220-1101 Practice Test 24 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A small office has 15 workstations connected to a single unmanaged switch, which is connected to a router that provides internet access. Users report that the network is slow. A technician notices that the activity lights on the switch are blinking rapidly and almost constantly, even during off-peak hours. Which of the following is the most likely cause?

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

Accepted Answer

Excessive broadcast traffic. The rapid and constant blinking of activity lights on an unmanaged switch indicates a high volume of frames being forwarded, which is characteristic of a broadcast storm. In a small network, excessive broadcast traffic (e.g., from ARP requests or NetBIOS name resolutions) can saturate the switch's backplane and all ports, consuming bandwidth and causing slowdowns even during off-peak hours. This occurs because switches forward broadcast frames to all ports except the ingress port, and without broadcast storm control (unmanaged switch), the traffic can overwhelm the network.

Answer

Duplicate IP addresses

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Faulty default gateway

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DNS server failure

Question 2

A workstation with a static IP address of 192.168.1.10/24 can ping its default gateway (192.168.1.1) and other workstations on the same subnet. However, it cannot ping any device on a different subnet (e.g., 10.0.0.1) nor access the internet. Other workstations on the same subnet can ping the same remote device and access the internet without issue. The technician has verified the workstation's IP configuration is correct. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The router's ACL or firewall is blocking the workstation's IP address from accessing other networks.. Since the workstation can ping its default gateway and other local hosts but cannot reach remote subnets or the internet, the issue is not with the local IP configuration or the gateway's reachability. The fact that other workstations on the same subnet can access remote networks points to a policy or filtering mechanism on the router that specifically blocks traffic from this workstation's IP address. This is most commonly implemented via a router ACL or firewall rule that denies traffic from 192.168.1.10 to other networks.

Answer

The workstation's firewall is blocking all traffic to remote subnets.

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The default gateway IP address is misconfigured on the workstation.

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The subnet mask is incorrect.

Question 3

A technician is upgrading a desktop PC with a new SATA SSD. After installing the SSD and connecting the SATA data cable to the motherboard and the power cable from the PSU, the system boots but the SSD is not detected in the BIOS. The technician has verified the SATA cable is firmly connected at both ends and the drive is listed in the motherboard's manual as compatible. Which of the following should the technician check NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Enable the SATA port in the BIOS settings.. The SSD is not detected in the BIOS despite being properly connected and compatible. The most likely cause is that the SATA port to which the drive is connected is disabled in the BIOS settings. Many motherboards allow individual SATA ports to be turned off, and checking this setting is a standard first troubleshooting step before replacing hardware or updating firmware.

Answer

Replace the SATA data cable with a known-good one.

Answer

Update the motherboard's firmware.

Answer

Connect the SSD to a different SATA power cable from the PSU.

Question 4

A user reports that their smartphone's Bluetooth has stopped working entirely—it cannot discover any devices and cannot be discovered by other devices. However, Wi-Fi connectivity remains unaffected. The technician has already performed a full network settings reset and tested the device in safe mode. Which of the following hardware components is MOST likely faulty?

Accepted Answer

Wi-Fi/Bluetooth combo chip. The Wi-Fi/Bluetooth combo chip is the most likely faulty component because both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth share the same integrated circuit in modern smartphones. Since Wi-Fi continues to work normally, the Bluetooth portion of the combo chip has failed internally, while the Wi-Fi path remains functional. A full network settings reset and safe mode test rule out software or driver issues, isolating the fault to the hardware.

Answer

Bluetooth antenna

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Power management IC

Answer

Battery

Question 5

A technician replaced a damaged Cat5e patch cable that connected a workstation to a wall jack. After replacement, the workstation reports a network connection speed of 100 Mbps instead of the expected 1 Gbps. Both the workstation's NIC and the switch port support 1 Gbps. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the reduced speed?

Accepted Answer

The new cable is a Cat5 cable instead of Cat5e. Cat5e cable is rated for 1 Gbps (1000BASE-T) up to 100 meters, while Cat5 cable is only certified for 100 Mbps (100BASE-TX) over the same distance. Using a Cat5 cable instead of Cat5e forces the auto-negotiation process to fall back to the highest common denominator supported by the cable, which is 100 Mbps. This explains why the workstation reports 100 Mbps despite both the NIC and switch port supporting 1 Gbps.

