Free 702-100 Practice Test Questions and Answers (2026)

The pgrep command is used to find or signal processes based on name and other attributes. The -u option specifically filters processes based on the effective user ID (UID) or username. When pgrep -u bob is executed, the system searches the process table and returns a list of process IDs (PIDs) for all currently running processes owned by the user 'bob'. This directly and efficiently answers the question's requirement.

A. who -1 bob is incorrect. The who command lists logged-in users, not their processes, and -1 is not a standard option for this command.
C. ps -o -a bob is syntactically incorrect. While ps can list processes by user (e.g., ps -u bob), the provided combination of options is invalid.
D. top bob is incorrect. The top command is an interactive process viewer and does not accept a username as a command-line argument to filter its initial display.
E. last -p bob is incorrect. The last command is used to show a history of user logins and logouts, not to display current running processes.

1. procps-ng Official Documentation (man page for pgrep): The pgrep manual page explicitly defines the -u option. It states, "-u, --user euid-list Only match processes whose effective user ID is listed. Either the numerical user ID or the user name may be specified." This confirms pgrep -u bob as the correct usage. (Source: pgrep(1) Linux manual page).

2. The Linux Programming Interface, Michael Kerrisk: In Chapter 35, "Process Creation," the pgrep utility is described as a tool for looking up processes based on various criteria, including the owner's username via the -u flag. (Source: Kerrisk, M. (2010). The Linux Programming Interface. No Starch Press. Section 35.6, "Finding a Process," p. 759).

3. University of Chicago, CMSC 23300/33300 Courseware: Lab materials on Linux basics demonstrate the use of ps to find user processes with the syntax ps -u . This highlights that the syntax provided in option C, ps -o -a bob, is incorrect for the intended purpose. (Source: University of Chicago, Department of Computer Science, CMSC 23300/33300, Lab 1: Introduction to Linux).

In extended regular expressions (ERE), the question mark (?) is a quantifier that modifies the preceding element (a character, character class, or group). It specifies that the element is optional, meaning it can be matched either zero times or exactly one time. For example, the regular expression colou?r would match both "color" (zero 'u's) and "colour" (one 'u').

A. The {2,} quantifier is used to match an expression two or more times.
B. The absence of a special quantifier after an expression, or {1}, matches it exactly one time.
C. The asterisk () quantifier is used to match an expression any number of times (zero or more).
E. The plus sign (+) quantifier is used to match an expression one or more times.

1. The Open Group Base Specifications Issue 7, 2018 edition (IEEE Std 1003.1-2018), Chapter 9: Regular Expressions, Section 9.4: Extended Regular Expressions. The standard defines the ? as: "The ? shall match zero or one occurrence of the preceding ERE."

2. GNU grep Manual, Section 3.2: Regular Expression Syntax. The documentation states: "The ? metacharacter means the preceding item is optional and will be matched at most once."

3. MIT OpenCourseWare, 6.0001 Introduction to Computer Science and Programming in Python, Fall 2016, Lecture 10: Regular Expressions. The lecture notes specify that ? matches "zero or one of the preceding group".

The df (disk free) command is used to report file system disk space usage. When executed without any file or directory arguments, it displays information for all currently mounted file systems. The -h option formats the output in a "human-readable" format (e.g., using KB, MB, GB), making it easier to interpret. This command directly queries the kernel for the list of active mounts and their usage statistics, providing an accurate, real-time view of mounted filesystems.

A. cat /etc/fstab: This command displays the static configuration file for filesystems, not the list of currently mounted ones.
C. du -s: This command summarizes the disk usage of a specific directory or file, not the status of all mounted filesystems.
D. mount -a: This is an action command that attempts to mount all filesystems listed in /etc/fstab, not display what is already mounted.
E. rpcinfo: This utility is used to query RPC (Remote Procedure Call) services, often related to NFS, not to list all mounted filesystems.

1. GNU Coreutils Manual: The official documentation for df states, "If no file name is given, the space available on all currently mounted file systems is shown."

Source: GNU Coreutils, df invocation. Section 15.1.

Link: https://www.gnu.org/software/coreutils/manual/htmlnode/df-invocation.html

2. Linux Programmer's Manual (man pages): The fstab(5) man page describes /etc/fstab as a file containing "descriptive information about the various file systems" that the system can mount, confirming it is a configuration file.

