RHEL Linux - Red Hat System Administration Practice Exam

In a pipeline, which command will copy its standard input to its standard output and redirect its standard output to files named as arguments?

1. >

2. <

3. |

4. tee

The correct answer is: tee

The command that copies its standard input to its standard output and also redirects its standard output to files specified as arguments is 'tee'. This utility is particularly useful in a pipeline where you may want to simultaneously view the output of a command in the terminal while also saving it to one or more files. When you use 'tee' in a command sequence, it takes whatever data is passed through the pipeline, outputs it to the standard output (the terminal), and writes the same data into the files specified as arguments. This dual functionality makes 'tee' an essential tool for logging command outputs or capturing data while still allowing users to see the output in real time. The other options do not achieve this functionality. The greater-than sign is typically used for output redirection but does not allow for simultaneous output to the terminal. The less-than sign is used for input redirection, signifying that data is being read from a file into a command, rather than being written to a file. The pipe symbol is used to funnel the output of one command directly into another command’s input but does not provide the capability to save the output to a file while displaying it at the same time. Therefore, 'tee' stands out as the command that fulfills the requirement of