Answer

The new cable is a crossover cable

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The new cable exceeds the maximum length for 1 Gbps

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The switch port is configured for 100 Mbps only

Question 6

A technician is troubleshooting a workstation that has a solid link light on its NIC and on the switch port, but the workstation fails to obtain an IP address via DHCP. The technician manually assigns a static IP and can ping other devices, but experiences slow transfers and packet loss. Checking the switch's port statistics reveals a high number of CRC errors and runts. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

A duplex mismatch between the NIC and the switch port.. A duplex mismatch causes the NIC and switch port to use different methods for collision detection (half-duplex vs. full-duplex). This leads to CRC errors and runts because frames are corrupted when both sides transmit simultaneously (collisions) or when the half-duplex side misinterprets full-duplex traffic. The solid link light and successful static IP ping confirm Layer 1 and basic Layer 3 connectivity, but the high error counts point directly to a Layer 2 duplex negotiation failure.

Answer

The cable is too long (exceeds 100 meters).

Answer

The switch port is in a different VLAN.

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The workstation's NIC driver is corrupted.

Question 7

A user reports that their Android smartphone's screen is cracked in the lower-left corner. The touch input in that area is unresponsive, but the display works correctly and the rest of the touchscreen functions normally. Which of the following is the BEST repair option?

Accepted Answer

C. Replace the entire screen assembly (LCD and digitizer combined). In modern smartphones, the digitizer (touch layer) and LCD panel are fused together into a single screen assembly. When the glass is cracked and touch input is lost in a specific area, the digitizer is damaged, but separating it from the LCD is impractical and risks further damage. Replacing the entire screen assembly ensures both the display and touch functionality are restored reliably.

Answer

A. Replace only the digitizer (touch layer)

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B. Replace only the LCD panel

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D. Apply a tempered glass screen protector

Question 8

A technician is setting up a new workstation. After connecting the Ethernet cable, the link light on the NIC and the switch port are solid green. The technician runs ipconfig and sees an IP address of 169.254.3.45 with a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0. The workstation cannot ping the default gateway or any other network devices. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The DHCP server is unavailable or unreachable. The 169.254.x.x address with a /16 subnet mask is an Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) address, assigned by Windows when a DHCP server is unreachable. The solid link lights confirm Layer 1 connectivity is good, so the issue is that the workstation cannot obtain a valid IP from a DHCP server, preventing communication with the default gateway.

Answer

The Ethernet cable is faulty

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The workstation's subnet mask is incorrect

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The NIC driver is corrupted

Question 9

A technician is assembling a new workstation. The motherboard supports DDR4 memory and has four DIMM slots: A1, A2, B1, B2. The technician installs two 16 GB DDR4-3200 modules. After powering on, the system detects 32 GB of RAM but reports a speed of 2133 MHz. The technician confirms the modules are rated for 3200 MHz. Which of the following is the MOST likely reason for the lower speed?

Accepted Answer

The BIOS memory profile is not set to XMP/DOCP. The motherboard detects the RAM capacity correctly but runs at the JEDEC default speed of 2133 MHz because the XMP (Extreme Memory Profile) or DOCP (Direct Overclock Profile) has not been enabled in the BIOS. DDR4-3200 modules require an overclocking profile to operate at their rated speed; without it, the system defaults to the standard 2133 MHz speed.

Answer

The modules are not installed in the correct slots for dual-channel mode

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The CPU does not support 3200 MHz

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The power supply is insufficient

Question 10

A technician is troubleshooting a user's wired desktop that intermittently loses network connectivity for short periods (1-2 minutes) several times a day. During the outage, the link light on the NIC remains lit and continuous. The technician has already replaced the Ethernet cable and the NIC. The switch port is configured for auto-negotiation. Which of the following should the technician check NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Check the network driver settings for duplex mismatch.. The symptoms—intermittent connectivity with the link light remaining lit—strongly suggest a duplex mismatch. When one side is set to full duplex and the other to half duplex (or auto-negotiation fails), the half-duplex side detects collisions and triggers retransmissions, causing 1–2 minute outages. Since the cable and NIC have been replaced, the next logical step is to check the NIC driver settings for a forced duplex or speed setting that conflicts with the switch port's auto-negotiation.

Answer

Verify the switch port is configured for the correct VLAN.

Answer

Check the DNS server configuration on the computer.

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Disable the firewall to rule out a security issue.

