220-1101 Practice Test 44 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A technician is building a workstation with a motherboard that has two M.2 slots. One slot (M2A) supports both SATA and PCIe, and the other (M2B) supports PCIe only. The technician installs a SATA M.2 drive in M2B. After booting, the system does not detect the drive. Which of the following is the most likely cause?

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

Accepted Answer

The M2B slot does not support SATA mode.. The M2B slot supports PCIe only, not SATA. Since the technician installed a SATA M.2 drive into that slot, the motherboard cannot communicate with the drive because the slot lacks the necessary SATA controller interface. This is a classic mismatch between drive interface and slot capability.

Answer

The M.2 drive is defective.

Answer

The SATA controller is disabled in BIOS.

Answer

The drive's firmware needs an update.

Question 2

A network technician is tasked with providing secure remote access for employees who work from home. The solution must encrypt all traffic between the remote devices and the corporate network and must allow the remote devices to access internal resources (e.g., file servers, intranet) as if they were directly connected to the office LAN. Which of the following technologies should the technician implement?

Accepted Answer

VPN. A VPN (Virtual Private Network) is the correct technology because it creates an encrypted tunnel (using protocols like IPSec, OpenVPN, or WireGuard) between the remote device and the corporate network. This ensures all traffic is encrypted in transit and the remote device receives a virtual IP on the corporate LAN, allowing seamless access to internal resources such as file servers and intranets as if directly connected.

Answer

VLAN

Answer

DMZ

Answer

Port forwarding

Question 3

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 4

A technician configured a workstation with a static IP address of 192.168.1.100, subnet mask 255.255.255.0, default gateway 192.168.1.1, and DNS server 8.8.8.8. The workstation can successfully ping the default gateway and other local devices on the same subnet. However, the user cannot browse any websites. The technician verifies that the internet connection is working from other devices on the network. Which of the following is the MOST likely reason the workstation cannot access websites?

Accepted Answer

The DNS server is unreachable, preventing domain name resolution.. The workstation can ping the default gateway and local devices, confirming that Layer 3 IP connectivity and the subnet mask are correct. However, it cannot browse websites, which requires DNS resolution to translate domain names into IP addresses. Since the DNS server 8.8.8.8 is unreachable (possibly blocked or not responding), the browser cannot resolve website names, even though internet connectivity exists for other devices.

Answer

The default gateway is incorrect.

Answer

The subnet mask is incorrect.

Answer

The workstation has a duplicate IP address.

Question 5

A company hosts its web application on a public cloud IaaS platform. To ensure availability in case an entire cloud region fails, the company deploys identical infrastructure in two separate regions and configures a traffic management service that automatically routes all user traffic to the healthy region. The secondary region does not normally handle traffic. This architecture is an example of which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Active-passive failover. This architecture is an active-passive failover because the secondary region remains idle (passive) until a failure in the primary region triggers automatic traffic redirection via the traffic management service. The key characteristic is that only one region handles user traffic at a time, with the passive region standing by to take over, ensuring availability during a full cloud region outage.

Answer

Active-active load balancing

Answer

Disaster recovery as a service (DRaaS)

Answer

High availability across availability zones

Question 6

A company hosts a critical application on a public cloud provider. The solution is designed with a set of pre-configured virtual machines that are kept powered off in a different availability zone. In the event of a failure in the primary zone, the standby VMs are automatically started, and traffic is rerouted. This design primarily addresses which of the following cloud computing characteristics?

Accepted Answer

Disaster recovery. The design described—pre-configured VMs kept powered off in a different availability zone, automatically started on failure, with traffic rerouted—is a classic warm standby disaster recovery (DR) pattern. Disaster recovery focuses on restoring operations after a major failure or disaster, often in a secondary site or zone, which matches this scenario. High availability (HA) typically uses active-active or active-passive configurations with automatic failover, but the VMs here are powered off, not running, so this is DR, not HA.

