220-1101 Practice Test 22 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A user reports that their workstation cannot access network resources. The technician runs ipconfig and sees the following: IP address: 192.168.1.100, Subnet mask: 255.255.255.0, Default gateway: 192.168.1.1. The technician pings 127.0.0.1 (success), pings 192.168.1.100 (success), but pinging 192.168.1.1 fails. Other workstations on the same subnet can ping the default gateway successfully. The cable is connected and the link light is on. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

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

Accepted Answer

Duplicate IP address.. The workstation has a valid IP address and subnet mask, and the loopback (127.0.0.1) and its own IP (192.168.1.100) respond to ping, confirming the TCP/IP stack and network interface are working. The failure to ping the default gateway (192.168.1.1) while other workstations on the same subnet can reach it indicates a local issue. A duplicate IP address on the network would cause the workstation to receive no reply from the gateway because the gateway's ARP table may map the IP to another device's MAC address, or the duplicate device may respond with a conflicting ARP reply, preventing proper communication.

Answer

DNS server is not configured.

Answer

Incorrect subnet mask.

Answer

Firewall on the workstation blocking ICMP.

Question 2

A technician is building a desktop computer and has installed a SATA solid-state drive (SSD). After connecting the SATA data cable and power cable, the computer boots to the BIOS, but the SSD is not listed in the SATA devices. The technician has verified that the SATA cable is securely connected to both the drive and the motherboard and that the power supply is functioning. Which of the following should the technician check NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Check the BIOS settings to ensure the SATA port is enabled.. The most likely reason the SSD is not detected is that the SATA port is disabled in the BIOS. Even with secure physical connections, a disabled port will not enumerate the drive. Checking and enabling the SATA port in the BIOS is the logical next step before considering other hardware or software issues.

Answer

Format the SSD using a different computer.

Answer

Update the motherboard chipset drivers.

Answer

Replace the CMOS battery.

Question 3

A technician assembles a new desktop computer using a third-party CPU cooler. After powering on, the CPU temperature rapidly rises to 95°C within a few seconds, and the CPU fan spins at maximum speed. The technician verifies that the thermal paste is applied correctly and that the CPU fan is connected to the CPU_FAN header. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the high temperature?

Accepted Answer

The heatsink is not properly seated or the mounting pressure is uneven. The rapid temperature spike to 95°C within seconds, despite correct thermal paste application and fan connection to the CPU_FAN header, indicates that the heatsink is not making proper thermal contact with the CPU. Uneven mounting pressure or an improperly seated heatsink creates air gaps that drastically reduce heat transfer efficiency, causing the CPU to overheat immediately under even idle power draw.

Answer

The CPU is not compatible with the motherboard

Answer

The CPU fan connector is plugged into a chassis fan header

Answer

The power supply unit is underpowered for the CPU

Question 4

A user reports that they cannot access the internet, but they can still access shared folders on the local network. The technician runs ipconfig on the workstation and sees an IP address of 169.254.10.15 with a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of this issue?

Accepted Answer

The DHCP server is unavailable. The IP address 169.254.10.15 with a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0 is an Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) address, which Windows assigns when a DHCP server is unavailable or fails to respond. Since the user can still access local shared folders (local link-layer communication works), but cannot reach the internet, the core issue is the lack of a valid DHCP lease, not a DNS or gateway misconfiguration.

Answer

The DNS server is not responding

Answer

The default gateway address is incorrect

Answer

The workstation has a static IP address configured

Question 5

A technician is building a new gaming PC. After installing the CPU, cooler, RAM, and graphics card, the system powers on but immediately powers off after about 5 seconds. The technician has verified that the CPU cooler fan is spinning, the power supply is sufficient, and all cables are connected. The motherboard has diagnostic LEDs; none light up before the system shuts down. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

A loose motherboard standoff is causing a short circuit. A loose motherboard standoff can create an unintended electrical connection between the motherboard's solder points and the metal case, causing a short circuit. This short typically triggers the power supply's overcurrent protection (OCP) or short-circuit protection (SCP), which immediately shuts down the system after a brief power-on to prevent damage. The fact that the system powers on for about 5 seconds and then shuts off, with no diagnostic LEDs lighting up, strongly indicates a hardware short rather than a component failure.

Answer

The CPU is overheating

Answer

The power button is stuck

Answer

Insufficient RAM

Question 6

A technician replaced the thermal paste on a desktop computer's CPU. After reassembling the system and powering it on, the computer runs for about 10 seconds and then shuts off. The technician touches the CPU heatsink and finds it is cool to the touch. The CPU fan is spinning. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the shutdown?