Question 11

A user reports that their smartphone does not vibrate even though the vibrate mode is enabled in settings. The phone was accidentally dropped onto a hard floor two days ago. The screen is not cracked, and the phone still rings and displays notifications. The user has already tried restarting the phone and toggling the vibrate setting. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The vibrate motor is loose or disconnected. The most likely cause is that the vibrate motor is loose or disconnected. The smartphone was dropped, and the vibrate motor is a physical component that can become dislodged or have its electrical connection disrupted by impact. Since the phone still rings and displays notifications, the audio and display subsystems are functional, isolating the issue to the vibration mechanism.

Answer

The operating system has a software bug that disables vibration after a drop

Answer

The loudspeaker is damaged

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The vibration setting is controlled by a third-party app that was corrupted

Question 12

A technician is setting up a small office network. The router is connected to the ISP modem and has a public IP address on its WAN interface. The router's LAN is configured with DHCP on the 192.168.1.0/24 subnet. A workstation obtains an IP address of 192.168.1.10, subnet mask 255.255.255.0, and default gateway 192.168.1.1 from the router. The workstation can ping the gateway and other workstations on the same subnet, but it cannot access websites by IP address or domain name. Which of the following is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

Network Address Translation (NAT) is not enabled on the router.. The workstation can ping the gateway and local devices, indicating Layer 2/3 connectivity within the LAN is functional. However, it cannot reach external websites by IP or domain name, which points to a failure in translating private IP addresses to the public IP on the WAN interface. Network Address Translation (NAT) is required on the router to map the private 192.168.1.0/24 subnet to the public IP; without it, packets from the workstation have no routable source address on the internet, so responses cannot return.

Answer

The workstation's DNS server is not configured correctly.

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The workstation's subnet mask is incorrect.

Answer

The default gateway is incorrect.

Question 13

A technician installs a new CPU in a desktop computer. The motherboard supports both 8th and 9th generation Intel Core processors. After assembly, the system powers on, all fans spin, but the monitor displays 'No Signal' and the motherboard's diagnostic LEDs cycle through and then stay lit on the CPU indicator. The technician has already reseated the CPU and inspected the socket for bent pins, finding none. The RAM and GPU are known to work from another system. Which of the following should the technician do NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Update the motherboard BIOS to a version that supports the 9th generation CPU. The motherboard's diagnostic LED staying lit on the CPU indicates a CPU initialization failure. Since the motherboard supports both 8th and 9th generation CPUs but may require a BIOS update to add microcode for 9th generation support, the most likely cause is an incompatible BIOS version. Updating the BIOS to a version that includes support for the 9th generation CPU will resolve the issue.

Answer

Replace the power supply unit with one of higher wattage

Answer

Replace the CPU with a different unit of the same model

Answer

Clear the CMOS by removing the battery

Question 14

A technician is troubleshooting a network printer issue. The printer is connected via Ethernet to a managed switch. Users on some workstations can print without problems, but users on other workstations cannot. On a problematic workstation, the technician can ping the printer's IP address successfully and can access the printer's built-in web interface. When attempting to print a test page, the job appears in the local print queue on the workstation but never reaches the printer. The printer's event log shows no errors or rejected jobs. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The printer driver on the workstation is incorrect or corrupt.. The printer is reachable via ping and web interface, confirming Layer 3 connectivity is fine. The job appears in the local print queue but never reaches the printer, and the printer logs show no errors, which points to a local issue on the workstation. An incorrect or corrupt printer driver can cause the print job to be spooled locally but fail to render or transmit properly to the printer, even though network connectivity is intact.

Answer

The printer's IP address is in a different subnet from the workstation.

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The workstation's firewall is blocking the printer traffic.

Answer

The switch port for the printer is assigned to a different VLAN than the workstation.

Question 15

A startup is developing a new web application. They want to write code and deploy it without worrying about the underlying operating system, web server, or scaling. Which cloud service model should they choose?

Accepted Answer

Platform as a Service (PaaS). Platform as a Service (PaaS) provides a managed environment where developers can write and deploy code without managing the underlying OS, web server, or scaling. The cloud provider handles the runtime, middleware, and infrastructure, allowing the startup to focus solely on application code. This aligns with the requirement to avoid worrying about the operating system, web server, or scaling.

Answer

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

Answer

Software as a Service (SaaS)

Answer

Desktop as a Service (DaaS)