easyMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
220-1201 Practice Question: A small office has several desktop PCs that are…
A small office has several desktop PCs that are experiencing intermittent blue screen errors, especially when running multiple applications. The IT support team suspects faulty RAM. Which tool should they use to test the memory modules?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Windows Memory Diagnostic.
Windows Memory Diagnostic is a built-in tool in Windows that performs a thorough test of installed RAM to detect errors. It can be run from the boot menu or within Windows and is the standard first step for diagnosing memory issues. Other tools like MemTest86 are also common, but Windows Memory Diagnostic is readily available without additional downloads.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Task Manager.
Why it's wrong here
Task Manager is primarily a system monitoring utility that displays real-time information about running processes, performance metrics like CPU, memory, disk, and network usage, and allows for process management. While it shows current memory consumption, it lacks any built-in functionality to perform diagnostic tests for hardware integrity, detect physical defects, or identify faulty RAM modules that might be causing intermittent system instability or data corruption. Therefore, it cannot diagnose actual hardware errors within the RAM itself.
- ✓
Windows Memory Diagnostic.
Why this is correct
The Windows Memory Diagnostic (WMD) tool is specifically engineered to identify potential issues with a computer's Random Access Memory (RAM). Upon initiation, the system reboots and runs a series of comprehensive tests, writing and reading various data patterns to and from the memory modules to detect errors such as bad cells, addressing problems, or data corruption. This integrated utility is highly effective for diagnosing physical defects or intermittent failures in RAM that can lead to system crashes, Blue Screens of Death (BSODs), or application instability, making it the ideal choice for initial troubleshooting.
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CHKDSK.
Why it's wrong here
CHKDSK (Check Disk) is a command-line utility designed to verify the file system integrity of a volume and fix logical file system errors, as well as scan for and recover data from bad sectors on a hard disk drive or solid-state drive. Its primary function is to ensure the health of storage devices and the data stored on them, operating at the file system and block level of persistent storage. This tool has no capability to interact with or diagnose issues related to volatile Random Access Memory (RAM), which is a completely separate hardware component with a distinct function in the system.
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System Configuration (msconfig).
Why it's wrong here
System Configuration, commonly accessed via `msconfig`, is a utility primarily used for managing system startup options, boot processes, services, and startup programs. It allows users to troubleshoot startup problems by selectively enabling or disabling services and applications, or by modifying boot parameters. However, `msconfig` is a software configuration tool and does not possess any diagnostic capabilities for testing the physical integrity or functionality of hardware components like RAM modules, making it unsuitable for identifying memory errors.
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CAN
A CAN (Controller Area Network) is a robust vehicle bus standard designed to allow microcontrollers and devices to communicate with each other without a host computer.
Key term
RAM
RAM (Random Access Memory) is your computer's short-term memory, temporarily holding data the CPU needs right now or very soon.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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