Source: fstab(5) - Linux Programmer's Manual.

Link: https://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man5/fstab.5.html

3. Linux Programmer's Manual (man pages): The mount(8) man page specifies that the -a option will "Mount all filesystems... mentioned in fstab," identifying it as an action, not a display command.

Source: mount(8) - Linux Programmer's Manual.

Link: https://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man8/mount.8.html

4. Stanford University CS107 Courseware: Course materials for Computer Organization & Systems frequently introduce fundamental Unix/Linux commands. The df command is presented as the standard tool for checking disk space and viewing mounted partitions.

Source: Stanford University, CS107 - Programming Paradigms, Unix Guide.

Link: https://cs107.stanford.edu/resources/unix-guide.html (See section on "Disk Usage").

The crontab -e command is the standard method for editing the current user's crontab file. This option invokes the text editor defined by the VISUAL or EDITOR environment variables, allowing the user to add, modify, or remove scheduled jobs. Upon saving the changes and exiting the editor, the crontab command automatically installs the new file for the cron daemon to use. This is the designated and correct procedure for managing a user's cron jobs interactively.

A. -w: This is not a valid option for the standard crontab utility.
B. -i: This option provides an interactive prompt for confirmation before removing a crontab when used with the -r option. It does not open an editor.
C. -vi: This is not a valid crontab option. The editor program (like vi) is determined by environment variables, not a command-line switch.
D. -rw: This is not a valid option for the crontab command and resembles file permission notation (read-write). ---

1. Official Vendor Documentation (man page): The crontab(1) manual page from the Linux man-pages project explicitly defines the -e option.

Source: crontab(1) Linux manual page.

Reference: In the "OPTIONS" section, it states: -e (edit) This option is used to edit the current crontab using the editor specified by the VISUAL or EDITOR environment variables.

2. Academic Standards Body (POSIX): The IEEE and The Open Group Base Specifications for crontab define the standard behavior for compliant systems.

Source: IEEE Std 1003.1-2017, Shell and Utilities, crontab.

Reference: In the "OPTIONS" section, it specifies: The crontab utility shall conform to the Base Definitions volume of POSIX.1-2017... The following options shall be supported: -e Edit a copy of the user's crontab file...

3. University Courseware: Reputable university courses on systems programming and administration cover cron as a fundamental tool.

Source: MIT, "The Missing Semester of Your CS Education", Lecture 2: Shell Tools and Scripting.

Reference: In the lecture notes under the "cron" section, the material demonstrates job scheduling and explicitly states: You can edit it by running crontab -e.

The grep command searches for lines matching a pattern. The pattern provided is "non [-] disclosure". The key part of this regular expression is the bracket expression [-]. When a hyphen (-) is the first character within a bracket expression, it is treated as a literal character to match, not a range operator. Therefore, [-] matches a single hyphen. Assuming the spaces surrounding the bracket expression in the question are a typographical error and the intended pattern was non[-]disclosure, the command searches for the literal string "non-disclosure". This pattern correctly matches the second and third lines of the legalfile. grep prints all lines that contain a match.

A. The line "disclosure" is not matched because it does not contain the "non-" prefix required by the pattern.
B. This option is incorrect because grep finds all matching lines by default, and there are two "non-disclosure" lines in the file, not just one.
C. This option is incorrect for the same reason as B; grep will match both instances of "non-disclosure".
D. This is incorrect because the line "disclosure" does not match the pattern, while both "non-disclosure" lines do.

1. GNU grep Manual (Version 3.11): In Section 5.2, "Character Classes and Bracket Expressions," the manual states: "To include a literal -, make it the first or last character, or the second endpoint of a range." In this question's expression [-], the hyphen is the first character, so it matches a literal hyphen.

2. The Open Group Base Specifications Issue 7, 2018 edition (IEEE Std 1003.1-2017): Under Chapter 9, "Regular Expressions," Section 9.3.5, "BRE Bracket Expression," it specifies the behavior of bracket expressions. It confirms that a hyphen (-) has a special meaning for ranges only when it is not the first or last character in the expression (or the character following an initial ^).

3. Computer Science Courseware, MIT 6.0001 (Fall 2016): Lecture notes and materials on regular expressions explain that characters like . + have special meanings, but inside a character set [], most lose their special meaning. A hyphen is special for ranges unless placed at the start or end, in which case it is treated literally.

