220-1201 Practice Test 47 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A customer reports that their new desktop PC runs for exactly 30 minutes and then shuts down. After the shutdown, the system won't power back on for several minutes. What is the most likely BIOS/UEFI-related cause of this behavior?

Accepted Answer

The BIOS thermal protection feature is triggering due to CPU overheating.. This scenario describes thermal shutdown protection. The BIOS/UEFI monitors CPU temperature via sensors and will shut down the system to prevent damage if temperatures exceed safe thresholds. The delay before restarting allows the CPU to cool down.

Answer

The BIOS has a power-on password enabled.

Answer

The BIOS is set to the wrong CPU multiplier.

Answer

The UEFI boot order is set to network boot first.

Question 2

A technician is installing a new M.2 NVMe SSD in a desktop computer. After installation, the drive is not listed in the operating system's disk management tool, but it appears in the UEFI firmware interface. What should the technician do first?

Accepted Answer

Initialize the disk in Disk Management and create a volume.. When a drive is recognized in UEFI but not in the OS, it often means the drive is not initialized or formatted. Disk Management can initialize the drive and assign a file system, making it usable by the OS.

Answer

Update the UEFI firmware to the latest version.

Answer

Change the SATA mode from AHCI to IDE in UEFI.

Answer

Reseat the M.2 drive in the slot.

Question 3

A user wants to boot their laptop from a USB flash drive to run a diagnostic tool. They have already inserted the USB drive and restarted the system. What is the most efficient way to temporarily change the boot order to boot from the USB drive?

Accepted Answer

Press the appropriate key to open the one-time boot menu and select the USB drive.. Most modern UEFI systems allow you to press a key (like F12, F2, Esc) during startup to access a one-time boot menu. This lets you select the boot device for that session without permanently changing the boot order.

Answer

Enter the UEFI setup and change the boot order permanently.

Answer

Disable Secure Boot in the UEFI settings.

Answer

Remove all other bootable drives from the system.

Question 4

A technician is configuring a new workstation and needs to ensure the system can address more than 4 GB of RAM. The motherboard supports 16 GB of DDR4 memory. Which UEFI setting must be verified to ensure the OS can use all installed memory?

Accepted Answer

Enable the 'Memory Remap' feature in the UEFI.. For systems with more than 4 GB of RAM, the OS must be 64-bit, and the firmware must have memory remapping enabled. This feature allows the UEFI to reassign memory addresses previously reserved for PCI devices, making the full RAM capacity available to the OS.

Answer

Set the boot mode to Legacy BIOS instead of UEFI.

Answer

Disable the integrated graphics in the UEFI.

Answer

Change the SATA mode from AHCI to RAID.

Question 5

During a system boot, a user sees an error message: 'CMOS checksum error - Defaults loaded.' The system then boots normally but loses the date and time settings after power-off. What is the most likely hardware failure?

Accepted Answer

The motherboard's CMOS battery is depleted or failing.. The CMOS checksum error indicates that the BIOS settings are corrupted or not being retained. The date/time resetting after power-off points to a failing or dead CMOS battery, which powers the volatile memory that stores these settings when the system is off.

Answer

The UEFI firmware has become corrupted and needs reflashing.

Answer

The power supply unit is not providing enough standby power.

Answer

The hard drive is failing and corrupting the boot sector.

Question 6

A technician is building a new PC for a graphic designer who needs to run Windows 11. The technician installs a 2 TB NVMe SSD and 32 GB of RAM. During Windows installation, the installer reports that the drive cannot be used because it uses the MBR partition table. What UEFI setting or action should the technician change?

Accepted Answer

Convert the drive to GPT using the diskpart utility during installation.. Windows 11 requires UEFI with GPT partition table and Secure Boot. The error indicates the drive is using MBR, which is incompatible with UEFI. The technician should either convert the drive to GPT using diskpart or reinitialize it as GPT during installation.

Answer

Enable Legacy BIOS mode in the UEFI to support MBR.

Answer

Disable Secure Boot in the UEFI settings.

Answer

Update the UEFI firmware to the latest version.

Question 7

A technician is troubleshooting a desktop that beeps three times repeatedly and shows a blank screen upon power-on. The system has a discrete GPU installed and two sticks of RAM. What is the most likely cause indicated by the beep code?

Accepted Answer

The RAM is faulty or not properly installed.. Beep codes are used by the BIOS/UEFI to indicate hardware errors during POST. Three beeps typically indicate a memory (RAM) error. The technician should reseat or test the RAM sticks individually to isolate the faulty module.

Answer

The discrete GPU is not seated properly.

Answer

The CPU has failed or is overheating.

Answer

The BIOS battery is dead.

Question 8

A company is migrating its fleet of 100 desktops from Windows 10 to Windows 11. The IT department needs to enable TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot on each system via the UEFI. Some older systems have TPM disabled by default. Which UEFI setting must be changed to enable TPM?

