220-1201 Practice Test 25 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A technician is replacing a CPU in a server that uses a LGA 1151 socket. After installing the new CPU and applying thermal paste, the system fails to post. The technician notices the CPU cooler is not making full contact with the CPU. What is the most likely consequence of this poor contact?

Choose an answer to begin — your selection is scored in the full session.

Accepted Answer

The CPU will overheat and the system will shut down to prevent damage. Poor contact between the CPU and cooler prevents effective heat dissipation. The CPU will quickly overheat, triggering thermal protection that shuts down the system to prevent damage. This is a common issue after improper cooler installation.

Answer

The CPU will operate at a lower clock speed but still function

Answer

The system will boot but display a warning about high CPU temperature

Answer

The CPU will be permanently damaged immediately

Question 2

A user complains that their wireless mouse and keyboard stop working when they move more than 10 feet away from the computer. The devices use a USB dongle. Which network type is being used for these peripherals?

Accepted Answer

Personal Area Network (PAN). Personal Area Network (PAN), because wireless mice and keyboards that connect via a USB dongle typically use Bluetooth or a proprietary 2.4 GHz RF protocol, which creates a short-range PAN. The 10-foot range limitation is characteristic of PAN technologies, which are designed for personal device connectivity within a few meters, not for broader network coverage.

Answer

Local Area Network (LAN)

Answer

Wide Area Network (WAN)

Answer

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

Question 3

A user complains that their VoIP phone intermittently loses audio during calls. The phone is connected to a PoE switch. The technician checks the switch and sees that the port's PoE power budget is at 95% capacity. What is the most likely cause of the audio drops?

Accepted Answer

The switch is power-cycling the phone due to PoE power budget constraints.. When a PoE switch's power budget reaches 95% capacity, it may begin to prioritize power delivery, potentially power-cycling lower-priority devices like VoIP phones to free up power for critical devices. This intermittent power loss causes the audio drops, as the phone reboots or loses power momentarily. The issue is directly tied to PoE power management, not cable length, hardware faults, or VLAN configuration.

Answer

The Ethernet cable is too long, causing signal attenuation.

Answer

The VoIP phone is faulty and needs replacement.

Answer

The switch port is configured with a VLAN mismatch.

Question 4

A customer wants to use a 34-inch ultrawide monitor (3440x1440) with their desktop PC. The PC has an older GPU with a DVI-D dual-link port and an HDMI 1.4 port. Which connection should the technician recommend for the best image quality?

Accepted Answer

HDMI 1.4. HDMI 1.4 supports 3440x1440 at up to 75 Hz, which is sufficient for the monitor's typical 60 Hz refresh rate. DVI-D dual-link is limited to 2560x1600 at 60 Hz and cannot deliver the full 3440x1440 resolution. Therefore, HDMI 1.4 provides the best image quality among the available ports.

Answer

DVI-D dual-link

Answer

VGA

Answer

DisplayPort

Question 5

A user reports that their laptop's touchpad is not working after they spilt a small amount of coffee on the keyboard. The keyboard still works, but the touchpad cursor does not move. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The liquid has damaged the touchpad or its ribbon cable. Coffee can seep into the touchpad connector or the touchpad itself, causing a short or corrosion. The keyboard working suggests the liquid did not reach the main board, but the touchpad is a separate component that is more exposed. The correct answer is liquid damage to the touchpad.

Answer

The touchpad driver has been corrupted by the liquid

Answer

The touchpad has been disabled in the BIOS due to a safety feature

Answer

The laptop's operating system has detected the liquid and disabled input devices

Question 6

A network administrator is setting up a new branch office. The branch router must automatically obtain a public IP address from the ISP, and internal devices must receive private IP addresses from the router. Which combination of network services should be configured on the router?

Accepted Answer

DHCP client and DHCP server. The branch router needs to obtain a public IP address automatically from the ISP, which requires it to act as a DHCP client on its WAN interface. At the same time, internal devices need private IP addresses, so the router must also act as a DHCP server on its LAN interface, leasing addresses from a private range. Option B correctly combines both roles: DHCP client on the WAN side and DHCP server on the LAN side.

Answer

DHCP client and DNS server

Answer

DHCP server and NAT

Answer

DNS server and NAT

Question 7

A user reports that a VM running Linux suddenly displays a 'Kernel Panic' error after the technician applied a snapshot and then reverted to it. The snapshot was taken while the VM was running. What is the most likely cause of the kernel panic?

Accepted Answer

The snapshot captured the VM in a state where the file system was inconsistent (e.g., during a write operation).. Taking a snapshot of a running VM captures the state of the virtual disk and memory, but if the file system is in an inconsistent state (e.g., during a write operation), reverting to that snapshot can cause corruption. The correct answer identifies that the snapshot was taken at an inopportune time, leading to file system inconsistency.

Answer

The snapshot file became corrupted due to insufficient disk space.

Answer

The VM’s virtual disk was configured as thin provisioned and ran out of space.

Answer

The hypervisor’s time synchronization caused a clock skew.

Question 8

A small business uses a router with a default IP of 192.168.1.1. The owner wants to set up a new printer with a static IP of 192.168.1.50. After configuring the printer, it cannot be accessed from any computer on the network. All computers are set to obtain IP addresses automatically. What is the most likely problem?