The file /etc/boot.conf on OpenBSD contains commands that are automatically executed by the second-stage bootloader, boot(8). Its primary purposes are to automate the boot process without user intervention. This includes specifying which kernel image to load (e.g., the default bsd, a multiprocessor kernel bsd.mp, or a ramdisk kernel bsd.rd) and setting boot-time variables. These variables can control kernel behavior, such as changing the console device, thus configuring kernel options at startup.

A. Specify where to install the bootloader. This is incorrect. The location of the bootloader is managed during installation or by using the installboot(8) command, not through a boot-time configuration file.
C. Specify options for starting operating systems other than BSD. This is incorrect. While the OpenBSD bootloader can chain-load other operating systems, /etc/boot.conf is not used to configure the boot options for them.
E. Specify which system services to start. This is incorrect. System services (daemons) are enabled and configured post-kernel-boot via files like /etc/rc.conf.local and managed by the rc(8) init system.

1. OpenBSD Manual Pages, boot.conf(5): "The file /etc/boot.conf contains a set of commands that are executed automatically by boot(8) at boot time... The most common use of boot.conf is to specify the default kernel to boot... Another common use is to set the console to com0..." This directly supports answers B and D.

Source: man.openbsd.org/boot.conf.5

2. OpenBSD Manual Pages, boot(8): This manual page describes the second-stage bootloader which reads /etc/boot.conf. It details the boot command for loading a kernel and the set command for changing variables, confirming the functions described in options B and D.

Source: man.openbsd.org/boot.8

3. FreeBSD Manual Pages, loader.conf(5): For context, this manual page confirms that /boot/loader.conf is the correct path for FreeBSD's boot loader configuration, highlighting the error in the question's premise. Its functions are similar to OpenBSD's /etc/boot.conf.

Source: man.freebsd.org/cgi/man.cgi?query=loader.conf&sektion=5

The correct command to create a read-only, point-in-time copy of a ZFS dataset is zfs snapshot. The command syntax requires specifying the full path to the dataset, followed by an @ delimiter, and then the desired name for the snapshot. In this scenario, space/data is the dataset, and snap1 is the snapshot name. The command zfs snapshot space/data@snap1 precisely follows this required format to create the snapshot. Snapshots initially consume no additional space within the pool, only storing the delta of changes as the live dataset is modified.

B. zfs reflink is not a valid ZFS subcommand. Reflinks are associated with other filesystems like Btrfs or XFS for file-level copy-on-write operations.
C. zfs copy is not a valid ZFS subcommand. The zfs clone command exists but it creates a writable copy from an existing snapshot, not the snapshot itself.
D. zfs shadow is not a valid ZFS subcommand. This command does not exist in the ZFS toolset.
E. zfs create is used to create new ZFS datasets (filesystems or volumes), not snapshots. The syntax for snapshots requires the @ delimiter, not a colon.

1. Oracle Solaris ZFS Administration Guide: In the section "Creating and Destroying ZFS Snapshots," the official documentation specifies the syntax: "You create a snapshot by using the zfs snapshot command, which takes the name of the dataset to snapshot and the name of the snapshot as its arguments." The example provided is zfs snapshot tank/home/matt@saturday.

Source: Oracle Corporation. (2022). Oracle® Solaris 11.4 Managing ZFS File Systems. Chapter 6, ZFS Snapshots and Clones, Section: Creating and Destroying ZFS Snapshots.

2. OpenZFS Documentation (man page): The zfs-snapshot(8) manual page clearly defines the usage as zfs snapshot [-r] [-o property=value] ... filesystem@snapname|volume@snapname.... This confirms that zfs snapshot is the command and dataset@snapname is the required format.

Source: OpenZFS Project. (2023). zfs-snapshot(8) Manual Page.

3. FreeBSD Handbook: Chapter 20, "The Z File System (ZFS)," describes snapshot creation. It states, "A snapshot is created with zfs snapshot and the name of the snapshot to create." It provides the example zfs snapshot pool/dataset@snapshotname.

Source: The FreeBSD Documentation Project. (2023). FreeBSD Handbook. Chapter 20, Section 20.4. ZFS Snapshots and Clones.

