220-1201 Practice Exam 66 — 20 Questions

Question 1

A user reports that their laser printer is producing pages with vertical black streaks. The streaks appear in the same location on every page, even after cleaning the glass and performing a calibration. Which component is most likely causing this issue?

Accepted Answer

Toner cartridge drum. Vertical black streaks on laser printer output that repeat in the same location typically indicate a damaged drum or a scratched organic photoconductor (OPC) drum. The drum is responsible for transferring toner to the paper, and any defect on its surface will reproduce the streak on every page.

Answer

Fuser assembly

Answer

Pickup rollers

Answer

Transfer roller

Question 2

A small office has an inkjet printer that intermittently prints blank pages. The printer has been recently refilled with ink, and the printhead alignment test prints correctly. What is the most likely cause of the blank pages?

Accepted Answer

Clogged printhead nozzles. Inkjet printers that print blank pages often have clogged printhead nozzles, especially after refilling. Even if the alignment test prints fine, the nozzles may be partially blocked, causing some pages to print blank. Running a printhead cleaning cycle usually resolves this.

Answer

Low ink levels in the cartridge

Answer

Faulty fuser assembly

Answer

Incorrect paper type setting

Question 3

During a routine printer maintenance, you replace the toner cartridge in a laser printer. After reassembly, the printer displays 'Replace Toner' error even though the new cartridge is installed. What should you do first?

Accepted Answer

Remove the protective seal and reseat the cartridge. The 'Replace Toner' error after installing a new cartridge often means the cartridge is not properly seated or the protective seal was not removed. Removing the seal allows toner to flow, and reseating ensures the printer detects the cartridge correctly.

Answer

Replace the fuser assembly

Answer

Clean the corona wire

Answer

Update the printer firmware

Question 4

A user in a law office reports that their laser printer prints documents with faint text and light images. The toner cartridge is new, and the printer has sufficient toner. Which component should you inspect or replace first?

Accepted Answer

Drum unit. Faint print with a new toner cartridge often points to a worn or damaged drum. The drum is part of the toner cartridge or a separate unit, and if it is worn, it cannot hold a proper charge, resulting in light output. Replacing the drum or the entire cartridge usually solves the problem.

Answer

Transfer roller

Answer

Fuser assembly

Answer

Pickup rollers

Question 5

A network printer in a school is shared by multiple users. They report that print jobs are frequently stuck in the queue and never print, but the printer itself is powered on and shows no errors. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The printer has a faulty network cable or incorrect IP configuration. Print jobs stuck in the queue often indicate a communication issue between the printer and the network. A bad network cable or incorrect IP configuration can cause the printer to appear online but not receive data. Checking the network connection and printer IP settings is the first step.

Answer

The printer driver is outdated

Answer

The print spooler service is stopped on the print server

Answer

The printer's fuser is worn out

Question 6

A user complains that their inkjet printer produces smudged output that rubs off when touched. The printer uses standard plain paper and the ink cartridges are original. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The paper type setting is incorrect for the media. Smudged ink that rubs off on an inkjet printer usually means the ink is not drying properly. This can happen if the paper type setting is incorrect (e.g., set to 'plain paper' when using glossy paper) or if the printer is set to a high-speed mode that doesn't allow enough drying time. Adjusting the paper type or print quality setting often resolves the issue.

Answer

The printhead is misaligned

Answer

The ink cartridges are counterfeit

Answer

The fuser is malfunctioning

Question 7

A technician is installing a new thermal printer for a retail point-of-sale system. After connecting the printer and installing the driver, the printer prints garbled characters and random symbols. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The printer driver is incorrect for the model. Garbled characters or random symbols often indicate a driver mismatch or incorrect printer language setting. Thermal printers typically use ESC/POS or similar commands. Installing the wrong driver or having the communication settings (baud rate, parity) misconfigured can cause the printer to misinterpret data.

Answer

The thermal paper is loaded upside down

Answer

The printhead is dirty

Answer

The printer is out of paper

Question 8

A user reports that their laser printer prints pages with a repeating horizontal band of missing text about every 3 inches. The printer has a new toner cartridge and the drum is separate. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The drum unit has a scratch or defect. Repeating horizontal defects at regular intervals are classic symptoms of a damaged roller or drum. The distance between defects matches the circumference of the drum or a roller. Since the toner cartridge is new, the issue likely lies with the separate drum unit or a roller (like the transfer roller) that has a defect.

Answer

The fuser is not reaching the correct temperature

Answer

The toner cartridge is defective

Answer

The paper is damp or of poor quality

Question 9

A large organization uses multiple network printers. One printer consistently prints pages with a faint ghost image of the previous page's content. The printer has been recently serviced with a new toner cartridge and drum. What component is most likely causing this ghosting?

Accepted Answer

The fuser assembly is failing. Ghosting—a faint duplicate of a previous image—is often caused by a failing fuser that does not properly clean residual toner from the drum or by a worn cleaning blade. Even with new consumables, the fuser or cleaning assembly may be worn. The fuser's heat and pressure can cause toner to stick and transfer later.

Answer

The transfer roller is worn

Answer

The toner cartridge is low on toner

Answer

The paper path has a buildup of toner

Question 10

A user reports that their inkjet printer produces output with horizontal white lines through text and images. The printer has been used heavily for months without maintenance. What should you do to resolve this issue?