Accepted Answer

The heatsink is not making proper contact with the CPU.. The CPU thermal protection mechanism triggers a shutdown when the CPU temperature exceeds its safe operating threshold. Since the heatsink is cool to the touch, it indicates that heat is not being transferred from the CPU to the heatsink, which is a classic symptom of poor contact between the CPU and heatsink. Even though the CPU fan is spinning, without proper thermal transfer, the CPU rapidly overheats and shuts down to prevent damage.

Answer

The CPU fan is not spinning fast enough.

Answer

The power supply unit is failing.

Answer

The motherboard is shorted against the case.

Question 7

A user reports that they can ping other computers on the network by IP address and can access the internet, but they cannot access any shared folders or network printers on the local network. The user's IP configuration is correct and the network cable is securely connected. Which of the following should the technician check FIRST?

Accepted Answer

The local firewall settings on the user's computer. The user can ping other computers by IP and access the internet, which confirms that Layer 3 (IP) connectivity is working and the network cable is physically intact. The inability to access shared folders or network printers points to a Layer 4+ issue, typically caused by the local firewall blocking NetBIOS (ports 137-139) or SMB (port 445) traffic. Since the IP configuration is correct and the cable is secure, the first logical step is to check the local firewall settings on the user's computer.

Answer

The switch port configuration

Answer

The DHCP server lease status

Answer

The network cable for physical damage

Question 8

A technician is building a high-performance gaming PC. The motherboard has four DDR4 DIMM slots, and the technician installs two 8 GB modules in slots A2 and B2 (dual-channel configuration). The PC boots and works, but the BIOS shows only 8 GB of RAM. The technician reseats the modules and tries different slots, but the issue persists. Which of the following is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

One of the RAM modules is faulty. The most likely cause is that one of the RAM modules is faulty. When two modules are installed in a dual-channel configuration (slots A2 and B2) and the system detects only 8 GB instead of 16 GB, it typically indicates that one module is not being recognized or is failing. Reseating and swapping slots did not resolve the issue, which further points to a defective module rather than a configuration or compatibility problem.

Answer

The RAM modules are not compatible with the motherboard

Answer

The CPU cooler is installed too tightly, causing memory controller issues

Answer

Windows 10 has a memory limit for the edition installed

Question 9

A technician is troubleshooting a desktop computer that boots normally and runs for approximately five minutes before the screen goes blank and the system becomes unresponsive. The technician has replaced the power supply, RAM, and graphics card, but the issue persists. The CPU fan is spinning, and the CPU temperature reads 45°C in the BIOS. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the issue?

Accepted Answer

Failing capacitors on the motherboard. The symptom of a system that boots and runs for a few minutes before becoming unresponsive, with a stable CPU temperature of 45°C, strongly points to a motherboard hardware failure. Failing capacitors on the motherboard can cause voltage ripple or droop that degrades over time as the system warms up, leading to instability and a blank screen. Since the power supply, RAM, and graphics card have already been replaced without resolution, the motherboard is the most likely remaining component to cause this intermittent failure.

Answer

Faulty CPU

Answer

Defective hard drive

Answer

Weak CMOS battery

Question 10

A technician is troubleshooting a desktop PC that randomly restarts during intensive tasks, such as rendering video. The technician has replaced the power supply, updated drivers, run memory diagnostics, and verified CPU temperatures. The problem persists. The technician examines the motherboard and notices that several capacitors near the CPU socket appear slightly domed on top. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the random restarts?

Accepted Answer

The motherboard has failing capacitors causing voltage instability.. Domed capacitors indicate that the electrolytic fluid inside has leaked or the capacitor has failed, leading to an inability to maintain stable voltage regulation. Under the high current draw of intensive tasks like video rendering, this voltage instability causes the motherboard to trigger a reset or shutdown to protect components. Since the technician has already replaced the power supply and verified CPU temperatures, the failing capacitors are the most likely remaining cause.

Answer

The CPU is failing under load.

Answer

The hard drive is failing.

Answer

The operating system is corrupt.

Question 11

An administrator manages a virtualized environment running on a Type 1 hypervisor (VMware ESXi). The physical host has 64 GB of RAM. The sum of allocated memory to all running VMs is 80 GB, and the hypervisor is using memory ballooning to reclaim memory from VMs. A critical database VM is experiencing significant performance degradation. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the performance issue?

