LCA Backup & Disaster Recovery 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which rsync option preserves symbolic links, permissions, timestamps, and owner info in a single flag?
- -a (Correct answer)
- -r
- -v
- -z
Correct answer: -a
The -a (archive) flag combines -rlptgoD, preserving symbolic links, permissions, timestamps, owner, group, and device files.
Question 2: A full backup is taken Sunday; incremental backups Monday–Saturday. If Wednesday's backup is corrupt, which backups are needed to restore to Friday's state?
- Sunday, Thursday, Friday
- Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
- Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday (Correct answer)
- Thursday, Friday only
Correct answer: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Incremental backups depend on every previous backup in the chain, so all backups from Sunday through Friday are required; a corrupt Wednesday breaks the chain.
Question 3: Which tar option appends new files to an existing archive without re-creating it?
- --append (-r) (Correct answer)
- --update (-u)
- --concatenate (-A)
- --create (-c)
Correct answer: --append (-r)
The -r (--append) option adds files to the end of an existing tar archive without modifying existing entries.
Question 4: What does the dump level 0 signify in the dump/restore backup utility?
- Full backup of the entire filesystem (Correct answer)
- Incremental backup since last dump level 0
- Differential backup since last full backup
- Archive of only modified inodes
Correct answer: Full backup of the entire filesystem
Dump level 0 always means a complete (full) backup of the entire filesystem; higher numbers back up changes since the last lower-numbered dump.
Question 5: Which command restores files interactively from a dump archive, allowing you to select specific files?
- restore -i (Correct answer)
- restore -r
- restore -t
- restore -x
Correct answer: restore -i
restore -i starts an interactive shell where you can browse and selectively extract files from a dump archive.
Question 6: In Amanda backup software, what is the role of the 'holding disk'?
- Temporary staging area before data is written to tape or final media (Correct answer)
- The primary backup target disk
- A mirrored copy of the backup catalog
- Encrypted key storage for backups
Correct answer: Temporary staging area before data is written to tape or final media
Amanda's holding disk is a local staging area where backups spool before being flushed to the final backup medium, improving throughput.
Question 7: What is the primary purpose of a backup catalog or index?
- Track what data is on which backup media to enable fast restores (Correct answer)
- Compress backup data to save space
- Encrypt backup files for security
- Schedule automated backup jobs
Correct answer: Track what data is on which backup media to enable fast restores
A backup catalog records metadata about backup contents and their location on media, allowing administrators to quickly locate and restore specific files.
LCA Backup & Disaster Recovery 2
Which rsync option preserves symbolic links, permissions, timestamps, and owner info in a single flag?