220-1101 Practice Test 48 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A technician is troubleshooting a desktop computer in a manufacturing facility. The computer loses network connectivity whenever a nearby floor buffer (motor) is turned on. The link light on the NIC turns off during these events. The technician has already replaced the Ethernet cable with a shielded Cat6 cable and moved the computer to a different electrical circuit. The problem persists. Which of the following should the technician do NEXT?

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

Accepted Answer

Install a ferrite choke on the network cable.. The floor buffer's motor generates strong electromagnetic interference (EMI) that couples onto the unshielded network cable, corrupting the signal and causing the NIC's link light to turn off. Installing a ferrite choke on the cable suppresses common-mode EMI by acting as a low-pass filter, blocking high-frequency noise while allowing the data signal to pass. Since the technician already replaced the cable with shielded Cat6 and isolated the electrical circuit, the next logical step is to add a ferrite choke to attenuate the remaining conducted interference.

Answer

Replace the network interface card (NIC).

Answer

Change the switch port configuration from auto-negotiation to 100 Mbps full duplex.

Answer

Disable the NIC's power management settings in the operating system.

Question 2

A technician is building a desktop computer for a graphic designer. The motherboard supports both SATA and M.2 NVMe SSDs. The technician installs a 500GB M.2 NVMe SSD in the primary M.2 slot and a 2TB SATA HDD for additional storage. The computer boots from the NVMe SSD without issue. However, the SATA HDD is not detected in Windows Disk Management or in the BIOS. The technician has verified the SATA cable is connected securely and the HDD is receiving power. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the issue?

Accepted Answer

The M.2 NVMe SSD disables specific SATA ports on this motherboard. The M.2 NVMe SSD uses PCIe lanes that, on many consumer motherboards, share bandwidth with specific SATA ports. When an M.2 NVMe drive is installed in the primary M.2 slot, the motherboard firmware automatically disables certain SATA ports (often SATA port 5 or 6) to avoid lane conflicts. This explains why the SATA HDD is not detected even though it is powered and the cable is secure.

Answer

The SATA HDD is too large to be recognized alongside an NVMe drive

Answer

The SATA controller is disabled in the BIOS

Answer

The SATA HDD requires a jumper setting for 2TB mode

Question 3

A company wants to migrate its on-premises email server to the cloud. The IT director insists that the new solution require no management of the underlying operating system, application server, or patching. Which cloud service model should the organization choose?

Accepted Answer

Software as a Service (SaaS). Software as a Service (SaaS) provides a fully managed application delivered over the internet. The provider handles all underlying infrastructure, operating system, application server, and patching, meeting the IT director's requirement for zero management of those layers. In this scenario, the email service is consumed as a ready-to-use application, such as Microsoft 365 Exchange Online or Google Workspace.

Answer

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

Answer

Platform as a Service (PaaS)

Answer

Desktop as a Service (DaaS)

Question 4

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 5

A technician is building a new gaming PC. After installing the motherboard, CPU, RAM, and power supply, the technician connects the case front panel connectors (power switch, reset switch, HDD LED, power LED) to the motherboard header. When the power button is pressed, the system powers on for a split second and then immediately shuts down. The CPU fan twitches briefly. The technician has verified that the motherboard is properly seated on standoffs and that the 24-pin and 8-pin CPU power connectors are firmly connected. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The motherboard is shorting on an extra case standoff.. The system powers on for a split second and then immediately shuts down, with the CPU fan twitching briefly. This is a classic symptom of a short circuit, and the most likely cause is an extra case standoff making contact with the motherboard's solder points or traces, triggering the power supply's overcurrent protection (OCP) or short-circuit protection (SCP). The technician already verified proper motherboard seating and power connections, making an extra standoff the prime suspect.

Answer

The power supply unit is insufficient wattage for the components.

Answer

The power button header is connected to the wrong pins on the motherboard.

Answer

The CPU is overheating due to insufficient or improperly applied thermal paste.

Question 6

A technician is configuring a small office network with a managed switch. A new employee's workstation is connected to port 12 on the switch. The workstation receives an IP address from the DHCP server and can ping the default gateway (192.168.1.1), but it cannot ping the file server at 192.168.1.50. Other workstations on the same subnet can ping the file server. The technician checks the switch configuration and sees that port 12 is assigned to VLAN 10, while all other workstations and the file server are on VLAN 1. Which of the following is the MOST likely reason the workstation cannot reach the file server?

Accepted Answer

The switch port is configured as an access port in the wrong VLAN. The workstation is on VLAN 10 while the file server and other workstations are on VLAN 1. By default, VLANs segment broadcast domains and isolate Layer 2 traffic; a device on VLAN 10 cannot communicate with a device on VLAN 1 unless a Layer 3 device (router or Layer 3 switch) routes between them. Since the switch port is configured as an access port in VLAN 10, it is the wrong VLAN assignment that prevents the workstation from reaching the file server.

Answer

The workstation's subnet mask is incorrect

Answer

The workstation's firewall is blocking traffic

Answer

The DHCP server assigned an IP from a different scope

Question 7

A user reports that the touchscreen on their smartphone is unresponsive in the bottom-left corner but works everywhere else. Which component is most likely failing?

Accepted Answer

Digitizer failure. The touchscreen's digitizer is the layer responsible for detecting touch input. When a specific region of the screen becomes unresponsive while the display itself remains functional, it indicates a localized failure of the digitizer's grid or controller, not the LCD panel.