Accepted Answer

The printer's IP address conflicts with an address already assigned by DHCP.. The printer's static IP (192.168.1.50) likely falls within the router's default DHCP pool (commonly 192.168.1.2–192.168.1.254 or a subset like 192.168.1.100–199). If the router has already assigned 192.168.1.50 to another device via DHCP, a duplicate IP conflict occurs, causing the printer to be unreachable. The printer may appear to have an IP, but the conflict prevents proper ARP resolution and communication.

Answer

The printer's subnet mask is set to 255.0.0.0.

Answer

The printer's IP address is outside the router's DHCP range.

Answer

The printer is not connected to the network via an Ethernet cable.

Question 9

A customer reports that their laptop can connect to the internet at home but not at a coffee shop. The coffee shop uses a /24 subnet with a gateway of 192.168.1.1. The laptop's IP is 192.168.2.10. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The laptop's IP address is on a different subnet than the coffee shop's network.. The coffee shop's network uses a /24 subnet (255.255.255.0), which means all devices must have an IP address in the 192.168.1.0/24 range to communicate with the gateway at 192.168.1.1. The laptop's IP address of 192.168.2.10 falls in a different subnet (192.168.2.0/24), so the laptop cannot send frames to the gateway or receive a DHCP lease, preventing internet access despite a successful Wi-Fi association.

Answer

The DNS server address is incorrect.

Answer

The wireless card is faulty.

Answer

The subnet mask is set to 255.0.0.0.

Question 10

A technician is setting up a new wireless network for a warehouse. The warehouse has metal shelving and concrete walls. Which wireless standard should the technician choose to maximize range and penetration through obstacles?

Accepted Answer

802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6). 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) operates in both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands. For maximizing range and penetration through obstacles like metal shelving and concrete walls, the 2.4 GHz band is crucial due to its lower frequency and better diffraction characteristics. While 802.11n also uses 2.4 GHz, 802.11ax offers significant advancements such as OFDMA, improved MU-MIMO, and more efficient modulation schemes (e.g., 1024-QAM). These technologies lead to a more robust and efficient signal, which can provide better effective range and reliability in challenging environments compared to 802.11n, even when both are operating in the 2.4 GHz band.

Answer

802.11ac

Answer

802.11n

Answer

802.11a

Question 11

A technician is upgrading a workstation from a dual-core CPU to a quad-core CPU. After installation, the system boots but only shows two cores in the operating system. The technician has already verified the CPU is properly seated. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The motherboard BIOS is outdated and does not fully support the new CPU. If the OS only detects half the cores, the CPU might be faulty, but a more common cause is that the motherboard's BIOS needs an update to support the new CPU's full feature set. Older BIOS versions may not recognize all cores.

Answer

The CPU is counterfeit and only has two functional cores

Answer

The operating system is limited to two cores due to licensing

Answer

The CPU cooler is too tight, causing physical damage to the CPU

Question 12

A company's IT policy requires that all network traffic from the guest Wi-Fi be isolated from the internal corporate network. The guest network uses a separate SSID and VLAN. Which additional configuration is necessary to ensure complete isolation?

Accepted Answer

Implement an ACL that denies traffic from the guest VLAN to the corporate VLAN. Access Control Lists (ACLs) on the router or firewall can block traffic between VLANs. Even with separate VLANs, inter-VLAN routing must be explicitly denied to prevent guest devices from reaching the corporate network.

Answer

Enable DHCP snooping on the guest VLAN

Answer

Configure a router-on-a-stick with subinterfaces

Answer

Set the guest network to use a different subnet mask

Question 13

A technician is configuring a cloud-based virtual machine for a developer who needs to run a custom application that requires 16 GB of RAM and 4 vCPUs. The technician selects an instance type that meets these specs. After launching, the developer complains the application runs slowly. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

Resource contention from other tenants. Cloud VMs often experience resource contention due to noisy neighbors in multi-tenant environments. Even if the instance type meets specs, performance can degrade if other tenants on the same physical host consume resources. The technician should check if the instance is on a shared host and consider dedicated instances.

Answer

Insufficient storage IOPS

Answer

Network bandwidth throttling

Answer

Incorrect operating system version

Question 14

A user is traveling internationally and complains that their smartphone's cellular data stopped working after landing. They have an international roaming plan activated. What should the technician check first to restore data connectivity?

Accepted Answer

Ensure that the device's data roaming setting is enabled.. When traveling internationally, cellular data requires the device's data roaming setting to be enabled to connect to foreign networks. Even with an active international roaming plan, the smartphone will not automatically use data on a visited network unless this setting is turned on. This is a standard requirement across GSM and LTE networks, as data roaming is disabled by default to prevent unexpected charges.

Answer

Verify that the SIM card is not locked to the home carrier.

Answer

Check if the device's date and time are set correctly.

Answer

Reset the device's network settings to default.

Question 15

A user reports that their PC sometimes fails to boot, and when it does, they see a message saying 'Memory Management Error.' They have two 4 GB sticks of DDR3 RAM installed. A technician runs Windows Memory Diagnostic and finds errors on one stick. What should the technician do next?

Accepted Answer

Replace the faulty RAM stick with a new one of the same specifications.. Once a memory diagnostic confirms errors on a specific module, the correct next step is to replace the faulty stick. Running the system with faulty RAM can lead to data corruption and crashes. The technician should identify the bad module (often by testing one at a time) and replace it with a compatible module.

Answer

Run a full system restore to fix the memory management error.

Answer

Update the motherboard BIOS to improve memory compatibility.

Answer

Remove both sticks and clean the contacts with a pencil eraser.