220-1101 Practice Test 42 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A technician is troubleshooting a workstation in a small office that loses network connectivity sporadically. The technician notices that the problem occurs every time a nearby heavy-duty laser printer starts a print job. The workstation is connected to the same network switch as the printer but is on a different electrical circuit. The technician has already replaced the Ethernet patch cable and verified the workstation’s network settings are correct. The link light on the workstation’s NIC turns off during the outages. Which of the following should the technician check NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Check the power supply unit (PSU) output voltage during a printer startup. The sporadic network outage coinciding with the heavy-duty laser printer starting a print job, combined with the link light turning off, strongly indicates a power quality issue. The printer and workstation are on different electrical circuits, but a large inductive load like a laser printer's fuser can cause electrical noise or a voltage sag on the shared mains supply, which can disrupt the workstation's power supply unit (PSU) output. If the PSU cannot maintain stable voltages (e.g., +3.3V, +5V, +12V) during the sag, the NIC may lose power or become unstable, causing the link light to drop. Checking the PSU output voltage during printer startup is the logical next step to confirm or rule out this power-related cause.

Answer

Replace the network interface card (NIC)

Answer

Increase the DHCP lease time on the router

Answer

Disable power management on the network adapter

Question 2

A technician needs to install a PCIe x4 network adapter into a desktop computer. The motherboard has the following available slots: one PCIe x16 slot (occupied by a graphics card), two PCIe x1 slots, and one PCIe x8 slot. Which slot can the technician use to install the x4 card?

Accepted Answer

The PCIe x8 slot. The PCIe x8 slot is the correct choice because PCIe is designed to be backward and forward compatible in terms of lane width. A PCIe x4 card can physically and electrically operate in a PCIe x8 slot, as the slot provides at least the required number of lanes and the card will negotiate down to x4 mode. The other slots either lack the physical size (x1) or are occupied by a critical component (x16).

Answer

Any of the PCIe x1 slots

Answer

The PCIe x16 slot after removing the graphics card

Answer

A PCI slot

Question 3

A technician replaced a failed power supply in a desktop computer with a higher wattage unit. The computer now powers on for one second then shuts down. The technician has verified all cable connections are secure and the PSU passes the paperclip test. What should the technician check NEXT?

Accepted Answer

The voltage selector switch on the PSU.. The voltage selector switch on the PSU must match the local mains voltage (115V for North America, 230V for Europe/Asia). If set to 230V while plugged into a 115V outlet, the PSU will briefly start but immediately shut down due to undervoltage protection. The paperclip test only verifies the PSU fan spins, not that it delivers correct voltages under load.

Answer

The motherboard BIOS settings.

Answer

The CPU fan header connection.

Answer

The front panel power switch.

Question 4

A system administrator manages a virtualized web server on a Type 1 hypervisor. The web server's memory usage fluctuates significantly throughout the day due to varying traffic. The administrator wants the VM to automatically use only the memory it needs, allowing the hypervisor to reclaim unused memory for other VMs. Which feature should the administrator configure on the VM?

Accepted Answer

Memory ballooning. Memory ballooning is a feature in virtualization that allows the hypervisor to reclaim unused memory from a VM by inflating a 'balloon' driver inside the guest OS, which forces the guest to release memory pages back to the hypervisor. This is ideal for the described scenario where the VM's memory usage fluctuates, as it dynamically adjusts the VM's memory footprint without requiring a reboot or manual intervention.

Answer

Virtual machine snapshots

Answer

Fault tolerance

Answer

CPU hot-add

Question 5

A technician is troubleshooting a workstation that can access internal network resources and the internet, but users report that they cannot browse websites using domain names (e.g., www.example.com). The technician opens a command prompt and successfully pings a public IP address (8.8.8.8), but pinging www.google.com returns 'Ping request could not find host'. The workstation receives IP settings via DHCP. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The DNS server addresses are not being provided by DHCP. The workstation can ping a public IP address (8.8.8.8) but cannot resolve domain names like www.google.com. This indicates that IP connectivity is working, but DNS resolution is failing. Since the workstation receives IP settings via DHCP, the most likely cause is that the DHCP server is not providing correct DNS server addresses, leaving the workstation without a valid DNS resolver.

