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Systems & Data Center · Foundational

/etc Directory

The Linux directory holding host-specific, system-wide configuration files such as passwd, fstab, hosts and service configs.

Definition

/etc contains static, text-based configuration for the operating system and installed services; it should not contain binaries. Backing up /etc captures most of a server's configuration state.

Example

Editing /etc/hostname or /etc/fstab changes the system hostname or persistent mounts respectively.

Exam tip

When asked where a service's configuration file lives on Linux, the answer is almost always under /etc.

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