Linux/Unix Interview QA

date

May 30, 2024

slug

linux-qa

status

Published

1. What is Linux?

Linus Torvalds developed Linux, a Unix-like, free, open-source, and kernel operating system. Mainly it is designed for systems, servers, embedded devices, mobile devices, and mainframes and is also supported on major computer platforms such as ARM, x86, and SPARC.

2. Explain the basic features of the Linux OS.

Some basic features of Linux are:

Linux is free and easily available.

It is more secure than other operating systems because it uses security auditing and password authentication features.

Linux has its personal software repository.

It includes multiple languages throughout the world. Hence Linux supports different language keyboards.

It offers CLI and GUI to use different commands and applications such as Firefox, VLC, etc.

3. Name some Linux Distros

There are various Linux distros but the following are the most commonly used:

Ubuntu

Debian

CentOS

Fedora

RedHat

4. What are the major differences between Linux and Windows?

Comparison Factor	Linux	Windows
Free/Paid	It is a free and open-source OS.	It is not open-source and is free to use.
Security	Linux is highly secure.	Windows is less secure compared to Linux.
Path separator	As a path separator, it uses a forward slash.	Windows uses a backward slash between the directories.
Efficiency	Linux is more efficient than Windows.	Windows is less efficient.
Kernel type	It uses a monolithic kernel.	It uses a microkernel.
File system	Linux file systems are case-sensitive.	Its file system is case-insensitive.

5. Define the basic components of Linux.

Majorly there are five basic components of Linux:

Kernel: Linux kernel is a core part of the operating system that works as a bridge between hardware and software.

Shell: Shell is an interface between a kernel and a user.

GUI: Offers different way to interact with the system, known as the graphical user interface (GUI).

Application programs: It is designed to perform a bundle of tasks through a bundle of functions.

System Utilities: It is the software functions through which users manage the system.