Answer

The default gateway is misconfigured

Answer

The workstation's firewall is blocking DNS traffic

Answer

The router's NAT is misconfigured

Question 6

A technician is troubleshooting a workstation that loses network connectivity for a few seconds at random intervals. The technician observes that during the outage, the network icon in the system tray shows 'Unidentified network' or 'No internet access', but the IP configuration still shows a valid address from DHCP. The technician has already replaced the NIC and the Ethernet cable. Which of the following should the technician check NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Check the speed and duplex settings on both the NIC and the switch port. The symptom of intermittent connectivity with a valid DHCP address but 'Unidentified network' or 'No internet access' points to a Layer 2 issue, often caused by a speed/duplex mismatch between the NIC and the switch port. When one side is set to auto-negotiation and the other is manually set (or fails to negotiate), the link may appear up but drops frames, causing brief outages. Since the NIC and cable have already been replaced, checking and aligning the speed and duplex settings on both ends is the logical next step.

Answer

Verify that the DNS server is reachable and responsive

Answer

Disable the Windows firewall temporarily

Answer

Increase the DHCP lease time on the router

Question 7

A technician is troubleshooting a user's wired desktop that can access local network shares and printers but cannot reach any internet websites. The technician pings the default gateway successfully. Which of the following is the most likely cause of this issue?

Accepted Answer

DNS server configuration is incorrect or the DNS server is unreachable. The user can access local resources (shares, printers) and successfully ping the default gateway, which confirms that Layer 2/3 connectivity, IP addressing, and routing are functional. However, the inability to reach internet websites while local access works points to a name resolution failure. DNS translates domain names to IP addresses; if the DNS server configuration is incorrect or unreachable, the browser cannot resolve website names, even though the network path to the internet is intact.

Answer

IP address conflict with another device on the network

Answer

Faulty network interface card (NIC)

Answer

Incorrect subnet mask on the workstation

Question 8

A technician is upgrading a desktop computer with a new dedicated graphics card. After installation, the computer powers on, the GPU fans spin, but the monitor displays a 'No Signal' message. The monitor is known to be working, and the technician has confirmed the card is properly seated in the PCIe x16 slot and the PCIe power connectors are securely attached. Which of the following should the technician check NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Verify the display cable is connected to the GPU and not the motherboard. The most common reason for a 'No Signal' message after installing a dedicated GPU is that the display cable is still connected to the motherboard's integrated graphics port instead of the new GPU's output ports. The motherboard's video outputs are typically disabled when a discrete GPU is detected, so the monitor receives no signal from that source. Since the GPU fans spin and power connections are secure, the next logical step is to verify the physical display connection.

Answer

Replace the GPU in a different PCIe slot

Answer

Update the motherboard BIOS to the latest version

Answer

Replace the power supply with a higher wattage unit

Question 9

A technician installs a new SATA SSD into a desktop computer. The drive is not detected in the BIOS. The technician verifies that the SATA power cable is connected and the SATA data cable is properly seated on both the drive and the motherboard. The drive spins up (vibration is felt). Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the drive not being detected?

Accepted Answer

The SATA port is disabled in the BIOS settings.. The drive spins up, indicating power is reaching it, and the data cable is properly seated, so the issue is likely that the SATA port itself is disabled in the BIOS. When a SATA port is disabled, the BIOS does not enumerate the device during POST, so it won't appear in the BIOS setup or boot list. This is a common configuration issue, especially on systems where unused ports are disabled by default or after a BIOS reset.

Answer

The drive needs to be initialized in Disk Management.

Answer

The drive is incompatible with the SATA controller mode (IDE vs AHCI).

Answer

The SATA driver is not installed in the operating system.

Question 10

A technician builds a new PC. When powering on, all fans spin and LEDs light, but the monitor shows 'No Signal'. The motherboard has a CPU diagnostic LED that remains lit. The technician has already reseated the RAM and GPU, and verified the monitor and cable are functional. Which of the following should the technician do NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Reseat the CPU and check for bent pins.. The CPU diagnostic LED remaining lit indicates a CPU-related fault. Since the technician has already reseated RAM and GPU and verified the monitor and cable, the next logical step is to reseat the CPU and inspect the CPU socket for bent pins. Bent pins can prevent proper contact between the CPU and motherboard, causing the CPU diagnostic LED to stay on and the system to fail POST.

Answer

Replace the power supply.

Answer

Update the motherboard BIOS.

Answer

Test the RAM in another system.

Question 11

A technician installs a new M.2 NVMe SSD into a desktop computer. The system boots into Windows, and the SSD is detected in the BIOS/UEFI. However, the drive does not appear in File Explorer. Which of the following should the technician do FIRST to resolve this issue?