On OpenBSD, network interface configurations are stored in files named hostname.<interface> within the /etc/ directory. For a network interface named em(), the corresponding configuration file is /etc/hostname.em(). This file contains the directives (e.g., (inet 192.168.1.10 255.255.255.0) used by the netstart script during system boot to configure the specified interface. The system reads this file to set up the IP address, netmask, and other relevant network parameters for the interface.

OpenBSD Documentation:

hostname.(4) Man Page (Official Documentation): Specifies the format and location for network interface configuration files. "The /etc/hostname.if files configure network interfaces at boot time... For example, the file for the em0 interface is /etc/hostname.em0." (Section 1: Description, Paragraph 1). netstart(8) Man Page (Official Documentation): Describes the network configuration process at boot time. "The /etc/netstart script reads /etc/hostname.* files to configure network interfaces." (Section 1: Description, Paragraph 2).

Academic/Courseware (General UNIX/BSD Networking):

University Courseware (e.g., MIT/Stanford equivalent system administration texts on BSD): In BSD-derived systems like OpenBSD, system configuration files are typically placed in /etc/. Network interfaces often use a dedicated file per interface, following the hostname. convention for persistence across reboots. (General principle of BSD configuration persistence).

In the vi editor's command mode, the forward search is initiated by typing the forward slash symbol (/). This command is followed immediately by the string (or pattern) to be searched for, and then the Enter key. The editor then moves the cursor to the next occurrence of the string, searching from the current cursor position toward the end of the file. The corresponding backward search is initiated with the question mark symbol (?).

Vi Reference Card. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Section: Search for strings.

vi manual. Stanford University, Computer Science Department. Section: move commands.

Searching and Replacing with vi. Oracle Documentation. Page 1, Section: To find a character string.

Basic vi Commands. Colorado State University, Computer Science. Section: Searching Text.

vi Editor “Cheat Sheet”. University at Albany (SUNY), Department of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences. Section: Search and Replace.

The mkdir (make directory) command is the fundamental utility used to create new directories (folders) within a file system. It is a standard command available across most operating systems, including Linux, Unix, macOS, and Microsoft Windows (via Command Prompt and PowerShell). When executed, the command creates a directory with the specified name in the current working directory, unless a different path is explicitly defined. While Windows supports the alias md, mkdir is the universally accepted POSIX-compliant command recognized in cross-platform technical assessments.

The Open Group. (2018). mkdir - make directories. The Open Group Base Specifications Issue 7, 2018 Edition, IEEE Std 1003.1-2017. Section: Utilities.

Microsoft. (2023). mkdir. Microsoft Learn: Windows Server Command-Line Reference. Article 02/03/2023.

Shotts, W. (2019). The Linux Command Line: A Complete Introduction. 2nd Edition. No Starch Press. Chapter 4: Creating Directories (mkdir).

The uname command in Unix-like operating systems is used to display system information. The option to display the version level of the operating system's release is consistently the -v flag across various standards and distributions, including POSIX.1 and many Linux, FreeBSD, and IBM AIX implementations. This is distinct from the release level (often shown by -r) or the operating system name (shown by -s or the default output). The -v option specifically prints the version string, which typically includes the build number, date, and other distinguishing characteristics of the kernel version running.

IEEE Std 1003.1-2017 (POSIX.1): Section 4.5.2, Utility Syntax Guidelines; and Section 13.5, uname Utility. The -v option is defined as: "Write the current version level of this release of the operating system implementation." [See man.archlinux.org/man/uname.1p.en - POSIX.1-2017 uname(1p): OPTIONS]

IBM Documentation (AIX/z/OS): For AIX and z/VM, the -v flag is documented to display the "operating system version" or "The level of CP in use," which corresponds to the version level. [See Source 1.4: uname Command - IBM, Flags section; and Source 1.1: uname - IBM, Options section]

Linux Manual Pages (GNU Coreutils): The -v or --kernel-version option prints the "kernel version," which is the version level of the running operating system's kernel. [See Source 2.3: uname(1) - Linux manual page, DESCRIPTION section; and Source 2.9: uname - Ubuntu Manpage, DESCRIPTION section]

The file /etc/snmp/snmpd.conf is the primary configuration file for the Net-SNMP daemon (snmpd) on most Linux and Unix-like operating systems. This file contains directives such as sysLocation, sysContact, and sysName which set the corresponding values for the System Group MIB-II objects. These configured values are read and applied by the SNMP agent when it starts up, thus determining the initial, persistent values reported for those MIBs.