Answer

High availability

Answer

Fault tolerance

Answer

Scalability

Question 7

A technician is installing a new SATA SSD into a desktop computer. After connecting the SATA data cable and SATA power cable, the technician powers on the system. The system boots normally from the existing OS drive, but the new SSD is not listed in the BIOS boot menu or in the operating system's Disk Management utility. The technician has verified that the SATA data and power cables are securely connected and that the SSD is known to work from another system. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The SATA controller is disabled in the BIOS.. The new SSD is not detected in the BIOS boot menu or Disk Management, even though it is known to work and cables are secure. This indicates the system cannot communicate with the drive at the hardware level. The most likely cause is that the SATA controller is disabled in the BIOS, which prevents the motherboard from enumerating any SATA devices, including the SSD.

Answer

The SSD is not formatted with a file system.

Answer

The motherboard's chipset drivers are missing.

Answer

The power supply unit (PSU) is underpowered.

Question 8

A systems administrator manages a cluster of three physical hosts running a Type 1 hypervisor. The administrator wants to ensure that if any single host fails, the virtual machines on that host are automatically restarted on another host in the cluster without manual intervention. Which of the following virtualization features should the administrator implement?

Accepted Answer

High availability. High availability (HA) is the correct feature because it automatically restarts virtual machines on a surviving host when a physical host in a cluster fails. In a Type 1 hypervisor cluster, HA continuously monitors host heartbeats and, upon detecting a failure, triggers the restart of affected VMs on another host without manual intervention. This directly satisfies the requirement for automatic recovery from a single host failure.

Answer

Load balancing

Answer

Snapshots

Answer

Live migration

Question 9

A network technician is configuring a small office network with one router and one managed switch. The switch has two VLANs: VLAN 10 for Sales and VLAN 20 for Engineering. Both VLANs need internet access. The technician configures the router's single physical interface (G0/0) with subinterfaces G0/0.10 for VLAN 10 (192.168.10.1/24) and G0/0.20 for VLAN 20 (192.168.20.1/24). The switch port connected to the router is configured as an access port in VLAN 10. Which of the following is the MOST likely result of this configuration?

Accepted Answer

Only devices in VLAN 10 can access the internet.. The switch port connected to the router is configured as an access port in VLAN 10. This means it only carries traffic for VLAN 10, stripping any VLAN tags. The router's subinterface G0/0.20 for VLAN 20 never receives or sends traffic because the access port does not allow VLAN 20 frames. Therefore, only devices in VLAN 10 can reach the router's default gateway (192.168.10.1) and access the internet.

Answer

Both VLAN 10 and VLAN 20 can access the internet.

Answer

Only devices in VLAN 20 can access the internet.

Answer

Neither VLAN can access the internet.

Question 10

A user's computer can access the internet and can successfully ping the IP address of a local file server (192.168.1.50). However, the user cannot access the file server by its hostname (fileserver.local). Other computers on the same network can access the file server by hostname without any issues. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of this problem?

Accepted Answer

The computer's hosts file contains an incorrect entry for the file server.. The hosts file on the local computer overrides DNS resolution. Since the user can ping the file server by IP but not by hostname, and other computers resolve the hostname correctly, the most likely cause is a static, incorrect entry in the local hosts file that maps 'fileserver.local' to a wrong IP or is malformed. This file is checked before DNS, so even if DNS is working for others, the local computer will use the faulty entry.

Answer

The computer's subnet mask is incorrect.

Answer

The file server's firewall is blocking the user's computer.

Answer

The DHCP lease has expired, and the computer has an APIPA address.

Question 11

A user reports that their iPhone does not charge when plugged into the USB port of a Windows laptop, but it charges normally with the included wall adapter. The laptop recognizes other USB devices such as a mouse and a flash drive. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the issue?

