Software Configuration

Question 1

What is the purpose of software configuration?

Answer 1

Define and control software behavior; apply changes either system-wide or at the user level; customize software functionality using environmental variables.

Question 2

What is system-wide configuration?

Answer 2

Affects all users; managed by administrators; set in directories and files such as /etc and /etc/sysctl.conf; used for settings like default shells, service control, and resource limits.

Question 3

What is user-level configuration?

Answer 3

Affects only the individual user account; defined in hidden files in the user’s home directory such as .bashrc and .profile; helps preserve consistency while allowing user flexibility.

Question 4

What are environmental variables?

Answer 4

Named values used to configure software behavior; examples include PATH, HOME, EDITOR.

Question 5

Where are system-wide environmental variables set?

Answer 5

/etc/environment and /etc/profile.

Question 6

Where are user-specific environmental variables set?

Answer 6

.bashrc and .bash_profile.

Question 7

Give examples of environmental variables and their uses.

Answer 7

Administrators can extend PATH to include shared script directories; users can set EDITOR to define a preferred text editor; used to manage execution environments for users and processes.