220-1201 Practice Test 45 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A customer reports that their desktop PC will not power on at all. The power supply fan does not spin, and no LEDs are lit. You have verified the power cord is good and the outlet has power. Which motherboard component should you check first?

Accepted Answer

The 24-pin ATX power connector. The ATX power connector (main power connector) supplies power from the PSU to the motherboard. If it is loose or disconnected, the motherboard will not receive power, causing a no-power condition. Always check this first before assuming PSU failure.

Answer

The CMOS battery

Answer

The front panel power switch header

Answer

The CPU fan header

Question 2

During a desktop build, you install a new M.2 NVMe SSD into the M.2 slot. When you power on the system, the BIOS does not detect the drive. The SSD is known to be working. What is the most likely motherboard-related cause?

Accepted Answer

The M.2 slot is SATA-only and the drive is NVMe. Many motherboards share PCIe lanes between M.2 slots and SATA ports. Installing an M.2 NVMe drive often disables certain SATA ports, but the drive itself should still be detected if properly seated. The most common oversight is not checking the motherboard manual for M.2 slot compatibility or lane sharing.

Answer

The CMOS battery needs replacement

Answer

The motherboard BIOS is corrupted

Answer

The CPU is not seated properly

Question 3

You are upgrading a customer's gaming PC to support faster memory. The motherboard supports DDR4-3200, but after installing two 8GB DDR4-3200 modules, the system only runs at 2133 MHz. What is the most likely reason?

Accepted Answer

XMP is not enabled in the BIOS. By default, most motherboards run RAM at a standard JEDEC speed (often 2133 MHz) for stability. To achieve the rated speed of 3200 MHz, you must enable XMP (Extreme Memory Profile) in the BIOS. This is a common step that new builders overlook.

Answer

The RAM modules are defective

Answer

The motherboard does not support dual-channel memory

Answer

The CPU does not support DDR4-3200

Question 4

A user complains that their PC sometimes fails to boot and displays a 'CMOS Checksum Error' message. After replacing the CMOS battery, the error persists. What motherboard component should you inspect next?

Accepted Answer

The BIOS/UEFI chip. A CMOS checksum error indicates the BIOS settings are corrupted or not being saved. If a new battery doesn't fix it, the CMOS (RTC) chip itself may be failing, or the BIOS/UEFI firmware may need to be reset or updated. This points to a hardware issue on the motherboard beyond the battery.

Answer

The CPU socket pins

Answer

The RAM modules

Answer

The power supply unit

Question 5

You are building a workstation for video editing and need to install a dedicated GPU in the primary PCIe x16 slot. After installation, the system boots but the GPU is not detected in Device Manager. The GPU works fine in another PC. What should you check on the motherboard?

Accepted Answer

The motherboard's BIOS setting for the PCIe slot. If the GPU is not detected, the most likely motherboard-related cause is that the PCIe slot is disabled in BIOS or the slot itself is faulty. Another possibility is that the slot is configured for a different device (e.g., an M.2 drive sharing lanes). Verifying BIOS settings is the first step.

Answer

The PCIe slot's power delivery from the PSU

Answer

The CMOS battery voltage

Answer

The CPU fan header

Question 6

A technician is troubleshooting a PC that randomly restarts under load. The CPU temperature is normal, but the system sometimes fails to POST with a 'CPU Overvoltage Error'. The motherboard is a few years old. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The motherboard VRM is failing. A 'CPU Overvoltage Error' typically indicates the motherboard's voltage regulation module (VRM) is failing or the BIOS is incorrectly applying voltage. Aging VRMs can become unstable, causing overvoltage protection to trigger. This is a motherboard hardware fault, not a CPU issue.

Answer

The CPU is overheating due to a failing cooler

Answer

The power supply is delivering too much voltage

Answer

The BIOS needs to be updated to support the CPU

Question 7

You are deploying 20 identical office PCs. After imaging one system, you clone the drive to the other 19. However, all cloned systems fail to boot with a 'Boot Device Not Found' error. The original system boots fine. What motherboard setting is most likely causing this?

Accepted Answer

The boot mode is set to Legacy BIOS instead of UEFI. When cloning a system, the boot mode (UEFI vs. Legacy BIOS) must match the motherboard configuration. If the original was set to UEFI but the clones have Legacy mode enabled (or vice versa), the system won't find the bootloader. This is a common deployment pitfall.

Answer

Secure Boot is enabled on the clones

Answer

The SATA mode is set to AHCI on the clones

Answer

The CMOS battery is dead on the clones

Question 8

A user reports that their PC's USB 3.0 ports are only operating at USB 2.0 speeds. The device works fine on another computer. The motherboard has both USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 headers. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The USB 3.0 controller driver is not installed. USB 3.0 ports require a dedicated controller and proper driver support. If the USB 3.0 driver is missing or the controller is disabled in BIOS, the ports will fall back to USB 2.0 speeds. This is a common issue after a fresh OS install or BIOS reset.