Accepted Answer

The laptop's USB port does not provide enough power to charge the iPhone. The iPhone charges normally with the wall adapter, which provides higher current (typically 5V/1A or more), but fails when connected to the laptop's USB port. Standard USB 2.0/3.0 ports on laptops typically supply only 0.5A (USB 2.0) or 0.9A (USB 3.0), which may be insufficient to charge an iPhone, especially if the device is in use or the port is shared among multiple internal components. The laptop recognizing other low-power devices (mouse, flash drive) confirms the port is functional but likely cannot deliver the required charging current.

Answer

The Lightning cable is damaged and cannot carry enough power

Answer

The iPhone battery has reached the end of its lifespan and cannot hold a charge

Answer

The laptop's USB driver is outdated or corrupted

Question 12

A technician is upgrading the CPU in a desktop computer from an older generation to a newer one. The motherboard is several years old but the manufacturer's website indicates it supports the new CPU with a BIOS update. The technician installs the new CPU, applies thermal paste, attaches the cooler, and powers on the system. The system fans spin, but the monitor remains black and the motherboard's CPU diagnostic LED glows solid red. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The BIOS has not been updated to support the new CPU. The motherboard's CPU diagnostic LED glowing solid red indicates a CPU initialization failure. Since the manufacturer's website confirms the new CPU is supported only after a BIOS update, the most likely cause is that the technician skipped the required BIOS update. Without the updated firmware, the motherboard's UEFI/BIOS lacks the microcode necessary to recognize and initialize the newer CPU, leaving the system stuck in a pre-POST state.

Answer

The CPU is not seated correctly

Answer

The RAM is incompatible with the new CPU

Answer

The power supply is insufficient

Question 13

A technician is upgrading the RAM in a desktop computer. The motherboard manual states it supports DDR3-1600 RAM. The technician installs a single 8GB DDR4-2400 module. The computer powers on but emits a series of beeps and does not display any video. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The RAM module is not compatible with the motherboard. The motherboard supports only DDR3-1600 RAM, but the technician installed a DDR4-2400 module. DDR3 and DDR4 use different physical notch positions, voltage levels (1.5V vs. 1.2V), and signaling protocols, making them electrically and mechanically incompatible. The beep code indicates a memory initialization failure because the motherboard cannot communicate with the DDR4 module.

Answer

The RAM module is defective

Answer

The RAM module was not installed in the correct slot

Answer

The motherboard needs a BIOS update

Question 14

A user reports that their smartphone's battery drains significantly faster than normal and the device feels very hot to the touch, especially during charging. The phone is using a third-party charger and USB cable purchased from a discount store. Which of the following is the BEST first step the technician should recommend?

Accepted Answer

Use the original manufacturer charger and cable. The most likely cause of rapid battery drain and overheating during charging is a non-compliant third-party charger or cable that does not meet the device's power delivery specifications. Using the original manufacturer charger and cable ensures proper voltage and current regulation, preventing excessive heat and inefficient charging that can degrade battery health.

Answer

Replace the smartphone battery

Answer

Perform a factory reset of the phone

Answer

Disable background app refresh and location services

Question 15

A systems administrator manages a virtualized environment with a Type 1 hypervisor hosting multiple virtual machines (VMs). The physical host has 64 GB of RAM and a 4-core CPU with hyper-threading. The administrator notices that during peak hours, some VMs become slow because others consume a disproportionate share of resources. The administrator wants to configure the hypervisor to combine the physical memory and CPU of the host into a single pool that can be dynamically allocated to VMs as needed. Which virtualization concept BEST describes this capability?

Accepted Answer

Resource pooling. Resource pooling is the virtualization concept where the hypervisor aggregates physical resources (CPU, memory) from the host into a shared pool, then dynamically allocates them to VMs based on demand. In a Type 1 hypervisor, this allows the administrator to set shares, reservations, and limits, ensuring that no single VM can monopolize resources during peak hours. This directly addresses the problem of disproportionate resource consumption by enabling elastic allocation.

Answer

High availability

Answer

Fault tolerance

Answer

Snapshotting