LFCS Question #709: Real Exam Question with Answer & Explanation

Question

What key combination is used to forcibly halt the X server in the event of the graphical session becoming unusable (eg., desktop manager or fullscreen application hanging)?

Options

• Apress CTRL+ALT+DEL
• Bpress CTRL+ALT+BACK_SPACE
• Cpress CTRL+ALT+DEL twice
• Dpress CTRL+ALT+F1 then run

Explanation

To forcefully terminate a frozen X server graphical session, the standard keyboard shortcut on Linux systems is Ctrl+Alt+Backspace.

Common mistakes.

• A. Ctrl+Alt+Del is typically used to initiate a system reboot or shutdown, not to specifically halt the X server.
• C. Pressing Ctrl+Alt+Del twice is also associated with reboot/shutdown behavior, not a direct X server termination.
• D. Ctrl+Alt+F1 (or other F-keys) is used to switch to a virtual console, which allows interaction with the command line but does not directly halt the X server; you would then need to manually stop the display manager.

Concept tested. X server emergency shutdown

Reference. https://www.x.org/releases/current/doc/man/man5/xorg.conf.5.html

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