220-1201 Practice Exam 64 — 20 Questions

Question 1

A small business is moving to a new office that already has a fiber-optic termination point installed. They need the fastest symmetrical speeds for cloud-based applications. Which internet connection type should they choose?

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

Accepted Answer

Fiber-optic. Fiber-optic internet provides symmetrical speeds (equal upload and download) essential for cloud-based applications that require fast data transfer in both directions. Unlike other connection types, fiber uses light signals through glass strands, offering low latency and high bandwidth that scale to meet business needs without the distance limitations of copper-based technologies.

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DSL

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Cable broadband

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Satellite

Question 2

A technician is setting up internet for a remote cabin that is 5 miles from the nearest road. No wired infrastructure exists. Which connection type is most practical for reliable, moderate-speed internet?

Accepted Answer

Satellite. Satellite internet is the only viable option for a remote cabin 5 miles from the nearest road with no wired infrastructure. It uses a geostationary satellite to provide coverage anywhere with a clear line of sight to the sky, offering moderate speeds (typically 25–100 Mbps) without requiring terrestrial cabling. DSL, cable, and fiber all depend on physical infrastructure (copper phone lines, coaxial cable, or fiber optic cables) that cannot reach such a remote location.

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DSL

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Cable

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Fiber optic

Question 3

A technician is troubleshooting a fiber optic connection where the ONT (Optical Network Terminal) has a red 'LOS' (Loss of Signal) light. The fiber cable appears intact. What should the technician check next?

Accepted Answer

Inspect and clean the fiber connector.. A red LOS (Loss of Signal) light on the ONT indicates that no light is being received from the optical line terminal (OLT) at the central office. Since the fiber cable appears intact, the most likely cause is a dirty or damaged connector at the ONT or the wall jack, which can attenuate the optical signal below the receiver threshold. Cleaning the fiber connector with a proper one-click cleaner or inspection scope is the standard next step before considering hardware replacement.

Answer

Replace the ONT immediately.

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Check the power supply to the ONT.

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Reboot the router connected to the ONT.

Question 4

A user's cable internet goes out completely after a power outage. The modem's power light is on, but the 'online' light is blinking. What is the most likely issue?

Accepted Answer

The modem is re-establishing its connection to the ISP.. After a power outage, the modem's power light being on indicates it has power, but the blinking 'online' light shows it has lost its upstream connection to the ISP. Cable modems use DOCSIS (Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification) to establish a link with the Cable Modem Termination System (CMTS). The blinking online light is the standard behavior during the re-initialization and ranging process, which can take several minutes as the modem negotiates frequencies, timing, and power levels with the CMTS.

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The modem's firmware was corrupted during the outage.

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The coaxial cable was damaged by the power surge.

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The router's DHCP server failed.

Question 5

An IT manager is comparing cable broadband and fiber-optic for a new office. They need the lowest possible latency for real-time financial trading applications. Which connection type should they choose, and why?

Accepted Answer

Fiber-optic, because it provides lower latency due to the speed of light in glass and dedicated bandwidth. Fiber-optic connections transmit data as light pulses through glass, which travels at approximately 2/3 the speed of light in a vacuum, significantly faster than electrical signals in copper. Additionally, fiber provides dedicated bandwidth per user, eliminating the contention and latency spikes common in cable broadband's shared coaxial architecture. This combination of propagation speed and consistent low latency makes fiber the optimal choice for real-time financial trading where microseconds matter.

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Cable broadband, because it uses coaxial cable which is faster than fiber

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Fiber-optic, because it uses light signals and is not subject to electromagnetic interference

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Cable broadband, because it has higher download speeds

Question 6

A customer wants to switch from cable internet to a fixed wireless ISP (WISP) to reduce costs. What is a critical requirement for the WISP installation?

Accepted Answer

A clear line-of-sight to the provider's tower.. Fixed wireless internet (WISP) relies on radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted between an antenna at the customer's location and a tower operated by the provider. Unlike cable or fiber, RF signals are highly susceptible to physical obstructions such as buildings, trees, or terrain; therefore, a clear line-of-sight (LOS) is a critical requirement for establishing a reliable connection. Without LOS, signal attenuation or multipath interference will likely prevent the link from achieving usable throughput or even establishing a connection at all.

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A direct fiber connection from the provider's office.

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A dedicated phone line for the modem.

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A satellite dish with a 2-foot diameter.

Question 7

A technician is configuring a new SOHO router for a client who has a DSL internet connection. What type of cable will the technician use to connect the router to the wall jack?