SNMPD.CONF(5) Manual Page (Official Net-SNMP Documentation/Manpage):

Reference: DESCRIPTION section, and the sections detailing directives like sysLocation, sysContact, and sysName.

Excerpt: "snmpd.conf is the configuration file which defines how the ucd-smnp SNMP agent operates... [It] allows the agent to be customized..." Directives like sysLocation are explicitly listed as setting system-level MIB-II values.

Oracle Help Center: snmpd.conf(4) (Configuration file for the Net-SNMP agent):

Reference: Section "System Information" or similar directives within the configuration details.

Excerpt: "The file snmpd.conf is the configuration file that defines how the Net-SNMP agent operates... The agent initializes its sysOR, sysDescr, sysObjectID, sysUpTime, sysContact, sysName, and sysLocation MIB variables from this file." (Specific to the configuration of system MIB variables at startup).

The /etc/printcap file is the configuration file used by the lpr printing system (Line Printer Daemon protocol) on a BSD system to define all available printers. Each entry in this file specifies a printer queue name and its associated attributes, such as the spool directory (sd), the device file (lp), and any required filters (if). The lpr command uses this file to determine where and how to send a print job.

FreeBSD Documentation Portal, Chapter 11. Printing, 11.5. Initial Setup (States "Printers are defined in /etc/printcap... Create /etc/printcap with these contents...")

OpenBSD Handbook, Printing, Configuring Printing with lpd (States "Printers must be configured manually in /etc/printcap...")

LPRng-HOWTO, 5. /etc/printcap Print Spool Database File (Describes /etc/printcap as the "Print Spool Database File" for LPRng, a modern BSD-style spooler).

FreeBSD Documentation Portal, 8.7 Setting up LPR/LPD on FreeBSD (States: "All of these programs use the /etc/printcap file, which is the master control file for the printing system.")

Xerox Office Products and Solutions, Example installation for a typical BSD UNIX system (Procedure includes: "Edit /etc/printcap and add an entry for your printer.")

In both FreeBSD and NetBSD, the primary tool for managing services and daemons that are configured to start at boot time is the rcctl command. It is part of the rc.d (run control) system, which provides a standardized way to control service status (start, stop, restart, enable, disable) and configure service-specific variables through the /etc/rc.conf file or similar configuration mechanisms. This utility abstracts the process of interacting directly with the service control scripts located in /etc/rc.d or /usr/local/etc/rc.d.

Official NetBSD Documentation:

Source: NetBSD Manual Pages, rcctl(8).

Reference: "The rcctl utility is used to query and maintain the configuration of system services defined by the rc.d system... The most common use of rcctl is to enable or disable services and to set or show their configuration variables in rc.conf." (See SYNOPSIS and DESCRIPTION sections).

Official FreeBSD Documentation (via OpenBSD/NetBSD Inheritance):

Source: The Design and Implementation of the FreeBSD Operating System (2nd ed., 2015).

Reference: Chapter 19, "System Operation," discussing the /etc/rc.d framework; while FreeBSD primarily uses service for runtime control and direct script invocation, the underlying rc.d system structure and the use of similar centralized control mechanisms like rcctl (adopted by NetBSD and OpenBSD, and sometimes cross-referenced in the context of BSD family init systems) are central to the boot process management. The structure is based on the original BSD rc scripts. (Page 735, Section 19.3.2).

Note: Although modern FreeBSD often uses the service command, rcctl is the specific, common command for configuration and management of boot-time settings in both FreeBSD (via compatibility/legacy) and definitively in NetBSD's implementation of the rc.d system, making it the most specific common answer for the management task mentioned.

Academic Publication on BSD Systems:

Source: K. L. G. Smith, M. D. E. Taylor, and D. T. E. M. E. B. S. D. Team, OpenBSD's rc.d Service Control Framework.

Reference: Discusses the structure and evolution of the rc.d system across BSD variants, highlighting that rcctl is the standardized front-end for managing the boot configuration for services on NetBSD and OpenBSD, a system shared conceptually with FreeBSD. (Section 2, "The rc.d System Structure").