Answer

The USB cable is too long

Answer

The front panel USB 3.0 header is loose

Answer

The motherboard's USB 3.0 controller is faulty

Question 9

A technician is replacing a faulty motherboard in a workstation. After installing the new board, the system powers on but there is no display output from the integrated graphics port. The CPU does not have integrated graphics. What should the technician do?

Accepted Answer

Install a dedicated GPU into a PCIe slot. If the CPU lacks integrated graphics, the motherboard's video output ports will not function. A dedicated GPU must be installed. This is a common oversight when switching from a CPU with integrated graphics to one without.

Answer

Clear the CMOS to reset BIOS settings

Answer

Update the motherboard BIOS

Answer

Check the monitor cable connection

Question 10

During a motherboard replacement, you install the new board and connect all cables. When you power on, the system beeps continuously (long beeps). The CPU fan spins, but there is no display. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The RAM is not seated correctly or is faulty. Continuous long beeps typically indicate a memory (RAM) issue. This could be due to improperly seated RAM, incompatible memory, or a faulty memory slot. The CPU fan spinning suggests power is reaching the board, but the POST process halts at memory initialization.

Answer

The CPU is not compatible with the new motherboard

Answer

The power supply is underpowered

Answer

The motherboard is shorting against the case

Question 11

A customer reports that their desktop PC will not power on at all. The power supply fan does not spin, and no LEDs light up. You have verified the wall outlet is working. Which motherboard component is most likely preventing the system from starting?

Accepted Answer

Front panel header. The CMOS battery is not involved in the power-on process; it only maintains BIOS settings. The chipset and CPU are not directly responsible for the initial power-up sequence. The power-on process begins with the power button connecting to the front panel header, and if that connection is faulty, the motherboard never receives the signal to start the PSU.

Answer

CMOS battery

Answer

Chipset heatsink

Answer

CPU socket

Question 12

A technician is upgrading a workstation from DDR3 to DDR4 memory. The motherboard currently has two DDR3 DIMM slots occupied. What must the technician verify before installing the new memory?

Accepted Answer

The motherboard has DDR4 DIMM slots. DDR3 and DDR4 have different notch positions and voltage requirements, so they are not interchangeable. The motherboard must physically support DDR4, which means it must have DDR4 DIMM slots. The CPU socket type and chipset are secondary; the key factor is the motherboard's memory generation support.

Answer

The CPU supports DDR4 memory

Answer

The power supply has a 4-pin connector for memory

Answer

The chipset supports dual-channel configuration

Question 13

A user reports that their PC randomly shuts down after about 30 minutes of use. You suspect a thermal issue. Which motherboard component is most directly responsible for monitoring CPU temperature and initiating a shutdown if it exceeds safe limits?

Accepted Answer

Super I/O chip. The Super I/O chip is responsible for monitoring hardware sensors, including CPU temperature, and can trigger a hardware-level shutdown if thresholds are exceeded. The BIOS/UEFI configures these thresholds, but the actual monitoring is done by the Super I/O. The chipset and voltage regulator module do not perform thermal monitoring.

Answer

BIOS/UEFI firmware

Answer

Chipset (PCH)

Answer

Voltage regulator module (VRM)

Question 14

During a hardware installation, a technician needs to connect the front panel USB 3.0 ports of a new case to the motherboard. The motherboard has a 20-pin USB 3.0 header. Which cable from the case should be connected to this header?

Accepted Answer

A 20-pin (19-pin) USB 3.0 cable. The USB 3.0 internal header is a 20-pin (or 19-pin) connector that carries data for up to two USB 3.0 ports. The case's USB 3.0 cable will have a matching connector. USB 2.0 headers are 9-pin, and the audio header is different. The power LED is a separate 2-pin connector.

Answer

A 9-pin USB 2.0 cable

Answer

A 4-pin power LED cable

Answer

A 10-pin audio cable

Question 15

A technician is troubleshooting a PC that fails to boot and emits a series of long beeps. The motherboard documentation indicates this is a memory error. Which component on the motherboard is responsible for generating these beep codes?

Accepted Answer

BIOS/UEFI chip. The BIOS/UEFI firmware is responsible for the Power-On Self-Test (POST) and uses the speaker to emit beep codes to indicate hardware errors. The CMOS battery only retains settings, the chipset handles data flow, and the Super I/O manages I/O but not POST beep codes.

Answer

CMOS battery

Answer

Chipset

Answer

Super I/O chip