Accepted Answer

Telephone cable (RJ-11). DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) transmits data over standard copper telephone lines using frequencies above the voice band. The wall jack for DSL is a standard RJ-11 phone jack, so the technician must use a telephone cable with RJ-11 connectors to connect the router's DSL port to the wall jack.

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Coaxial cable (RG-6)

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Fiber optic cable

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Ethernet cable (RJ-45)

Question 8

A company is deploying VoIP phones and needs a connection with low latency and consistent speeds. They are choosing between cable broadband and fiber-optic. Which factor makes fiber the better choice?

Accepted Answer

Fiber provides symmetrical upload and download speeds. Fiber-optic connections use separate strands for upstream and downstream data, enabling symmetrical speeds. For VoIP, this ensures consistent upload bandwidth for voice packets, which is critical for low latency and jitter. Cable broadband (DOCSIS) typically has asymmetric speeds due to shared upstream channels, making fiber the better choice for real-time voice traffic.

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Fiber has higher download speeds

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Fiber is less prone to electromagnetic interference

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Fiber is cheaper than cable

Question 9

A technician is troubleshooting a DSL connection that syncs at only 1.5 Mbps when the plan is 10 Mbps. The line is 12,000 feet from the central office. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The distance from the central office is too great.. DSL speeds degrade significantly with distance due to signal attenuation and noise. At 12,000 feet from the central office, ADSL2+ typically cannot sustain 10 Mbps; 1.5 Mbps is consistent with the maximum achievable rate at that distance. The sync rate is determined by line conditions, not the plan speed, making distance the primary limiting factor.

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The modem is defective.

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The router's firmware needs updating.

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The ISP is throttling the connection.

Question 10

A technician is called to a home where the customer reports that their cable internet works fine, but the TV service has pixelated channels. The technician suspects a signal issue. What is the most appropriate tool to measure the signal strength and quality on the coaxial line?

Accepted Answer

A cable tester (signal level meter). A cable tester (signal level meter) is the correct tool because it measures both signal strength (in dBmV) and signal quality (SNR or MER) on a coaxial line, which directly diagnoses pixelation caused by poor signal levels or noise. The technician needs to verify that the RF signal from the cable provider meets the required thresholds (typically -10 to +10 dBmV for downstream) to ensure clear TV reception.

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A tone generator and probe

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A multimeter

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An optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR)

Question 11

A technician is setting up a small office with five computers that need to share files and a printer. The office is in a single room, and no internet access is required yet. Which network type should be created?

Accepted Answer

Local Area Network (LAN). A Local Area Network (LAN) is the correct choice because it connects devices within a limited physical area, such as a single room or office, enabling file sharing and printer access without requiring internet connectivity. LANs typically use Ethernet (IEEE 802.3) or Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11) to provide high-speed, low-latency communication between the five computers and the printer, making it ideal for this small office setup.

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Personal Area Network (PAN)

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Wide Area Network (WAN)

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Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

Question 12

A client reports that their new IoT smart bulb can be controlled from a smartphone app only when the phone is within 10 meters of the bulb. The bulb does not connect to the home Wi-Fi. Which network type is the smart bulb using?

Accepted Answer

Personal area network (PAN). The smart bulb uses a personal area network (PAN) because it communicates directly with the smartphone over a short-range wireless technology, such as Bluetooth or Zigbee, without connecting to a home Wi-Fi router. The 10-meter range limitation is a key characteristic of PAN technologies, which are designed for device-to-device communication within a few meters to about 10 meters. This contrasts with WLAN, which would require Wi-Fi and a router for broader coverage.

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Wireless local area network (WLAN)

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Metropolitan area network (MAN)

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Wide area network (WAN)

Question 13

A technician is asked to set up a network for a new branch office that will connect back to the main headquarters using a leased line. The branch has 50 employees who need access to centralized databases and email. Which network type best describes the branch office's internal network?

Accepted Answer

Local area network (LAN). The branch office's internal network connects 50 employees within a single physical location, providing shared access to local resources like printers and servers. This fits the definition of a Local Area Network (LAN), which operates over a limited geographic area and uses high-speed technologies such as Ethernet (IEEE 802.3) and Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11). The leased line to headquarters is a separate WAN connection, but the internal network itself remains a LAN.

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Wide area network (WAN)

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Metropolitan area network (MAN)

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Personal area network (PAN)

Question 14

A small business wants to connect two separate office buildings that are 150 meters apart, with no existing data cabling between them. They need a reliable, high-speed connection without running new cables. Which type of network should be implemented?

