List, Create, Delete Partitions

Question 1

How do you list block devices?

Answer 1

lsblk

Question 2

What is the command to create MBR partitions?

Answer 2

fdisk

i.e fdisk /dev/xvdb

Question 3

What is the command to create GPT partitions?

Answer 3

gdisk
parted
i.e gdisk /dev/xvdb

Question 4

What is the first sector used for when creating a MBR partition?

Answer 4

MBR records to contain information about the disk

Question 5

In the fdisk utility what does changing the partitions system id do?

Answer 5

Labels the partition type for its use

i.e Linux swap, Linux LVM

Question 6

How do you format a partition with a filesystem?

Answer 6

mkfs

i.e mkfs -t xfs /dev/xvdb1

Question 7

How do you show information on available block devices on the system?

Answer 7

blkid

*shows block devices formatted with a filesystem

Question 8

How do you mount a block device?

Answer 8

mount

i.e mount /dev/xvdb1 /mnt/mount1

Question 9

How do you unmount a block device?

Answer 9

umount

i.e umount /mnt/mount1

Question 10

After deleting a partition how do you reload (refresh) changes?

Answer 10

partprobe

*reloads information kernel reads in /proc directory

Question 11

Why would you use the UUID of a block device instead of it’s name?

Answer 11

To ensure when mounting the device is not a different device and files are accidentally overwritten because they can have duplicate names if not plugged into the system at the same time

Question 12

How would you mount a block device using its UUID?

Answer 12

mount -U

Question 13

What is the first sector used for when creating a a GPT partition?

Answer 13

GPT records

Question 14

How do you create a persistent mount point (across reboots)?

Answer 14

Edit /etc/fstab

Paste UUID, /block/device or custom LABEL

Question 15

Inside /etc/fstab what do the two numbers designate at the end of the line?

Answer 15

(dump) (fsck order)
dump species whether dump command can be use to make a backup of the device, 0 means disable
fsck is the order in which block devices are integrity checked after abrupt shutdown, 0 means no scan

Question 16

How do you manually mount block devices listed in /etc/fstab?

Answer 16

mount -a

*useful to check for errors

Question 17

How do you unmount block devices listed in /etc/fstab?

Answer 17

umount -a

Question 18

How do you create a volume or partition label?

Answer 18

xfs: xfs_admin -L {name} {/block/device}
ext: tune2fs -L {name} {/block/device}
* partition must be formatted with a filesystem, cannot be mounted

Question 19

Where is partition information kept on the system?

Answer 19

/proc/partitions