LPIC-1 Certification Guide: Everything You Need to Know

July 13, 2026~11 min read

LPI

lpic-1linuxcertificationexam-guidesystem-administration

· ~7 min read

LPIC-1 101-500 vs 102-500: What's the Difference?

Compare LPIC-1 exam 101-500 and 102-500: topic breakdown, difficulty, overlap, and whether you should take them together or separately.

July 13, 2026· ~4 min read

LPIC-1 102-500 Deep Dive: Shell Scripting, User Management, Networking, and Security

Master LPIC-1 102-500: shell scripting, user management, networking fundamentals, system security, and administrative tasks with detailed command examples.

lpic-1102-500linux

The LPIC-1 certification is the first level of the Linux Professional Institute (LPI) certification program. It validates the ability to perform maintenance tasks on the command line, install and configure a Linux workstation, and manage basic networking.

Exam Overview

LPIC-1 consists of two exams:

Exam	Code	Duration	Questions	Passing Score
System Administrator 1	101-500	90 minutes	60	500 / 800
System Administrator 2	102-500	90 minutes	60	500 / 800

Both exams must be passed within a five-year period to earn the certification.

Exam 101-500: Topics and Weighting

Topic 101: System Architecture (weight 8)

101.1 Determine and configure hardware settings (4)
101.2 Boot the system (4)
101.3 Change runlevels / boot targets and shutdown or reboot system (4)

Topic 102: Linux Installation and Package Management (weight 11)

102.1 Design hard disk layout (2)
102.2 Install a boot manager (2)
102.3 Manage shared libraries (1)
102.4 Use Debian package management (3)
102.5 Use RPM and YUM package management (3)

Topic 103: GNU and Unix Commands (weight 20)

103.1 Work on the command line (4)
103.2 Process text streams using filters (3)
103.3 Perform basic file management (4)
103.4 Use streams, pipes, and redirects (4)
103.5 Create, monitor, and kill processes (4)
103.6 Modify process execution priorities (2)
103.7 Search text files using regular expressions (3)

Topic 104: Devices, Linux Filesystems, Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (weight 21)

104.1 Create partitions and filesystems (3)
104.2 Maintain the integrity of filesystems (3)
104.3 Control mounting and unmounting of filesystems (3)
104.4 Manage disk quotas (1)
104.5 Manage file permissions and ownership (4)
104.6 Create and change hard and symbolic links (2)
104.7 Find system files and place files in the correct location (2)

Exam 102-500: Topics and Weighting

Topic 105: Shells and Shell Scripting (weight 5)

105.1 Customize and use the shell environment (3)
105.2 Customize or write simple scripts (3)

Topic 106: User Interfaces and Desktops (weight 3)

106.1 Install and configure X11 (1)
106.2 Graphical desktops and accessibility (2)

Topic 107: Administrative Tasks (weight 12)

107.1 Manage user and group accounts (4)
107.2 Automate system administration tasks by scheduling jobs (4)
107.3 Localization and internationalization (3)

Topic 108: Essential System Services (weight 12)

108.1 Maintain system time (3)
108.2 System logging (3)
108.3 Mail Transfer Agent (MTA) basics (2)
108.4 Manage printers and printing (2)

Topic 109: Networking Fundamentals (weight 13)

109.1 Fundamentals of internet protocols (4)
109.2 Basic network configuration (4)
109.3 Basic network troubleshooting (3)
109.4 Configure client side DNS (2)

Topic 110: Security (weight 10)

110.1 Perform security administration tasks (4)
110.2 Set up host security (3)
110.3 Securing data with encryption (3)

Key Concepts by Topic

101.1 — Hardware Settings (Weight 4)

The exam expects familiarity with hardware enumeration and configuration on the Linux kernel level:

lspci — List all PCI buses and devices. Use -v for verbose, -s for specific slot.
lsusb — List USB buses and connected devices. -v for verbose, -t for tree view.
lsmod — Show loaded kernel modules (equivalent to reading /proc/modules).
modprobe — Add/remove kernel modules. modprobe -r removes, modprobe -c shows config.
/sys/ and /proc/ — Virtual filesystems that expose kernel data structures.
/etc/modprobe.d/ — Configuration files for module loading options and blacklists.
Hotplugging — udev manages device events; rules live in /etc/udev/rules.d/.

