220-1101 Hardware Practice Test 10 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A technician is troubleshooting a desktop PC that fails to boot with the error 'Bootmgr is missing.' The technician boots from a Windows installation media and runs bootrec /fixmbr and bootrec /fixboot, which complete successfully. After restarting, the error persists. The hard drive is detected in BIOS and appears in the boot order. Which of the following should the technician do NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Run bootrec /rebuildbcd. The error 'Bootmgr is missing' indicates that the Boot Configuration Data (BCD) store is corrupted or missing. While bootrec /fixmbr and bootrec /fixboot repair the master boot record and boot sector, they do not rebuild the BCD store. Running bootrec /rebuildbcd scans the system for installed Windows installations and recreates the BCD store, which is necessary to resolve the persistent error.

Answer

Replace the hard drive

Answer

Check the SATA data cable

Answer

Set the system partition as active

Question 2

A technician is building a new desktop computer. After installing the motherboard, CPU, RAM, and graphics card, the technician connects the 24-pin main power cable and all other necessary cables. When the power button is pressed, the fans spin for about one second and then stop. The motherboard's power LED does not illuminate. The technician uses a multimeter and confirms the power supply outputs 12V, 5V, and 3.3V on the appropriate pins of the 24-pin connector. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the issue?

Accepted Answer

The 4/8-pin CPU power connector is not connected.. The 4/8-pin CPU power connector provides dedicated 12V power to the CPU voltage regulator module (VRM). Without it, the CPU receives no power, so the system immediately shuts down after a brief fan spin (due to residual charge or a momentary power-on signal). The multimeter confirms the main 24-pin ATX connector is delivering correct voltages, ruling out a PSU failure.

Answer

The front panel power switch header is connected to the wrong pins.

Answer

The RAM modules are not fully seated in the slots.

Answer

The CMOS battery is depleted and needs replacement.

Question 3

A technician is building a desktop PC. After installing the motherboard, CPU, and RAM, the technician attempts to power on the system. The fans spin for a second and then stop. The motherboard's power LED does not light up. The technician has confirmed the power supply is functional by testing with a multimeter. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The 4/8-pin CPU power connector is not connected.. The most likely cause is that the 4/8-pin CPU power connector is not connected. Without this dedicated power supply to the CPU, the motherboard may briefly attempt to start (fans spin for a second) but then immediately shut down because the CPU cannot initialize. The power supply is confirmed functional, and the motherboard's power LED not lighting up further indicates a missing critical power rail, not a dead CMOS or incorrect front panel wiring.

Answer

The CMOS battery is dead.

Answer

The RAM is installed in the wrong slots.

Answer

The front panel power switch headers are incorrectly connected.

Question 4

A technician is troubleshooting a desktop PC that emits one long beep followed by three short beeps immediately after pressing the power button. The system does not display any video. The motherboard uses an AMI BIOS. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the beep code?

Accepted Answer

Memory (RAM) failure. AMI BIOS uses a beep code of one long followed by three short beeps to indicate a memory (RAM) failure. This code typically means the system cannot read or initialize the RAM modules, which prevents the POST process from completing and results in no video output.

Answer

Video card failure

Answer

CPU failure

Answer

Power supply failure

Question 5

A technician installs a new M.2 SSD into a desktop computer. The motherboard has two M.2 slots: one labeled M.2_1 (PCIe only) and one labeled M.2_2 (PCIe/SATA). The technician places the SSD into the M.2_1 slot, but the drive is not detected in the BIOS. The SSD is a M.2 SATA drive. Which of the following is the MOST likely reason for the detection failure?

Accepted Answer

The SSD is a SATA M.2 drive, but the M.2_1 slot only supports PCIe/NVMe. The M.2_1 slot is labeled as 'PCIe only,' meaning it exclusively supports PCIe-based NVMe SSDs. The installed SSD is a SATA M.2 drive, which uses the AHCI protocol and requires a SATA interface. Since the slot lacks SATA signal lines, the drive cannot be detected during POST.

Answer

The SSD requires a driver to be loaded during POST

Answer

The M.2_1 slot shares bandwidth with a SATA port that must be enabled first

Answer

The motherboard does not support booting from NVMe drives

Question 6

A technician is upgrading a workstation by adding a second high-end graphics card for a rendering application. After installation, the system powers on but displays no video output from either card. Both cards were working previously in other systems. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The power supply unit does not have sufficient capacity for both cards.. When a second high-end graphics card is added but neither card produces video output, the most likely cause is insufficient power supply capacity. High-end graphics cards can draw 250W or more each under load, and the system may lack the combined wattage or the necessary PCIe power connectors. Without enough power, the cards may initialize partially or not at all, resulting in no video output from either slot.

Answer

The second PCIe slot is incompatible with the graphics card.

Answer

The system BIOS is configured to disable the second PCIe slot.

Answer

A driver conflict exists between the two different graphics card models.

Question 7

A technician is building a PC for a user who needs to run multiple virtual machines. The motherboard supports a maximum of 32GB of RAM across 4 DIMM slots. Currently, two 8GB modules are installed. The user requires at least 32GB of RAM total, and the technician wants to reuse the existing modules. Which of the following is the MOST cost-effective upgrade?

Accepted Answer

Add two additional 8GB modules. Option A is correct because the motherboard supports up to 32GB across 4 DIMM slots, and two 8GB modules are already installed. Adding two more 8GB modules fills all slots and achieves 32GB total, reusing the existing modules without waste. This is the most cost-effective solution since 8GB modules are typically cheaper per gigabyte than 16GB modules, and no modules are discarded.

