, depmod, rpm-pkg, binrpm-pkg, deb-pkg

201.5 Manage/Query kernel and kernel modules at runtime

Weight

3

Description

Candidates should be able to manage and/or query a 2.6.x kernel and its loadable modules.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Use command-line utilities to get information about the currently running kernel and kernel modules.
  • Manually load and unload kernel modules.
  • Determine when modules can be unloaded.
  • Determine what parameters a module accepts.
  • Configure the system to load modules by names other than their file name.

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /lib/modules/kernel-version/modules.dep
  • module configuration files in /etc
  • /proc/sys/kernel/
  • depmod
  • insmod
  • lsmod
  • rmmod
  • modinfo
  • modprobe
  • uname

Topic 202: System Startup

202.1 Customising system startup and boot processes

Weight

4

Description

Candidates should be able to query and modify the behaviour of system services at various run levels. A thorough understanding of the init structure and boot process is required. This objective includes interacting with runlevels.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Linux Standard Base Specification (LSB)

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /etc/inittab
  • /etc/init.d/
  • /etc/rc.d/
  • chkconfig
  • update-rc.d

202.2 System recovery

Weight

4

Description

Candidates should be able to properly manipulate a Linux system during both the boot process and during recovery mode. This objective includes using both the init utility and init-related kernel options.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • inittab
  • GRUB
  • grub shell

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • init
  • mount
  • fsck
  • telinit

Topic 203: Filesystem and Devices

203.1 Operating the Linux filesystem

Weight

4

Description

Candidates should be able to properly configure and navigate the standard Linux filesystem. This objective includes configuring and mounting various filesystem types.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • The concept of the fstab configuration
  • Tools and utilities for handling SWAP partitions and files
  • Use of UUIDs

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /etc/fstab
  • /etc/mtab
  • /proc/mounts
  • mount and umount
  • sync
  • swapon
  • swapoff

203.2 Maintaining a Linux filesystem

Weight

3

Description

Candidates should be able to properly maintain a Linux filesystem using system utilities. This objective includes manipulating standard filesystems.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Tools and utilities to manipulate and ext2 and ext3
  • Tools and utilities to manipulate reiserfs V3
  • Tools and utilities to manipulate xfs

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • fsck (fsck.*)
  • badblocks
  • mkfs (mkfs.*)
  • dumpe2fs
  • debugfs, debugreiserfs
  • tune2fs, reiserfstune
  • mkswap
  • xfs_info, xfs_check and xfs_repair

203.3 Creating and configuring filesystem options

Weight

2

Description

Candidates should be able to configure automount filesystems using AutoFS?. This objective includes configuring automount for network and device filesystems. Also included is creating filesystems for devices such as CD-ROMs.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • autofs configuration files
  • UDF and ISO9660 tools and utilities
  • awareness of CD-ROM filesystems (UDF, ISO9660, HFS)
  • awareness of CD-ROM filesystem extensions (Joliet, Rock Ridge, El Torito)

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /etc/auto.master
  • /etc/auto.[dir]
  • mkisofs
  • dd
  • mke2fs

203.4 udev Device Management

Weight

1

Description

Candidates should understand device detection and management using udev. This objective includes troubleshooting udev rules.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • udev rules
  • Kernel interface

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • udevmonitor
  • /etc/udev

Topic 204: Advanced Storage Device Administration

204.1 Configuring RAID

Weight

2

Description

Candidates should be able to configure and implement software RAID. This objective includes using and configuring RAID 0, 1 and 5.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Software raid configuration files and utilities

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • mdadm.conf
  • mdadm
  • /proc/mdstat
  • fdisk

204.2 Adjusting Storage Device Access

Weight

1

Description

Candidates should be able to configure kernel options to support various drives. This objective includes software tools to view & modify hard disk settings.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Tools and utilities to configure DMA for IDE devices including ATAPI and SATA
  • Tools and utilities to manipulate or analyse system resources (e.g. interrupts)
  • Awareness of sdparm command and its uses

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • hdparm
  • sdparm
  • tune2fs
  • sysctl
  • /dev/hd* & /dev/sd*

204.3 Logical Volume Manager

Weight

3

Description

Candidates should be able to create and remove logical volumes, volume groups, and physical volumes. This objective includes snapshots and resizing logical volumes.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Tools in the LVM suite
  • Resizing, renaming, creating, and removing logical volumes, volume groups, and physical volumes
  • Creating and maintaining snapshots
  • Activating volume groups

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /sbin/pv*
  • /sbin/lv*
  • /sbin/vg*
  • mount
  • /dev/mapper/

Topic 205: Networking Configuration

205.1 Basic networking configuration

Weight

3

Description

Candidates should be able to configure a network device to be able to connect to a local, wired or wireless, and a wide-area network. This objective includes being able to communicate between various subnets within a single network.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Utilities to configure and manipulate ethernet network interfaces
  • Configuring wireless networks