Accepted Answer

Run the printer's printhead cleaning cycle. Horizontal white lines on inkjet output indicate clogged printhead nozzles. Over time, dried ink can block nozzles, preventing ink from being deposited. Running a printhead cleaning cycle uses the printer's built-in routine to clear clogs. If that fails, a manual cleaning or replacement may be needed.

Answer

Replace the fuser assembly

Answer

Perform a printhead alignment

Answer

Replace the pickup rollers

Question 11

A user reports that their laser printer is producing pages with vertical black streaks. The streaks appear in the same position on every page. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

A scratched drum. Vertical black streaks on laser printer output are typically caused by a damaged or scratched drum. The drum rotates and transfers toner, so any defect creates a repeating mark. Cleaning or replacing the drum usually resolves the issue.

Answer

Low toner cartridge

Answer

A dirty corona wire

Answer

A faulty fuser

Question 12

A small office uses an inkjet printer that has not been used for two weeks. Now, the prints show missing colors and horizontal white lines. What should be done first to resolve this?

Accepted Answer

Run the printhead cleaning cycle. Inkjet printers that sit idle often have dried ink in the printhead nozzles, causing missing colors or lines. Running the printer's built-in printhead cleaning cycle uses ink to flush the nozzles. If that fails, a manual cleaning or replacement may be needed.

Answer

Replace the ink cartridges

Answer

Update the printer driver

Answer

Replace the printer

Question 13

During a printer deployment, a technician installs a network laser printer and configures it with a static IP address. Users can print from their computers, but the printer's web interface is unreachable from any browser. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The printer's embedded web server is disabled. If printing works but the web interface is inaccessible, the printer's network settings are likely correct, but the web server service may be disabled or blocked by a firewall. Many printers have a separate setting to enable the embedded web server. Checking the printer's menu or documentation is the next step.

Answer

The printer's IP address is on a different subnet

Answer

The printer driver is outdated

Answer

The printer's firmware needs updating

Question 14

A user complains that their laser printer is picking up multiple sheets of paper at once, causing jams. The paper tray is full of standard 20 lb bond paper. Which component is most likely causing this issue?

Accepted Answer

The separation pad is worn. Multiple sheets feeding into the printer is typically due to worn or dirty separation pads, which are designed to separate one sheet from the stack. Over time, these pads lose friction. Cleaning or replacing the separation pad usually fixes the problem.

Answer

The pickup roller is worn

Answer

The paper is too thin

Answer

The fuser is overheating

Question 15

A thermal printer used for shipping labels is producing faint, hard-to-read labels. The printer has plenty of thermal paper loaded. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The printhead is dirty or worn. Thermal printers rely on the printhead heating the paper. Faint output usually indicates a dirty or worn printhead. Cleaning the printhead with a thermal cleaning pen or alcohol swab often restores clarity. If the printhead is worn, replacement may be needed.

Answer

The paper is upside down

Answer

The printer driver is incorrect

Answer

The paper is expired

Question 16

A user reports that their laser printer prints a blank page after every print job. The document itself prints correctly, but an extra blank sheet follows. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The printer driver is set to print a separator page. An extra blank page after a print job is often caused by a setting in the printer driver or application that adds a separator page. This is common when 'Print separator page' is enabled. Checking the driver settings and disabling any separator page option usually resolves it.

Answer

The printer has a low toner cartridge

Answer

The fuser is malfunctioning

Answer

The paper size setting is wrong

Question 17

A technician is troubleshooting a laser printer that produces a '50.1 Fuser Error' message on the display. The printer is in a dusty warehouse environment. What should the technician do first?

Accepted Answer

Power cycle the printer. A fuser error code like 50.1 indicates the fuser is not reaching the correct temperature or has a hardware fault. The first step is to power cycle the printer to clear temporary errors. If the error persists, the fuser assembly likely needs replacement. Dust can cause overheating or sensor issues.

Answer

Replace the fuser immediately

Answer

Clean the fuser with compressed air

Answer

Update the printer firmware

Question 18

A user says their inkjet printer prints colors that are slightly misaligned, with text appearing blurry. The printer has been used heavily for months. Which component should be checked or calibrated first?

Accepted Answer

The printhead alignment. Misaligned colors and blurry text on an inkjet printer typically indicate that the printhead alignment is off. Most inkjet printers have a built-in alignment utility that prints a test page and adjusts the printhead position. Running this calibration is the standard first step.

Answer

The ink cartridge nozzles

Answer

The paper type setting

Answer

The printer driver version

Question 19

A technician is deploying a new laser printer in a medical office. After installation, the printer prints a test page correctly, but when users print from their workstations, the output is garbled with random characters. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The printer driver is incorrect or corrupt. Garbled output from a printer that works on a test page but not from workstations usually indicates a driver mismatch. The test page uses the printer's internal firmware, while user print jobs rely on the installed driver. Installing the correct driver for the printer model and operating system resolves the issue.

Answer

The printer's network cable is faulty

Answer

The printer's memory is full

Answer

The printer is set to PostScript emulation but the driver uses PCL

Question 20

A user reports that their laser printer occasionally prints pages with a faint ghost image of the previous page. The ghost image appears about 2 inches below the current content. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The drum cleaning blade is worn. Ghosting in laser printers is often caused by a worn or damaged cleaning blade that fails to remove residual toner from the drum. The leftover toner transfers to the next page, creating a faint duplicate. Replacing the cleaning blade or drum unit usually fixes the problem.

Answer

The toner cartridge is low

Answer

The fuser is overheating

Answer

The paper is damp