SK0-005 troubleshooting — Timed 40 Questions

Question 1

A technician is troubleshooting a server that fails to boot after a scheduled power outage. The server is connected to a UPS. Upon pressing the power button, the server powers on briefly (fans spin, lights flash) and then shuts down after 2 seconds. The POST does not complete. The server has a dual power supply with each connected to a separate PDU. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

A short circuit in the motherboard. The symptom — server powers on briefly (fans spin, lights flash) then shuts down within 2 seconds with POST not completing — is classic behavior of a short circuit or overcurrent protection triggering. The motherboard's power-good signal or VRM detects an abnormal condition and immediately cuts power to prevent damage. A failed PSU would typically prevent any power-on at all, and a depleted UPS battery would not cause a 2-second shutdown since the server is also connected to PDUs (and dual PSUs provide redundancy).

Answer

The UPS battery is depleted

Answer

One of the power supplies has failed

Answer

The CMOS battery is dead

Question 2

A server is running out of disk space on the system drive (C:). The server is running Windows Server 2019. The IT manager wants to add more space without downtime. The server has one free SATA port and one available drive bay. Which of the following is the BEST solution?

Accepted Answer

Add a new drive, create a new partition, and mount it as a folder in the system drive. Mounting a new drive as a folder in the system drive (C:) allows you to add storage space without downtime, without changing the existing drive configuration, and without needing to extend the system partition. This is a native Windows feature that makes the new volume appear as a folder under C:, effectively increasing available space for applications that can use that path.

Answer

Shrink the existing partition and extend it onto an additional drive

Answer

Add a new drive, initialize it, and configure a RAID 1 mirror with the existing drive

Answer

Replace the current system drive with a larger one and restore from backup

Question 3

You are a server engineer for a financial services firm. The company recently deployed a new HP ProLiant DL380 Gen10 server running Windows Server 2022 with SQL Server 2019. The server has 2 Intel Xeon Gold processors, 128GB RAM, and a Smart Array P408i-p controller managing two RAID 1 arrays: one for OS (two 300GB 10K SAS) and one for data (four 600GB 10K SAS). After one month, the OS array reports a predictive failure on one drive. You replace the drive via hot-swap, and the RAID controller rebuilds. However, the server now experiences random system crashes with Event ID 1001 (BugCheck) and the SQL database occasionally becomes corrupt requiring restore from backup. The server's RAM has been tested with HP's diagnostic tool and passed, and the CPU temperature is normal. The RAID controller log shows no errors during the rebuild but occasional 'Parity errors' logged before the drive replacement. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the current instability?

Accepted Answer

The remaining original OS drive has bad sectors that were not detected.. Predictive failure warnings on a RAID 1 member indicate the drive is degrading, and parity errors logged before replacement suggest latent media or write errors on the surviving mirror member. After the failed drive is swapped and rebuilt, the controller relies on the remaining original drive, which likely has undetected bad sectors that corrupt reads during rebuild and normal I/O, producing BugCheck 1001 crashes and SQL corruption. The RAM and CPU have been ruled out, and the controller logged no rebuild errors, pointing to the surviving disk as the root cause.

Answer

The new replacement drive is faulty.

Answer

The motherboard has a faulty PCIe slot for the RAID controller.

Answer

The RAID controller cache module has failed.

Question 4

A technician is troubleshooting a server that fails to boot after a power outage. The server displays a "Non-system disk or disk error" message. Which action should the technician take first?

Accepted Answer

Check the boot order in the BIOS configuration.. The error indicates that the server cannot find a bootable device. The most common cause after a power outage is a change in the BIOS boot order. Checking the boot order is a quick, non-invasive first step. Replacing the drive or reseating cables may be necessary if boot order is correct, but starting with boot order is best.

Answer

Run a filesystem check utility from a recovery disk.

Answer

Replace the hard drive with a known good one.

Answer

Reseat the hard drive data and power cables.

Question 5

A technician is troubleshooting a server that is experiencing high disk I/O wait times. The disk queue length is consistently above 10. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

Insufficient RAM. A sustained disk queue length above 10 (roughly 2 per spindle on a multi-disk array) indicates the storage subsystem cannot keep up with I/O requests. Insufficient RAM is the most likely cause because when physical memory is exhausted, the OS pages memory to disk, generating heavy random read/write traffic that inflates the queue. Adding RAM reduces paging and relieves the I/O bottleneck.

Answer

Disk fragmentation

Answer

Slow network link

Answer

Overloaded CPU

Question 6

Refer to the exhibit. A server is running slowly. Based on the memory statistics, what is the MOST likely issue?