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /sbin/route
  • /sbin/ifconfig
  • /sbin/ip
  • /usr/sbin/arp
  • /sbin/iwconfig
  • /sbin/iwlist

205.2 Advanced Network Configuration and Troubleshooting

Weight

4

Description

Candidates should be able to configure a network device to implement various network authentication schemes. This objective includes configuring a multi-homed network device, configuring a VPN client and resolving communication problems.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Utilities to manipulate routing tables
  • Utilities to configure and manipulate ethernet network interfaces
  • Utilities to analyse the status of the network devices
  • Utilities to monitor and analyse the TCP/IP traffic
  • OpenVPN

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /sbin/route
  • /sbin/ifconfig
  • /bin/netstat
  • /bin/ping
  • /usr/sbin/arp
  • /usr/sbin/tcpdump
  • /usr/sbin/lsof
  • /usr/bin/nc
  • /sbin/ip
  • /etc/openvpn/*
  • openvpn
  • nmap
  • wireshark

205.3 Troubleshooting network issues

Weight

5

Description

Candidates should be able to identify and correct common network setup issues, to include knowledge of locations for basic configuration files and commands.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Location and content of access restriction files
  • Utilities to configure and manipulate ethernet network interfaces
  • Utilities to manage routing tables
  • Utilities to list network states.
  • Utilities to gain information about the network configuration
  • Methods of information about the recognised and used hardware devices
  • System initialisation files and their contents (SysV init process)

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /sbin/ifconfig
  • /sbin/route
  • /bin/netstat
  • /etc/network || /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/
  • System log files such as /var/log/syslog & /var/log/messages
  • /bin/ping
  • /etc/resolv.conf
  • /etc/hosts
  • /etc/hosts.allow & /etc/hosts.deny
  • /etc/hostname | /etc/HOSTNAME
  • /bin/hostname
  • /usr/sbin/traceroute
  • /usr/bin/dig
  • /bin/dmesg
  • /usr/bin/host

205.4 Notify users on system-related issues

Weight

1

| Description | Candidates should be able to notify the users about current issues related to the system.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Automate communication with users through logon messages.
  • Inform active users of system maintenance

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /etc/issue
  • /etc/issue.net
  • /etc/motd
  • wall
  • /sbin/shutdown

Topic 206:System Maintenance

206.1 Make and install programs from source

Weight

4

Description

Candidates should be able to build and install an executable program from source. This objective includes being able to unpack a file of sources.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Unpack source code using common compression and archive utilities.
  • Understand basics of invoking make to compile programs.
  • Apply parameters to a configure script.
  • Know where sources are stored by default.

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /usr/src/
  • gunzip
  • gzip
  • bzip2
  • tar
  • configure
  • make
  • uname
  • install

206.2 Backup operations

Weight

3

Description

Candidates should be able to use system tools to back up important system data.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • Knowledge about directories that have to be include in backups
  • Awareness of network backup solutions such as Amanda, Bacula and BackupPC
  • Knowledge of the benefits and drawbacks of tapes, CDR, disk or other backup media
  • Perform partial and manual backups.
  • Verify the integrity of backup files.
  • Partially or fully restore backups.

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /bin/sh
  • cpio
  • dd
  • tar
  • /dev/st* and /dev/nst*
  • mt
  • rsync

Topic 207: Domain Name Server

207.1 Basic DNS server configuration

Weight

2

Description

Candidates should be able to configure BIND to function as a caching-only DNS server. This objective includes the ability to convert older BIND configuration files to newer format, managing a running server and configuring logging.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • BIND 9.x configuration files, terms and utilities
  • Defining the location of the BIND zone files in BIND configuration files
  • Reloading modified configuration and zone files

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /etc/named.conf
  • /var/named/*
  • /usr/sbin/rndc
  • kill

207.2 Create and maintain DNS zones

Weight

2

Description

Candidates should be able to create a zone file for a forward or reverse zone or root level server. This objective includes setting appropriate values for records, adding hosts in zones and adding zones to the DNS. A candidate should also be able to delegate zones to another DNS server.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • BIND 9 configuration files, terms and utilities
  • Utilities to request information from the DNS server
  • Layout, content and file location of the BIND zone files
  • Various methods to add a new host in the zone files, including reverse zones

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /var/named/*
  • zone file syntax
  • resource record formats
  • dig
  • nslookup
  • host

207.3 Securing a DNS server

Weight

2

Description

Candidates should be able to configure a DNS server to run as a non-root user and run in a chroot jail. This objective includes secure exchange of data between DNS servers.

Key Knowledge Areas

  • BIND 9 configuration files
  • Configuring BIND to run in a chroot jail
  • Split configuration of BIND using the forwarders statement

The following is a partial list of the used files, terms and utilities:

  • /etc/named.conf
  • /etc/passwd
  • DNSSEC
  • dnssec-keygen