Answer

Replace the two 8GB modules with two 16GB modules

Answer

Add one 16GB module

Answer

Replace all modules with four 8GB modules

Question 8

A technician is upgrading the memory in a desktop computer that has a motherboard supporting DDR4 RAM with a maximum speed of 3200MHz. The technician installs two 8GB modules rated at 3600MHz. What will be the effective speed of the memory?

Accepted Answer

3200MHz. The motherboard supports a maximum memory speed of 3200MHz, so even though the installed modules are rated at 3600MHz, the system will automatically downclock the memory to the highest supported speed of the motherboard, which is 3200MHz. This is because the memory controller operates at the motherboard's rated speed, and any faster modules will run at that lower speed to ensure stability.

Answer

3600MHz

Answer

2933MHz

Answer

The system will not boot due to incompatibility

Question 9

A technician is building a high-performance workstation for data analysis. The user requires error-correcting code (ECC) memory for data integrity. The technician selects an Intel Xeon processor and a motherboard with a chipset that supports registered memory. Which type of RAM should the technician install?

Accepted Answer

Registered ECC DDR4 (RDIMM). The Intel Xeon processor and motherboard chipset support registered memory, which uses a register to buffer the address and control signals, reducing electrical load on the memory controller. Registered ECC DDR4 (RDIMM) is the correct type because it combines error-correcting code (ECC) for data integrity with the registered buffer required by the platform, ensuring stability and compatibility in high-performance workstation builds.

Answer

Unbuffered non-ECC DDR4

Answer

Unbuffered ECC DDR4 (UDIMM)

Answer

Load-reduced ECC DDR4 (LRDIMM)

Question 10

A technician upgrades the CPU in a desktop computer and installs a new aftermarket cooler. After reassembly, the computer powers on but shuts down after about one minute. The technician enters the BIOS and sees the CPU temperature is 95°C and rising. The case fans are spinning normally. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the issue?

Accepted Answer

The thermal paste was not applied between the CPU and the cooler. The CPU temperature reaching 95°C and rising immediately after power-on indicates a critical thermal issue. Since the case fans are spinning normally and the cooler fan is not mentioned as faulty, the most likely cause is that thermal paste was not applied between the CPU and the new aftermarket cooler. Without thermal paste, microscopic air gaps prevent efficient heat transfer from the CPU die to the cooler's base plate, causing rapid overheating and thermal shutdown.

Answer

The CPU is not compatible with the motherboard

Answer

The power supply unit is insufficient for the new CPU

Answer

The CPU cooler fan is not spinning

Question 11

An administrator is configuring a file server with three identical hard drives. The server requires fault tolerance; it must be able to survive the failure of any one drive without data loss. Additionally, the configuration should maximize usable storage space. Which RAID level should the administrator implement?

Accepted Answer

RAID 5. RAID 5 is the correct choice because it provides fault tolerance for a single drive failure while maximizing usable storage. With three identical drives, RAID 5 uses distributed parity to allow the array to survive any one drive failure without data loss, and the usable capacity is (n-1) drives, or 2 drives' worth of space. RAID 0 offers no redundancy, RAID 1 would waste 2/3 of the capacity with only 1 drive usable, and RAID 10 requires a minimum of 4 drives.

Answer

RAID 0

Answer

RAID 1

Answer

RAID 10

Question 12

A technician is building a new desktop computer. When power is applied, the fans spin, the drives spin up, but the monitor shows no signal and no beep codes are heard. The technician verifies that the power supply is adequate for the components. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

CPU is not properly seated. The absence of beep codes combined with fans and drives spinning indicates the motherboard is receiving power but fails to complete the Power-On Self-Test (POST). A CPU that is not properly seated prevents the CPU from communicating with the chipset, halting POST before any beep sequence can be generated, while the power supply and other components receive power.

Answer

Power supply is faulty

Answer

RAM is incompatible

Answer

Hard drive is not connected

Question 13

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 14

A technician is building a database server that requires fast random read/write performance for small data blocks. Which of the following storage devices will BEST meet this requirement?

Accepted Answer

An NVMe M.2 solid-state drive. An NVMe M.2 solid-state drive is the best choice because it connects directly via the PCIe bus, bypassing the SATA controller and its protocol overhead. This provides dramatically lower latency and higher IOPS (input/output operations per second), which is essential for fast random read/write performance on small data blocks in a database server.

Answer

A 7200 RPM hard disk drive

Answer

A SATA-based solid-state drive

Answer

An external USB 3.0 hard drive

Question 15

A technician is upgrading a workstation used for graphic design. The user wants to improve application load times and file transfer speeds for large design files. The current system has a single 1 TB 7200 RPM SATA hard drive. The motherboard has an available M.2 slot that supports PCIe 3.0 x4 and SATA modes, and two available SATA III ports. Which upgrade will provide the MOST noticeable performance improvement?

Accepted Answer

Add a 500 GB M.2 NVMe SSD and migrate the OS and applications to it. The M.2 NVMe SSD uses the PCIe 3.0 x4 interface, which provides significantly higher sequential read/write speeds (up to 3,500 MB/s) compared to a SATA III SSD (up to 550 MB/s) or a 7200 RPM HDD (around 160 MB/s). By migrating the OS and applications to the NVMe drive, the technician directly reduces application load times and accelerates file transfer operations for large design files, offering the most noticeable performance improvement.

Answer

Replace the hard drive with a 2 TB 7200 RPM hard drive

Answer

Add a second 1 TB hard drive and configure RAID 0

Answer

Add a 1 TB SATA SSD and keep the existing hard drive for storage