DevOps Shack

Top 50 Linux Error, Solution RCA Asked In

MNC Interviews

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1. Command Not Found (: command: command not found)

RCA: The command is either misspelled or not installed.

Solution:

●​ Check if the command is installed: which <command>

●​ Install missing package: sudo apt-get install <package>
(Debian-based) or sudo yum install <package> (RHEL-based)
●​ Check $PATH variable: echo $PATH

2. Permission Denied (: ./script.sh: Permission denied)

RCA: The script or file lacks execution permissions.

Solution:

●​ Grant execute permission: chmod +x script.sh

●​ Run as superuser: sudo ./script.sh

3. Disk Space Full (No space left on device)

RCA: The disk is full, preventing new files from being created.

Solution:​
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●​ Check disk usage: df -h

●​ Remove unnecessary files: rm -rf /path/to/files
●​ Find large files: du -ah / | sort -rh | head -10

4. Process Already Running (Address already in use)

RCA: A process is already using the port.

Solution:

●​ Find process ID (PID): lsof -i :<port>

●​ Kill the process: kill -9 <PID>
●​ Restart the service: systemctl restart <service>

5. Segmentation Fault (Segmentation fault (core dumped))

RCA: Accessing invalid memory locations in a program.

Solution:

●​ Check logs: dmesg | tail -20

●​ Run with debugger: gdb ./program
●​ Recompile with debugging flags: gcc -g program.c -o program

6. Kernel Panic (Kernel panic - not syncing: Fatal exception)

RCA: Corrupt kernel, missing modules, or hardware failure.

Solution:

●​ Boot into recovery mode and check logs: journalctl -xb

●​ Update kernel: sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade
●​ Rebuild initramfs: update-initramfs -u
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7. Cannot SSH (Connection refused)

RCA: SSH service is not running or blocked by firewall.

Solution:

●​ Start SSH service: sudo systemctl start sshd

●​ Allow SSH in firewall: sudo ufw allow 22
●​ Check listening port: netstat -tulnp | grep ssh

8. Stale NFS File Handle (Stale NFS file handle)

RCA: The remote file system is unmounted or changed.

Solution:

●​ Remount NFS: sudo umount -f /mnt/nfs && sudo mount -a

●​ Restart NFS service: sudo systemctl restart nfs-kernel-server

9. High CPU Usage (Load average too high)

RCA: Process consuming too many resources.

Solution:

●​ Check processes: top or htop

●​ Kill high CPU process: kill -9 <PID>
●​ Optimize services or increase resources

10. Boot Issues (initramfs prompt or grub rescue> error)

RCA: Corrupt bootloader, missing kernel files.

Solution:​
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●​ Reinstall GRUB: grub-install /dev/sda && update-grub

●​ Boot from live CD and repair system

11. Too Many Open Files (Too many open files)

RCA: The process exceeds the file descriptor limit.

Solution:

●​ Check limits: ulimit -n

●​ Increase limit temporarily: ulimit -n 100000
●​ Permanent change: Edit /etc/security/limits.conf

12. Broken Pipe (Write failed: Broken pipe)

RCA: Network connection closed unexpectedly.

Solution:

●​ Increase SSH timeout: echo "ClientAliveInterval 60" >>

/etc/ssh/sshd_config
●​ Use screen or tmux to persist sessions

13. Out of Memory (Out of memory: Kill process)

RCA: Insufficient RAM, process exceeds system limits.

Solution:

●​ Check memory usage: free -m

●​ Kill memory-intensive processes: kill -9 <PID>

Add swap space:​

sudo fallocate -l 2G /swapfile​
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sudo chmod 600 /swapfile

sudo mkswap /swapfile
sudo swapon /swapfile

14. Read-only File System (Read-only file system error)

RCA: Disk corruption, remounted in read-only mode.

Solution:

●​ Remount filesystem: mount -o remount,rw /

●​ Check disk: fsck -y /dev/sdaX

15. Network Unreachable (Network is unreachable)

RCA: Incorrect network configuration or cable issue.

Solution:

●​ Restart network service: systemctl restart networking

●​ Check IP configuration: ip addr show
●​ Restart interface: ifconfig eth0 down && ifconfig eth0 up

16. Connection Reset by Peer (ssh_exchange_identification:

Connection reset by peer)

RCA: SSH daemon rejects the connection.