Accepted Answer

Enable TPM in the UEFI security settings and set the boot mode to UEFI.. TPM (Trusted Platform Module) is often disabled by default in the UEFI firmware. It must be enabled in the security settings of the UEFI. Additionally, the system must be set to UEFI mode (not Legacy) with Secure Boot enabled for Windows 11 compatibility.

Answer

Update the UEFI firmware to the latest version from the manufacturer.

Answer

Disable the integrated graphics to free up resources for TPM.

Answer

Set the SATA controller to RAID mode.

Question 9

A technician is tasked with securing a workstation that will be used in a public kiosk. The requirement is that the system must only boot from the internal SSD and must prevent booting from USB drives or optical media. Which UEFI security feature should be configured?

Accepted Answer

Disable all external boot devices in the UEFI boot order and set a supervisor password.. To prevent unauthorized booting from external media, the technician must set a boot order that prioritizes the internal SSD and disable other boot devices. Additionally, setting a UEFI administrator password prevents unauthorized users from changing these settings.

Answer

Enable Secure Boot and set a UEFI administrator password.

Answer

Set the boot mode to Legacy BIOS and disable USB support.

Answer

Enable the TPM and set a power-on password.

Question 10

A technician is deploying a new server that requires RAID 10 for data redundancy and performance. The motherboard has an onboard RAID controller. After configuring the RAID array in the UEFI RAID utility, the technician installs the OS, but the RAID volume is not visible in the OS installer. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The SATA mode is set to AHCI instead of RAID in the UEFI.. When using a hardware RAID controller, the OS installer needs the appropriate driver to recognize the RAID volume. Without the driver, the installer sees individual drives instead of the array. The technician must load the RAID driver during installation, typically by pressing a key (e.g., F6) or browsing for the driver.

Answer

The RAID array was not properly initialized in the UEFI RAID utility.

Answer

The UEFI boot mode is set to Legacy, which does not support RAID.

Question 11

A customer reports that their new NVMe SSD is not detected by the system, even though it is properly seated. The motherboard supports both UEFI and legacy BIOS. Which firmware setting should be enabled to ensure the NVMe drive is recognized?

Accepted Answer

Enable UEFI boot mode and disable CSM. NVMe drives require UEFI mode because legacy BIOS lacks the necessary driver support for NVMe controllers. Enabling UEFI boot mode and disabling legacy/CSM allows the firmware to initialize the NVMe drive correctly. This question tests understanding of UEFI's role in supporting modern storage interfaces.

Answer

Enable Legacy BIOS mode

Answer

Enable Secure Boot

Answer

Enable SATA hot-plug

Question 12

During a BIOS update on a workstation, the power is interrupted, and now the system fails to POST. The motherboard has a backup BIOS chip. What is the most efficient way to recover the system?

Accepted Answer

Switch the motherboard's dual BIOS jumper to the backup position. Many motherboards have a dual BIOS feature where a backup chip stores a factory-default firmware. Switching to the backup BIOS restores functionality without needing external tools. This scenario tests knowledge of BIOS recovery mechanisms and the importance of redundant firmware.

Answer

Replace the motherboard

Answer

Use a USB flash drive with the correct BIOS file and press a recovery key combination

Answer

Remove the CMOS battery for 30 minutes

Question 13

A technician needs to install Windows 10 on a new PC with a 2 TB hard drive. The motherboard supports UEFI with GPT. Which partition scheme and boot mode should be used to support the full drive capacity?

Accepted Answer

UEFI with GPT. UEFI requires GPT partition table to boot, and GPT supports drives larger than 2 TB. Legacy BIOS with MBR cannot address beyond 2 TB. This question reinforces the relationship between UEFI and GPT for large drives.

Answer

UEFI with MBR

Answer

Legacy BIOS with GPT

Answer

Legacy BIOS with MBR

Question 14

A user complains that their computer boots slowly and shows a 'Press F1 to continue' message every time. The firmware settings appear to have lost their configuration. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The CMOS battery is failing. A failing or depleted CMOS battery cannot retain BIOS settings, causing defaults to load and often requiring user intervention at boot. This is a common issue that leads to the 'Press F1' prompt. The question tests understanding of CMOS battery function in maintaining firmware settings.

Answer

The boot order is incorrect

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The hard drive is failing

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The BIOS version is outdated

Question 15

After replacing a CPU in a desktop, the system powers on but shows a black screen with no POST. The old CPU worked fine. Which BIOS-related step should be taken first?

Accepted Answer

Update the BIOS to a version that supports the new CPU. Many motherboards require a BIOS update to support newer CPU microcode. Without it, the system cannot initialize the CPU. This question tests knowledge of CPU compatibility and the role of firmware updates in hardware support.

Answer

Reset the CMOS by removing the battery

Answer

Check the CPU power cable connection

Answer

Enable legacy boot mode