Accepted Answer

Initialize the disk in Disk Management. The SSD is detected in the BIOS/UEFI, which confirms the hardware is recognized and the M.2 slot is enabled. The drive does not appear in File Explorer because Windows requires the disk to be initialized (with a partition table like GPT or MBR) and have a volume created before it can be assigned a drive letter and appear in File Explorer. The first step is to open Disk Management (diskmgmt.msc) and initialize the disk, which writes a protective partition table and makes the disk available for partitioning and formatting.

Answer

Enable the M.2 slot in the BIOS settings

Answer

Update the chipset drivers

Answer

Format the drive using the command prompt

Question 12

A technician installs a new graphics card in a desktop computer. The computer powers on, all fans spin, and the motherboard's POST LED sequence completes, but there is no image on the monitor. The monitor is connected to the new graphics card via DisplayPort and has been verified to work with another computer. Which of the following should the technician do FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Check that the auxiliary PCIe power cables are connected to the graphics card. The most common reason for a new graphics card to power on (fans spin) but produce no display is that the auxiliary PCIe power cables are not connected. Modern high-performance GPUs require dedicated 6- or 8-pin power connectors from the PSU; without them, the card may appear to operate (fans spin due to motherboard slot power) but cannot output video. Since the monitor and cable are verified working, and POST completes, the next logical step is to check these power connections before assuming a hardware fault.

Answer

Replace the graphics card

Answer

Reseat the graphics card in the PCIe slot

Answer

Update the graphics card driver from safe mode

Question 13

A technician installs a new CPU and cooler in a desktop computer. After powering on, the system starts but shuts down abruptly after about 10 seconds. The technician has verified that the CPU cooler fan is spinning and the CPU is correctly seated in the socket. Which of the following should the technician check NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Check the application of thermal paste between the CPU and cooler. The system shutting down after 10 seconds, despite the CPU cooler fan spinning and the CPU being seated correctly, strongly indicates thermal overload protection (TjMax) is being triggered. The most likely cause is insufficient or improperly applied thermal paste, which prevents effective heat transfer from the CPU die to the cooler's cold plate, causing the CPU to rapidly reach critical temperature and initiate an emergency shutdown.

Answer

Verify that the power supply voltage switch is set correctly for the local mains voltage

Answer

Replace the CMOS battery on the motherboard

Answer

Test the RAM modules in different slots

Question 14

A small office has a DHCP server that assigns IP addresses in the range 192.168.1.100 to 192.168.1.200. A file server needs a static IP address of 192.168.1.10. Which method should the technician use to ensure the server always receives that IP address without manually configuring the network adapter on the server?

Accepted Answer

Create a DHCP reservation on the router for the server's MAC address. A DHCP reservation binds a specific IP address to a client's MAC address on the DHCP server (often integrated into the router). This ensures the file server always receives 192.168.1.10 from the DHCP server without requiring manual configuration on the server itself, which is the requirement in the question. The reservation works because the DHCP server checks the MAC address in the DHCP request and always offers the reserved IP.

Answer

Configure the server with a static IP address of 192.168.1.10 in the operating system settings

Answer

Change the DHCP range to 192.168.1.11-200 so that .10 is excluded

Answer

Set up a port forwarding rule for the server

Question 15

A technician is upgrading a workstation's CPU from an Intel Core i5-6500 (Skylake) to an Intel Core i7-7700 (Kaby Lake) on an LGA 1151 motherboard. The motherboard manufacturer's website lists the i7-7700 as compatible with BIOS version P2.10 or later. After installing the new CPU, the system powers on (fans spin, LEDs light) but displays a black screen with no POST beeps. The technician has already cleared the CMOS. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the issue?

Accepted Answer

The motherboard's BIOS version is too old to support the new CPU.. The Intel Core i7-7700 (Kaby Lake) requires a BIOS version P2.10 or later on this LGA 1151 motherboard. Since the system powers on but fails to POST with a black screen and no beeps, the most likely cause is that the current BIOS version predates P2.10, lacking the microcode needed to initialize the Kaby Lake CPU. Clearing CMOS does not update the BIOS, so the motherboard remains unable to communicate with the new processor.

Answer

The power supply unit is not providing enough wattage for the new CPU.

Answer

The new CPU is defective or was installed incorrectly.

Answer

The RAM modules are incompatible with the new CPU's memory controller.