Accepted Answer

Insufficient physical memory. The memory statistics show that the server is consuming more physical RAM than is available, forcing the system to constantly swap pages to disk (paging), which causes the slowdown. When physical memory is insufficient, the operating system relies heavily on virtual memory, and the resulting disk I/O bottleneck degrades performance. The most direct fix is to add more physical RAM.

Answer

Memory leak in an application

Answer

Virtual memory is misconfigured

Answer

Page file is too small

Question 7

Refer to the exhibit. A technician is troubleshooting a server that is experiencing data corruption. What is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

Faulty RAID controller. A faulty RAID controller is the most likely cause of data corruption because the controller mediates all writes to the array; a failing controller can write incorrect parity, misdirect writes across disks, or corrupt the stripe, producing corruption that appears across multiple drives simultaneously. This pattern — corruption on multiple members of an array rather than a single disk — points to the controller rather than an individual drive.

Answer

Corrupted file system

Answer

Loose data cable

Answer

Failed hard disk drive

Question 8

A server fails to boot after installing new memory. The POST beep code indicates a memory error. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The new memory is incompatible with the server. A POST beep code indicating a memory error immediately after installing new memory most commonly means the new module is incompatible with the server — wrong type (DDR3 vs DDR4), wrong speed, ECC vs non-ECC, or unsupported rank/bank configuration. Server boards are notoriously picky about memory compatibility, and incompatible modules often trigger memory error beep codes rather than simply failing to be detected.

Answer

The memory module is not seated properly

Answer

The BIOS is not updated to support the new memory

Answer

The memory is installed in the wrong slot

Question 9

A technician is troubleshooting a server that fails to boot. The server powers on, fans spin, but no video output and no beep codes. The technician reseats the RAM and GPU, but the issue persists. Which of the following should the technician check NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Test or replace the CPU. After reseating RAM and GPU with no POST, no video, and no beep codes, the CPU is the next most likely failure point — a dead or improperly seated CPU prevents the system from completing POST entirely. Testing or replacing the CPU is the logical next hardware step after ruling out RAM and GPU.

Answer

Replace the CMOS battery

Answer

Flash the BIOS firmware

Answer

Replace the power supply

Question 10

A data center technician is troubleshooting a server that is overheating and shutting down intermittently. The server is a 2U rackmount with six fans at the front and a power supply with an integrated fan at the rear. The technician checks the ambient temperature (72°F) and verifies that the server intake temperature is normal. The server's system logs show 'CPU temperature threshold exceeded' before each shutdown. The technician has replaced the thermal paste on the CPU and reseated the heat sink, but the issue persists. Which of the following should the technician do NEXT?

Accepted Answer

Replace the chassis fans with high-static-pressure models. The server is a 2U chassis with six front-mounted fans and a rear PSU fan, and the CPU thermal threshold is being exceeded despite normal intake air and a reseated heat sink with fresh paste. This points to insufficient airflow across the CPU heatsink — a classic symptom of low-static-pressure fans failing to push air through dense 2U components. High-static-pressure fans are designed to overcome impedance from heatsinks, drive cages, and tight chassis, restoring proper airflow and resolving the thermal shutdown.

Answer

Move the server to a cooler location in the data center

Answer

Reinstall the CPU heat sink with more thermal paste

Answer

Replace the power supply unit

Question 11

An administrator notices that a Linux server's /var/log/messages file is filled with repeated "eth0: link up" and "eth0: link down" entries every few seconds. The server is connected to a managed switch. Which of the following is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The switch port is experiencing a flapping MAC address. MAC address flapping on a switch port causes the link state to repeatedly change. Option A would cause performance issues but not constant link state changes. Option B might cause instability but is not the typical cause of flapping. Option C would block traffic but not cause the physical link to go up and down.

Answer

The switch port is configured for auto-negotiation while the NIC is set to 1000/full

Answer

The NIC driver is outdated

Answer

Spanning Tree Protocol is blocking the port

Question 12

Refer to the exhibit. A server administrator receives reports that an internal web server is inaccessible. After connecting locally, the administrator runs a command and receives the following output. Which of the following commands would best resolve the issue?

Accepted Answer

Install the mod_ssl module and restart httpd. The exhibit (implied by the scenario) shows an httpd service that fails to start or serve HTTPS because the mod_ssl module is missing — a common issue when Apache is configured for SSL but the module isn't installed. Installing mod_ssl and restarting httpd resolves the dependency and restores HTTPS access.