101.2 — System Boot (Weight 4)

Understanding the Linux boot process from POST to login prompt:

BIOS/UEFI → Bootloader (GRUB 2) → Kernel → init/systemd → Target
grub-install — Install GRUB to a device (e.g., grub-install /dev/sda).
/etc/default/grub — GRUB configuration; run update-grub after changes.
grub-mkconfig — Generate GRUB configuration from templates in /etc/grub.d/.
/boot/ — Contains kernel images (vmlinuz), initramfs, and GRUB config.
dmesg — View kernel ring buffer for boot-time messages. dmesg | grep ERROR to isolate issues.
systemd-analyze — Boot performance analysis. systemd-analyze blame shows per-service startup time.
Initramfs — Temporary root filesystem loaded into memory during early boot. Rebuild with update-initramfs -u or dracut.

101.3 — Runlevels / Boot Targets (Weight 4)

Modern distributions use systemd targets:

Runlevel	Systemd Target	Description
0	`poweroff.target`	Shutdown
1 / S	`rescue.target`	Single-user mode
2-4	`multi-user.target`	Multi-user, no GUI
5	`graphical.target`	Multi-user with GUI
6	`reboot.target`	Reboot

systemctl isolate multi-user.target — Switch to a target immediately.
systemctl get-default / systemctl set-default graphical.target — Change default boot target.
systemctl rescue / systemctl emergency — Boot into rescue/emergency modes.
telinit <runlevel> — Switch runlevel on sysvinit systems.

102.1 — Hard Disk Layout (Weight 2)

fdisk -l / gdisk -l — List partition tables (MBR vs GPT).
GPT supports disks >2TB and up to 128 partitions; MBR supports 4 primary partitions max.
Partition naming: /dev/sda1, /dev/sdb2 — first disk, second disk, etc.
parted — Modern partition tool supporting both MBR and GPT. parted /dev/sda print.
lsblk — List block devices in tree format showing partition relationships.
blkid — Display block device attributes including UUID and filesystem type.

103.1–103.7 — GNU and Unix Commands (Weight 20)

This is the largest weighted topic group. Key commands to master:

Text processing: grep, sed, awk, cut, tr, sort, uniq, wc, head, tail
File operations: cp, mv, rm, mkdir, rmdir, ln, find, locate, tar, gzip, bzip2, xz
Process management: ps, top, htop, kill, pkill, pgrep, nice, renice, nohup, bg, fg, jobs
Streams/redirection: >, >>, <, 2>, 2>&1, |, tee, xargs
Regular expressions: Basic (^, $, ., *, []) and extended (+, ?, {}, (), |) with grep -E / egrep / sed -E
Command-line essentials: echo, printf, alias, history, type, which, man, info, whatis, apropos

104.1–104.7 — Devices and Filesystems (Weight 21)

Second highest weight. Key areas:

Filesystem types: ext4, XFS, Btrfs, FAT32, NTFS, tmpfs
Creating filesystems: mkfs.ext4, mkfs.xfs, mkfs.btrfs, mkswap
Mounting: mount, umount, /etc/fstab (device, mount point, type, options, dump, pass)
Disk integrity: fsck, badblocks, tune2fs, dumpe2fs, xfs_repair
Quotas: quota, edquota, repquota, quotacheck
Permissions: chmod (symbolic and octal), chown, chgrp, umask, SUID/SGID/sticky bit
Links: ln (hard links: same inode, same filesystem only), ln -s (symbolic: cross-filesystem)
FHS: /bin, /sbin, /usr, /opt, /var, /tmp, /etc, /home, /root

Certification Path

LPIC-1 is the first of three levels in the LPI certification program:

Level	Certification	Exams	Focus
1	LPIC-1 (Linux Administrator)	101-500, 102-500	System administration, command line
2	LPIC-2 (Linux Engineer)	201-450, 202-450	Networking, kernel, storage, security
3	LPIC-3	300/303/304 (choose)	Mixed environments, security, virtualization

Each level builds on the previous. You must pass LPIC-1 before attempting LPIC-2, and LPIC-2 before LPIC-3. All certifications are vendor-neutral, focusing on skills that apply across all Linux distributions.

