2. System Management (23%)

System Management is the largest exam domain and the one closest to daily Linux administration work. Getting this domain wrong doesn't just cost exam points — in production, a misconfigured storage stack means data loss, and a broken network configuration means a server that nobody can reach. The mental model for this entire phase is that Linux treats everything as a resource to be managed hierarchically: hardware → block devices → partitions → filesystems → mounted paths. Every layer depends on the one below it being correct before it can function.

⚠️ Common Misconception: Many candidates confuse partition layout with filesystem format — these are independent decisions. A partition defines a region of a disk; a filesystem defines how data is organized within that region. You must partition first, then format.