Answer

Disable SELinux and restart the httpd service

Answer

Run `yum update httpd` to update the application

Answer

Edit the configuration file to correct the typo on line 15

Question 13

A virtualization administrator notices that a critical VM on an ESXi host has high CPU Ready time (%RDY) according to performance charts. The VM has 8 vCPUs assigned, and the host has two physical CPUs with 8 cores each. Other VMs on the host are performing normally. Which of the following actions would MOST likely resolve the high CPU Ready time for this VM?

Accepted Answer

Migrate the VM to another host with more available CPU capacity.. High CPU Ready time (%RDY) indicates the VM is waiting for physical CPU resources to become available, meaning the host is overcommitted or experiencing contention. Since other VMs on the host are performing normally, the issue is likely that this specific VM's 8 vCPUs are competing with other workloads for the limited physical cores (16 total). Migrating the VM to another host with more available CPU capacity directly addresses the contention by providing a less-utilized resource pool, which is the most immediate and effective fix.

Answer

Increase the number of physical cores in the host by adding another CPU.

Answer

Enable CPU affinity to pin the VM to specific physical cores.

Answer

Reduce the number of vCPUs assigned to the VM to 4.

Question 14

The Coho Vineyard company operates a two-node Windows Server failover cluster to provide high availability for a critical SQL database. Node A has been running the database workload without issues, while Node B was taken offline two weeks ago due to a memory module failure. The faulty memory was replaced, and Node B was powered on. The administrator verified that Node B boots correctly, the network links are up, and the cluster service is running. However, the database role fails to start on Node B. Checking the cluster logs reveals that Node B cannot join the cluster, and the event 'Cluster service has lost quorum' is recorded. The administrator confirms both nodes can ping each other and access the shared SAN storage, but the cluster disk resource appears as 'Offline' on Node B. What should the administrator do to resolve the issue and bring the database online?

Accepted Answer

Evict Node B from the cluster and re-add it.. Node B was offline for two weeks, during which its cluster database became stale and it lost its vote in the quorum. When it rejoins, it cannot participate in quorum and the cluster disk resource remains offline. Evicting Node B and re-adding it forces a clean rejoin, refreshing its cluster configuration and restoring quorum so the database role can start.

Answer

Manually force start the cluster service on Node B with the /forcequorum switch.

Answer

Restore the system state backup on Node B.

Answer

Run the cluster validation wizard to check configuration.

Question 15

An organization has a server with a hardware RAID 5 array consisting of four 2 TB SAS drives. The server hosts a critical database and is configured with a hot spare. During routine monitoring, the storage administrator discovers that one drive has failed and the hot spare has automatically taken over, with the array currently rebuilding. However, the rebuild process repeatedly fails at approximately 30% completion, and the RAID controller logs show I/O errors on the hot spare drive. The failed drive was replaced with an identical model from inventory, and the rebuild was restarted, but it again fails at the same point. All other drives show healthy SMART status, and the server's firmware and RAID controller firmware are up to date. The database is still online and functioning, but the array is running in a degraded state, putting data at risk. The server is located in a remote data center without onsite staff, and a maintenance window is scheduled in three days.

Accepted Answer

Run a low-level diagnostic on the replacement drive and verify its firmware revision against the RAID controller's compatibility list.. The rebuild failing at the same ~30% point on two different drives (the hot spare and then the replacement) strongly indicates the problem is not the drives themselves but a compatibility or firmware mismatch with the RAID controller. Running a low-level diagnostic on the replacement drive and verifying its firmware revision against the controller's compatibility list is the correct diagnostic step before any destructive action. This aligns with the fact that all other drives show healthy SMART status and controller firmware is current — the issue is likely an unsupported drive firmware or a bad drive from inventory.

Answer

Initiate a full array consistency check to find and repair any parity mismatches before rebuilding.

Answer

Back up all data immediately, then break and recreate the RAID 5 array from scratch, restoring the backup.

Answer

Replace the RAID controller card and its cache module, then attempt the rebuild again.

Question 16

Refer to the exhibit. The Print Spooler service on a critical Windows Server 2019 fails to start at every boot. The server was recently updated with the latest cumulative patch. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

A service on which the Print Spooler depends is not starting. Event ID 7000 with a timeout error strongly suggests a dependency service is not starting correctly. The Print Spooler depends on the Remote Procedure Call (RPC) service among others; a recent patch may have altered the startup configuration of a dependency. The Print Spooler runs under the LocalSystem account, so password expiration is not a factor. A corrupt driver usually causes the service to crash after starting, not a timeout. Insufficient disk space would generate a different error.

Answer

The system drive has insufficient free space

Answer

A recent printer driver update is corrupted

Answer

The password for the service account has expired

Question 17

After applying a Windows security patch, a server fails to boot and displays 'Bootmgr is missing'. The server is UEFI-based. Which of the following is the MOST efficient way to resolve the issue?