Solution:

●​ Check fail2ban or firewall: iptables -L

●​ Restart SSH service: systemctl restart sshd
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17. Dependency Issues (Dependency hell: Package conflicts)

RCA: Conflicting or missing package dependencies.

Solution:

●​ Use dependency resolver: sudo apt-get -f install

●​ For RHEL: sudo yum clean all && yum update

18. Cron Job Not Running (Cron job not executing)

RCA: Incorrect cron syntax, no execution permission.

Solution:

●​ Check cron logs: cat /var/log/syslog | grep CRON

●​ Verify permissions: chmod +x script.sh
●​ Restart cron service: systemctl restart cron

19. No Route to Host (No route to host)

RCA: Network misconfiguration, firewall blocking connection.

Solution:

●​ Check routing table: route -n

●​ Disable firewall: sudo iptables -F
●​ Verify connectivity: ping <remote_host>

20. 502 Bad Gateway (Nginx/Apache)

RCA: Backend service is down or misconfigured.​

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Solution:

●​ Restart backend service: systemctl restart php-fpm

●​ Check logs: tail -f /var/log/nginx/error.log

21. High I/O Wait (iowait too high)

RCA: Disk is overloaded, slow I/O operations.

Solution:

●​ Check I/O wait: iostat -x 1 10

●​ Find heavy disk usage: iotop
●​ Optimize storage or use SSD

22. Invalid Date (date: cannot set date: Operation not permitted)

RCA: Incorrect timezone, user lacks permission.

Solution:

●​ Sync time: sudo timedatectl set-ntp on

●​ Change timezone: sudo timedatectl set-timezone UTC

23. 404 Not Found (Web Server Error)

RCA: Missing document root or misconfigured server.

Solution:

●​ Check web server config: cat /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/default

●​ Restart service: systemctl restart nginx

24. Firewall Blocking Port (Connection timed out)​

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RCA: Firewall blocking the service port.

Solution:

●​ Allow port in firewall: sudo ufw allow 8080

●​ Restart firewall: systemctl restart firewalld

25. Process Hung (D state processes)

RCA: Process stuck due to I/O or deadlock.

Solution:

●​ Find stuck processes: ps aux | grep D

●​ Kill process: kill -9 <PID>

26. Package Not Found (E: Unable to locate package)

RCA: Repository issue or incorrect package name.

Solution:

●​ Update package list: sudo apt-get update

●​ Search package: apt-cache search <package>

27. Kernel Module Not Loading (modprobe: ERROR)

RCA: Missing or incorrect kernel module.

Solution:

●​ Load module manually: modprobe <module_name>

●​ Check logs: dmesg | tail -20

28. SSH Key Permission Denied​

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RCA: Incorrect permissions on SSH private key.

Solution:

●​ Set correct permissions: chmod 600 ~/.ssh/id_rsa

●​ Restart SSH: systemctl restart sshd

29. Log File Too Large (/var/log/messages is too large)

RCA: Logs growing too fast.

Solution:

●​ Rotate logs: logrotate -f /etc/logrotate.conf

●​ Compress old logs: gzip /var/log/syslog

30. Zombie Process (defunct process)

RCA: Parent process not cleaning up child processes.

Solution:

●​ Find parent PID: ps -aux | grep defunct

●​ Kill parent process: kill -9 <PPID>

31. systemctl: command not found

RCA: Older system using SysVinit instead of systemd.

Solution:

●​ Use older service command: service <service_name> start

●​ Upgrade to systemd if necessary.
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32. Too many authentication failures (SSH)

RCA: Repeated failed logins cause SSH lockout.

Solution:

Increase authentication attempts:​

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echo "MaxAuthTries 10" >> /etc/ssh/sshd_config
systemctl restart sshd

33. Device or resource busy (Unmounting Issue)

RCA: Process using the device.

Solution:

●​ Find using processes: lsof | grep /mnt/device

●​ Kill the process: kill -9 <PID>
●​ Force unmount: umount -l /mnt/device

34. Mounting Failed (mount: unknown filesystem type)

RCA: Unsupported or missing filesystem type.