Study Plan

4-Week Intensive Plan

Week	Focus	Topics	Time
1	System Architecture + Installation	101.1–102.5	10 hours
2	GNU Commands + Filesystems	103.1–104.7	12 hours
3	Shells + Admin Tasks + Services	105.1–108.4	10 hours
4	Networking + Security + Review	109.1–110.3 + full review	12 hours

8-Week Steady Plan

Week	Focus
1	101.1–101.3 (System Architecture)
2	102.1–102.5 (Package Management)
3	103.1–103.4 (Basic Commands)
4	103.5–103.7 (Processes + Regex)
5	104.1–104.3 (Partitions + Filesystems)
6	104.4–104.7 (Permissions + Links)
7	105.1–108.4 (Shells + Services)
8	109.1–110.3 (Networking + Security)

Study Method

For each objective:

Read the official LPI objective description
Practice each command on a live system — type it, experiment with options
Test yourself with our practice exams to identify weak areas
Review the deep-dive articles for command-level detail
Repeat until you consistently score 700+/800 on timed practice exams

Exam Registration and Logistics

Register at LPI's website or through a Pearson VUE testing center
Cost: Approximately $200 per exam (varies by region)
Delivery: Computer-based testing at Pearson VUE centers or online proctoring
Validity: LPIC-1 certification is valid for 5 years from the pass date of the second exam
Languages: Available in English, German, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese, and more
Re-taking: If you fail, you can retake after 24 hours (first retake) or 7 days (subsequent)

Study Recommendations

Official Resources

LPI Exam Objectives — Always start here. The objectives are the definitive syllabus.
LPI Learning Materials — Official learning materials, including the LPIC-1 Study Guide.
Linux Documentation Project — Comprehensive guides for most exam topics.

Recommended Books

LPIC-1 Certified Linux Administrator Study Guide by Christine Bresnahan and Richard Blum
Linux Basics for Hackers by OccupyTheWeb (covers many LPIC-1 topics from a practical angle)
The Linux Command Line by William Shotts — Free online, excellent for command-line fundamentals

Practice Resources

Our LPI Practice Subscription offers unlimited practice exams with hundreds of realistic questions, timed exam mode, and weak-area analysis
Linux Academy / A Cloud Guru — Hands-on labs and video courses
Udemy LPIC-1 courses — Affordable video training

Hands-on Practice

The most effective preparation is spending time on a real Linux system:

Set up a virtual machine with any major distribution (Ubuntu, Debian, CentOS, or openSUSE)
Practice every objective on the command line — reading is not enough
Break things deliberately — then fix them. That's where real learning happens
Use the man pages — exam questions often test your ability to find information, not memorize it
Use our timed practice exams — simulate real exam conditions to build confidence and identify weak areas

Exam Day Tips

You have 90 minutes for 60 questions — roughly 90 seconds per question
Flag difficult questions and return to them
Read each question carefully — LPI uses "negative" questions (which of the following is NOT...)
Know your command options: --help, man -k, and info are fair game
The exam is closed-book, but you can skip and review
Passing score is 500 out of 800
Take the exam in a quiet environment if doing online proctoring
Have a stable internet connection — online proctoring requires uninterrupted access

Test Your Knowledge with Practice Exams

Ready to put this knowledge to the test? The interactive LPI practice platform on courses.graphwiz.ai includes 400+ realistic questions covering LPIC-1, LPIC-2, LPIC-3, and DevOps Tools Engineer certifications — with study mode, timed exams, domain breakdowns, weak-area analysis, and spaced-repetition flashcards.

Start Practicing on courses.graphwiz.ai →

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