Accepted Answer

The database VM is experiencing memory starvation due to the hypervisor reclaiming memory via ballooning.. The physical host has only 64 GB of RAM, but the sum of allocated memory to all running VMs is 80 GB, which is a 25% overcommitment. VMware ESXi uses memory ballooning to reclaim memory from VMs by forcing the VM's balloon driver to allocate guest memory, which the hypervisor then reclaims for other VMs. The critical database VM is experiencing significant performance degradation because the hypervisor is reclaiming memory from it via ballooning, causing the VM to swap to disk (memory starvation), which severely impacts database performance.

Answer

The hypervisor is overcommitting CPU resources, causing contention.

Answer

The VM's virtual disk is on a slow network storage link.

Answer

The hypervisor has insufficient network bandwidth for inter-VM communication.

Question 12

A technician is building a workstation and installs an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X CPU (which does not have an integrated GPU) onto an ASUS B550 motherboard that has an HDMI port. The technician connects a monitor to the motherboard's HDMI port, but the monitor displays 'No Signal'. The system powers on, fans spin, and RAM is installed. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the issue?

Accepted Answer

The CPU does not have an integrated GPU.. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600X CPU does not include an integrated GPU (iGPU). Therefore, the motherboard's HDMI port, which relies on the CPU's integrated graphics to output video, will not receive any signal. The monitor displays 'No Signal' because there is no graphics source being sent through that port. To get video output, a discrete GPU must be installed and the monitor connected to it.

Answer

The power supply is not connected to the CPU power header.

Answer

The RAM is not installed in the correct slots for dual-channel mode.

Answer

The motherboard's CMOS battery is dead.

Question 13

A company hosts a critical database on a virtual machine (VM) in a public cloud IaaS environment. The database requires high IOPS and low latency. The data must persist even if the VM is stopped or terminated. Additionally, the administrator needs to take frequent snapshots for backup. Which of the following storage types should be used for the database VM?

Accepted Answer

Block storage. Block storage (e.g., AWS EBS, Azure Managed Disks) provides raw, low-latency volumes that can be attached to a VM, supporting high IOPS for database workloads. Data persists independently of the VM lifecycle—even if the VM is stopped or terminated—and snapshots can be taken for backup. This makes block storage the correct choice for a critical database requiring persistence and frequent snapshots.

Answer

Object storage

Answer

File storage

Answer

Ephemeral storage

Question 14

A user reports that their Android smartphone can see the corporate Wi-Fi network (SSID: CorpNet) but fails to connect, displaying 'Authentication error'. Other devices on the same network connect successfully. The technician has confirmed the Wi-Fi password is correct and the device is not using a static IP. Which of the following is the BEST first troubleshooting step?

Accepted Answer

'Forget' the network and reconnect by entering the password again.. The 'Authentication error' indicates a mismatch in stored credentials or security context, not a hardware or firmware issue. The most efficient first step is to 'Forget' the network (option C), which clears the cached password and any stale security parameters, then re-enter the known-correct password. This isolates the problem to the saved profile without resetting all network settings or guessing at security types.

Answer

Reset the network settings on the phone.

Answer

Modify the Wi-Fi security type on the phone to match the router.

Answer

Update the smartphone's firmware.

Question 15

A technician is assembling a new gaming PC with an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X CPU and a B550 motherboard. After installing the CPU, two DDR4-3600 RAM sticks in slots A2 and B2 (as per manual), and a dedicated GPU, the system powers on but there is no display. The motherboard's CPU debug LED remains lit. The technician has reseated the CPU and checked for bent pins (none found). The PSU is a known-good 650W unit and all fans spin. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

B. The motherboard's BIOS needs to be updated to support the Ryzen 5 5600X.. The Ryzen 5 5600X is based on the Zen 3 architecture, which requires a BIOS version that supports AGESA ComboV2 1.1.0.0 or later. B550 motherboards were originally released with BIOS versions that only supported Zen 2 (Ryzen 3000 series) CPUs. Without a BIOS update, the motherboard cannot initialize the CPU, causing the CPU debug LED to stay lit and preventing any display output, even though all other components appear powered.

Answer

A. The RAM is not on the motherboard's Qualified Vendor List (QVL).

Answer

C. The CPU cooler is mounted too tightly, causing pressure on the socket.

Answer

D. The PCIe power cable for the graphics card is not connected.