Solution:

●​ Check available filesystems: cat /proc/filesystems

Install missing filesystem support:​

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sudo apt-get install xfsprogs # For XFS
sudo apt-get install nfs-common # For NFS

●​ Mount with correct type: mount -t ext4 /dev/sda1 /mnt

35. User Locked Out (Account locked due to too many failed logins)

RCA: Security settings locked the account.

Solution:

●​ Unlock user: sudo passwd -u <username>

●​ Reset failed login attempts: faillock --user <username> --reset

36. Symbolic Link Broken (ln: failed to create symbolic link)

RCA: Target file doesn’t exist or incorrect path.

Solution:

●​ Verify target exists: ls -l <target>

●​ Correct the link: ln -s /correct/path /symlink

37. File Descriptor Limit Exceeded (Too many open files)

RCA: Application exceeded open file limit.

Solution:

Increase limits:​
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echo "fs.file-max = 100000" >> /etc/sysctl.conf
sysctl -p
ulimit -n 100000
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38. chown Permission Denied (Operation not permitted)

RCA: Attempt to change ownership of a root-owned file as a non-root user.

Solution:

●​ Use sudo: sudo chown user:user file.txt

●​ Check immutable flag: lsattr file.txt

39. Software Package Signature Error (GPG error: NO_PUBKEY)

RCA: Missing GPG key for the package repository.

Solution:

Add missing key:​

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sudo apt-key adv --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com
--recv-keys <KEY>

40. USB Device Not Detected (dmesg | grep USB shows no output)

RCA: USB subsystem failure or hardware issue.

Solution:

●​ Restart USB service: modprobe -r usb_storage && modprobe

usb_storage
●​ Check logs: dmesg | tail -50

41. NTP Sync Not Working (timedatectl shows time out of sync)​
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RCA: NTP service not running or firewall blocking NTP.

Solution:

●​ Start NTP: systemctl restart systemd-timesyncd

●​ Check firewall: sudo ufw allow 123/udp

42. Kernel Update Failed (grub menu missing new kernel)

RCA: Bootloader not updated after kernel install.

Solution:

Update GRUB:​
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sudo update-grub
sudo grub-install /dev/sda

43. Service Not Starting (Failed to start <service>)

RCA: Configuration errors, missing dependencies.

Solution:

●​ Check logs: journalctl -xe

●​ Fix missing dependencies: sudo apt-get -f install

44. Swap Not Enabled (swapon: /swapfile: swapon failed)

RCA: Swapfile not created or mounted.

Solution:

Create and enable swap:​

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sudo fallocate -l 2G /swapfile
sudo chmod 600 /swapfile
sudo mkswap /swapfile
sudo swapon /swapfile

45. scp Transfer Slow (scp takes too long to transfer files)

RCA: Compression disabled, high latency.

Solution:

●​ Enable compression: scp -C file user@host:/path

Use rsync:​
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rsync -avz file user@host:/path

46. ping Works, But curl Fails (curl: (7) Failed to connect)

RCA: Firewall blocking the port.

Solution:

●​ Check firewall rules: iptables -L -n

●​ Allow traffic: sudo ufw allow 80

47. System Logs Not Rotating (Log files keep growing)

RCA: Logrotate misconfigured or service issue.

Solution:​
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●​ Manually rotate logs: logrotate -f /etc/logrotate.conf

●​ Restart log service: systemctl restart rsyslog

48. Stuck at Grub> Prompt (grub rescue>)

RCA: GRUB bootloader corrupted.

Solution:

Boot into live CD and reinstall GRUB:​

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sudo mount /dev/sda1 /mnt
sudo grub-install --root-directory=/mnt /dev/sda

49. Cron Job Runs But Doesn't Work (Crontab entry exists but doesn't
execute correctly)

RCA: Environment variables missing.

Solution:

●​ Specify full paths: /usr/bin/python3 /path/to/script.py

Log cron output:​

* * * * * /path/to/script.sh >> /var/log/myscript.log 2>&1

50. Disk Errors (I/O error on device)

RCA: Failing disk, filesystem corruption.

Solution:

●​ Check disk health: smartctl -a /dev/sda

●​ Repair filesystem: fsck -y /dev/sda1