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Boot Process Flashcards

7 cards from real Linux practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 7 Boot Process flashcards as text

  1. Which file in GRUB2 is used to add custom menu entries that persist across grub2-mkconfig runs?

    Answer: /etc/grub.d/40_custom

    /etc/grub.d/40_custom is designed for user-added menu entries that are preserved when grub.cfg is regenerated.

  2. When systemd starts units in parallel, what mechanism does it use to determine dependency order?

    Answer: Unit file directives like After=, Before=, Requires=, and Wants=

    systemd uses dependency directives (After=, Before=, Requires=, Wants=) in unit files to build a dependency graph for ordered parallel startup.

  3. What is the significance of PID 1 in the Linux boot process?

    Answer: It is the first user-space process, which becomes the parent of all other processes

    PID 1 is the init process (systemd, SysVinit, etc.) — the first user-space process and ancestor of all other user-space processes.

  4. Which boot parameter disables all CPU mitigations for Spectre/Meltdown vulnerabilities, sometimes used for performance testing?

    Answer: mitigations=off

    The mitigations=off kernel parameter is a single flag that disables all CPU vulnerability mitigations (available since Linux 5.2).

  5. What is the purpose of the 'quiet' kernel boot parameter?

    Answer: It suppresses most kernel messages from appearing on the console

    The 'quiet' parameter sets the kernel log level low, suppressing verbose boot messages and giving a cleaner console experience.

  6. Which tool is used to install the GRUB2 bootloader to the MBR of a disk on BIOS-based systems?

    Answer: grub2-install /dev/sda

    grub2-install writes the GRUB2 boot code to the MBR (or EFI partition) of the specified device.

  7. What does the systemd 'wants' dependency (Wants=) mean compared to 'requires' (Requires=)?

    Answer: Wants= is a weak dependency — the unit still starts even if the wanted unit fails

    Wants= is a weak dependency; if the wanted unit fails to start, the dependent unit continues anyway, unlike Requires= which would propagate failure.