Answer

Dead pixels

Answer

LCD backlight issue

Answer

Pending OS update

Question 8

A technician is troubleshooting a desktop computer in a manufacturing facility. The computer loses network connectivity whenever a nearby floor buffer (motor) is turned on. The link light on the NIC turns off during these events. The technician has already replaced the Ethernet cable with a shielded Cat6 cable and moved the computer to a different electrical circuit. The problem persists. Which of the following should the technician do NEXT?

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

Accepted Answer

The cable is not certified for Gigabit Ethernet.. Cat5 cable is only certified for Fast Ethernet (100 Mbps) and does not meet the stricter specifications required for Gigabit Ethernet (1000 Mbps). While Cat5e or Cat6 cables are needed for reliable 1000BASE-T operation, a standard Cat5 cable will often force the link to negotiate down to 100 Mbps, causing the observed slow transfer speeds.

Answer

The network adapter is configured for half-duplex.

Answer

The switch port has been administratively disabled.

Answer

The computer's operating system is outdated.

Question 9

A healthcare organization must store electronic health records in a cloud environment that meets HIPAA compliance requirements. The organization wants to keep sensitive patient data on-premises servers while using cloud resources for less critical workloads and to handle peak demand. Which cloud deployment model would BEST meet these requirements?

Accepted Answer

Hybrid cloud. A hybrid cloud model combines on-premises infrastructure (private cloud) with public cloud resources, allowing the healthcare organization to keep sensitive patient data on-premises for HIPAA compliance while using the public cloud for less critical workloads and to handle peak demand. This architecture provides the necessary data sovereignty and security controls for protected health information (PHI) while offering scalability and cost efficiency for non-sensitive tasks.

Answer

Public cloud

Answer

Private cloud

Answer

Community cloud

Question 10

A technician installed a new high-end graphics card in a desktop PC. The system powers on, fans spin, but the monitor remains black. The monitor works fine when connected to the motherboard's integrated video port. The technician has reseated the graphics card, connected the necessary PCIe power cables, and verified the card is fully inserted in the primary PCIe x16 slot. Which of the following is the MOST likely next step to resolve the issue?

Accepted Answer

Check the BIOS/UEFI settings to ensure the primary display is set to PCIe. When a discrete graphics card is installed, the BIOS/UEFI must be configured to use the PCIe slot as the primary display adapter. If the system defaults to the integrated GPU, the monitor will remain black when connected to the new card, even though the card is powered and seated correctly. Checking and setting the primary display to PCIe in BIOS/UEFI directly addresses this common misconfiguration.

Answer

Replace the monitor with a 4K display

Answer

Update the graphics card driver in Safe Mode

Answer

Test the graphics card in another computer

Question 11

A user reports that their iPhone 12 will not vibrate when receiving incoming calls or text messages. The user has already checked the physical side switch (silent/ringer) and ensured it is not set to silent. The ringer volume is turned up. Which of the following should the user check NEXT to resolve the issue?

Accepted Answer

Check the 'Vibrate on Ring' setting in Sounds & Haptics. The iPhone 12 uses a dedicated 'Vibrate on Ring' toggle within Settings > Sounds & Haptics to control vibration for incoming calls and texts. Since the user has already verified the physical side switch is not set to silent and the ringer volume is up, the next logical step is to check this software setting, as it can be independently disabled even when the ringer is active.

Answer

Enable Do Not Disturb mode to ensure no interruptions are blocked

Answer

Perform a 'Reset All Settings' from the Settings app

Answer

Check the Bluetooth settings to ensure no external device is playing sounds

Question 12

A technician is building a workstation using an Intel LGA1151 motherboard that supports 9th generation processors. The technician installs a new M.2 NVMe SSD into the M.2 slot labeled 'M2A_SATA'. After installation, the SSD is detected in the BIOS but the system fails to boot from it. The SSD is confirmed to be functional in another system. Which of the following is the MOST likely reason for the boot failure?

Accepted Answer

The M.2 slot is only compatible with SATA SSDs, not NVMe. The M.2 slot labeled 'M2A_SATA' is physically and electrically wired for SATA SSDs only, not NVMe. NVMe drives use the PCIe bus, while SATA M.2 slots lack the necessary PCIe lanes to communicate with the drive. Even though the drive is detected in BIOS (because the slot can identify the device), the system cannot boot from it because the slot cannot establish the PCIe link required for NVMe protocol transfers.

Answer

The motherboard requires a BIOS update to support NVMe boot

Answer

The CPU does not support NVMe devices

Answer

The M.2 slot disables two SATA ports, causing a conflict

Question 13

A company runs a private cloud infrastructure for its internal applications. During seasonal sales events, demand for computing resources doubles. The IT team wants to automatically expand the private cloud by utilizing a public cloud provider during these peak periods, and then scale back when demand normalizes. Which cloud computing concept does this scenario BEST describe?

Accepted Answer

Elasticity. This scenario describes elasticity, which is the ability of a cloud system to dynamically scale resources up or down based on demand. The private cloud automatically expands into a public cloud (cloud bursting) during peak periods and scales back when demand normalizes, matching the definition of elasticity.

Answer

High availability

Answer

Load balancing

Answer

Disaster recovery

Question 14

A user reports that their Android smartphone will not charge when placed on a wireless charging pad. The phone charges normally when connected via a USB cable. The technician tests the wireless charging pad with another smartphone, and it works fine. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the issue?

Accepted Answer

The phone case is interfering with the wireless charging. A thick, metallic, or improperly designed phone case can block or interfere with the electromagnetic field used for inductive charging. Since the charging pad works with another phone and the phone charges via USB, the issue is specific to the phone's ability to receive the wireless signal, and the case is the most common physical barrier.

Answer

The wireless charging coil inside the phone has failed

Answer

The phone is not placed correctly on the charging pad

Answer

A software setting is disabling wireless charging

Question 15

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.