Accepted Answer

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN). A Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) is the best choice because it is designed to connect networks over a metropolitan area, typically using technologies like fiber optics or wireless bridges. Since the buildings are 150 meters apart and no new cables can be run, a wireless bridge (a common MAN technology) provides a reliable, high-speed connection without cabling. WANs are intended for larger geographic areas, LANs are limited to a single building, and PANs are for personal device connections.

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Personal Area Network (PAN)

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Local Area Network (LAN)

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Wide Area Network (WAN)

Question 15

A technician is setting up a network for a university campus that spans several buildings across a 2-kilometer area. The network must support both wired and wireless connections for thousands of users. Which network type best describes this setup?

Accepted Answer

Campus Area Network (CAN). A Campus Area Network (CAN) is specifically designed to interconnect multiple buildings within a limited geographic area, such as a university campus or corporate park, typically spanning up to a few kilometers. This setup requires high-speed backbone links (often fiber optic) to support thousands of users with both wired and wireless access, which aligns perfectly with the CAN definition.

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Wide Area Network (WAN)

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Personal Area Network (PAN)

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Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

Question 16

A company has offices in two different cities and needs to connect their local networks so employees can access centralized resources. They require a secure, high-speed connection over a long distance. Which network type should be used?

Accepted Answer

Wide Area Network (WAN). A Wide Area Network (WAN) is the correct choice because it connects geographically separated networks over long distances, providing the secure, high-speed link required for centralized resource access between two cities. Technologies like MPLS, leased lines (e.g., T1/E1), or VPNs over fiber optic connections are commonly used to implement WANs for such inter-site connectivity.

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Local Area Network (LAN)

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Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

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Personal Area Network (PAN)

Question 17

A technician is configuring a network for a municipal government that needs to connect public Wi-Fi hotspots across a city, covering an area of about 50 square kilometers. The network must be secure and provide internet access to citizens. Which network type should be deployed?

Accepted Answer

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN). A Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) is designed to cover a geographic area larger than a LAN but smaller than a WAN, typically spanning a city or a large campus. For a municipal government connecting public Wi-Fi hotspots across 50 square kilometers, a MAN provides the necessary range and can utilize technologies like Metro Ethernet or fiber-optic rings to deliver secure, high-speed internet access to citizens.

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Local Area Network (LAN)

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Wide Area Network (WAN)

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Personal Area Network (PAN)

Question 18

A user's laptop connects to the office Wi-Fi but cannot access the internet. Other devices on the same network work fine. The laptop's IP address is 169.254.25.14. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The DHCP server is not responding or the laptop cannot reach it.. The IP address 169.254.25.14 falls within the Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) range (169.254.0.0/16), which Windows assigns when a DHCP client fails to receive an IP lease from a DHCP server. Since other devices on the same network work fine, the issue is isolated to this laptop's inability to communicate with the DHCP server, not a network-wide outage. This makes option C correct.

Answer

The DNS server is unreachable.

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The laptop's wireless adapter driver is corrupted.

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The SSID is hidden and requires manual entry.

Question 19

A company is setting up a guest wireless network in a conference room. They want to ensure that guests can access the internet but cannot communicate with internal corporate devices. The network uses a single router and a switch. Which configuration on the router will best achieve this?

Accepted Answer

Create a separate VLAN for the guest network and apply an ACL to block traffic to the internal network.. Creating a separate VLAN for the guest network isolates guest traffic at Layer 2, and applying an ACL on the router's VLAN interface blocks traffic destined for the internal network while permitting internet-bound traffic. This ensures guests cannot reach internal corporate devices, meeting the security requirement without additional hardware.

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Configure the router to use DHCP for the guest network.

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Disable the SSID broadcast for the guest network.

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Use a wireless access point with a built-in firewall.

Question 20

A technician is configuring a new email server for a small business. Employees need to send and receive email from their desktop clients (Outlook) and also access email via a web browser. Which combination of protocols should the technician configure on the server to support both client types?

Accepted Answer

SMTP, POP3, and HTTP. SMTP is the standard protocol for sending outgoing email, POP3 allows desktop clients like Outlook to download and store emails locally, and HTTP enables web browser access to the email server (often via a webmail interface). This combination supports both client types: Outlook uses SMTP/POP3, while a browser uses HTTP to access the webmail service.

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FTP, SMTP, and DNS

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IMAP, SNMP, and HTTPS

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DHCP, SMTP, and POP3