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220-1201 Practice Question: A technician is upgrading a workstation from a…
A technician is upgrading a workstation from a 500 GB HDD to a 1 TB SSD. After installing the SSD, the system boots into the old OS from the HDD instead of the new SSD. The boot order in UEFI shows only the HDD. What is the most likely reason?
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
✓
The SSD is not partitioned with GPT or lacks an EFI system partition
The SSD may not be initialized with a GPT partition table or may lack an EFI system partition, making it invisible to the UEFI boot manager. The technician should check the partition style and ensure the SSD is properly formatted for UEFI boot. This question tests advanced knowledge of UEFI boot requirements.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The SSD is not connected to the fastest SATA port
Why it's wrong here
The connection speed of the SATA port (e.g., SATA II vs. SATA III) does not prevent the system's BIOS/UEFI firmware from detecting a connected drive. While connecting to a slower port might impact performance, the drive would still be enumerated and appear in the list of available storage devices within the firmware settings, even if not immediately recognized as bootable.
- ✓
The SSD is not partitioned with GPT or lacks an EFI system partition
Why this is correct
For a UEFI system to recognize an SSD as a bootable device, the drive must be partitioned using the GUID Partition Table (GPT) scheme and contain an EFI System Partition (ESP). The ESP holds the necessary boot loaders and applications for the UEFI firmware. Without this specific GPT/ESP structure, the UEFI firmware cannot identify the SSD as a valid bootable volume, preventing it from appearing in the boot menu.
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The HDD has a higher priority in the boot order
Why it's wrong here
Boot order priority only applies to devices that the system's firmware (BIOS/UEFI) has already successfully detected and identified as potentially bootable. If the SSD is not appearing in the list of available boot devices at all, it indicates a more fundamental issue with detection or configuration, rather than simply being lower in the sequence compared to the HDD. The problem is detection, not precedence.
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The SSD needs a firmware update
Why it's wrong here
While SSD firmware updates can resolve various issues like performance degradation or specific compatibility problems, they are rarely the cause for a drive not being detected at all by the system's BIOS/UEFI firmware for initial boot. Fundamental detection issues are more commonly related to cabling, power, or incorrect partitioning and formatting rather than a need for a firmware revision to enable basic visibility.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
BIOS and UEFI Settings
Key term
GUID Partition Table
A GUID Partition Table (GPT) is a modern standard for organizing and managing partitions on a storage drive, replacing the older Master Boot Record (MBR) system.
Key term
UEFI
UEFI (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface) is a modern firmware interface that initializes hardware and boots the operating system, replacing the older BIOS.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 220-1201 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the 220-1201 exam.