Accepted Answer

Use the recovery environment to repair the boot loader.. 'Bootmgr is missing' on a UEFI system indicates the boot loader or its configuration (BCD/EFI boot entry) is damaged or missing, typically after a patch modifies boot files. The most efficient fix is to boot into the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) and run bootrec /fixboot, bootrec /rebuildbcd, or bcdboot to repair the EFI boot loader and BCD store. This addresses the root cause directly without data loss or hardware replacement.

Answer

Reset the BIOS to factory settings.

Answer

Replace the hard drive and restore from backup.

Answer

Boot from the installation media and run chkdsk.

Question 18

A company uses a two-node failover cluster for a critical database application. The cluster consists of Node A and Node B, with shared storage connected via SAS. During a routine check, the administrator discovers that Node A has failed and the cluster resources did not fail over to Node B. The cluster service is running on Node B, but the database resource remains offline. Node B can successfully ping Node A's management IP address but not the dedicated cluster heartbeat IP. The shared storage appears in the operating system on Node B, but attempts to bring the disks online fail. The administrator must restore database service as quickly as possible. Which of the following actions should the administrator take FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Check and repair connectivity to the shared storage from Node B. The first action should be to check and repair connectivity to the shared storage from Node B. The shared storage appears in the OS but disks cannot be brought online, indicating a storage connectivity or configuration issue. Since Node B can ping Node A's management IP but not the heartbeat IP, the cluster may have lost quorum or the storage path is broken. Restoring storage access is critical to bringing the database resource online.

Answer

Run the cluster validation wizard

Answer

Force a quorum on Node B using the /forcequorum switch

Answer

Reboot Node A

Question 19

A server technician has just replaced a failed hard drive in a RAID 5 array. After inserting the new drive, the array begins rebuilding, but after 10 minutes, the rebuild fails and the array status shows 'degraded' again. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The new drive is larger than the other drives in the array.. RAID 5 requires all member drives to be the same size (or the array treats each drive as the size of the smallest member). When a larger replacement drive is inserted, the controller cannot use the extra capacity and, depending on the controller, may reject the drive during rebuild because it does not match the expected geometry, causing the rebuild to fail and the array to return to degraded state.

Answer

The new drive has a higher rotational speed.

Answer

The new drive has a different firmware version than the other drives.

Answer

The new drive is not hot-swappable and was inserted while the server was on.

Question 20

A file server running Windows Server 2016 is critical for a department's daily operations. For the past two weeks, it has been crashing with a blue screen every 1–2 days. The IT team collects minidump files and opens the latest one in WinDbg. After running '!analyze -v', they obtain the following output:
```
DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL (d1)
An attempt was made to access a pageable (or completely invalid) address at an interrupt request level (IRQL) that is too high. This is usually caused by drivers using improper addresses.
Arguments:
Arg1: fffff80012345678, memory referenced
Arg2: 0000000000000002, IRQL
Arg3: 0000000000000000, value 0 = read operation, 1 = write operation
Arg4: fffff80abcde1234, address which referenced memory
Debugging Details:
...
PROCESS_NAME:  fileserver.exe
SYMBOL_NAME:  NetAdapterCx.sys!NetAdapterCxSetLinkState+0x1234
IMAGE_NAME:  NetAdapterCx.sys
...
```
The server has 64GB ECC RAM, two Intel Xeon processors, and a Broadcom NetXtreme quad-port 10GbE NIC. The NIC driver was updated from version 7.12.6 to 7.14.8 two weeks ago as part of patch management. The BSODs started occurring immediately after that driver update; prior to the update, the server had been stable for over six months. The driver was obtained from the server manufacturer's support site and installed without error. The administrator wants to restore stability with minimal downtime and risk. Which action should the administrator take FIRST?

Accepted Answer

Boot into Safe Mode and roll back the network adapter driver to the previous version (7.12.6).. The WinDbg output identifies NetAdapterCx.sys as the faulting module, and the timeline shows BSODs began immediately after the NIC driver was updated from 7.12.6 to 7.14.8. Rolling back to the previous known-good driver in Safe Mode is the fastest, lowest-risk remediation that directly addresses the root cause without hardware changes or OS reinstallation. This restores stability with minimal downtime.

Answer

Replace the Broadcom NIC with a different brand network adapter and disable the onboard NIC in the BIOS.

Answer

Reinstall Windows Server 2016 and restore data from backups to eliminate any corrupted system files.

Answer

Run Windows Memory Diagnostic overnight to check for hardware memory errors that might corrupt driver loading.