220-1102 Operating Systems Practice Question
A technician needs to deploy the same Windows 10 image to multiple new computers. The image was prepared on a reference computer with all required applications and settings. Which built-in tool must the technician run on the reference computer BEFORE capturing the image to ensure that the image can be deployed to different hardware models?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse DISM's image servicing capabilities with Sysprep's generalization role, mistakenly thinking DISM can prepare an image for multi-hardware deployment, but DISM cannot remove hardware-specific SIDs or driver bindings.
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
✓
Sysprep (System Preparation Tool)
Sysprep (System Preparation Tool) is the correct tool because it generalizes the Windows installation by removing hardware-specific drivers, resetting the Security ID (SID), and configuring the system to boot into Out-of-Box Experience (OOBE) mode. This ensures the image can be deployed to different hardware models without driver conflicts or duplicate SID issues.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Sysprep (System Preparation Tool)
Why this is correct
Sysprep, run with the /generalize option, is the correct tool because it removes hardware-specific information such as installed device drivers, the computer name, and the unique security identifier (SID) from a Windows 10 installation, creating a generalized image that can be safely deployed to multiple different PCs. This resealing step triggers the Windows Out-of-Box Experience (OOBE) on first boot, so each target computer generates its own machine identity.
- ✗
DISM (Deployment Image Servicing and Management)
Why it's wrong here
DISM deploys and services Windows images by capturing or applying .wim files, mounting offline images to add drivers, language packs, and updates, but it cannot generalize or reseal an operating system installation. It operates on an already prepared image or a live Windows partition; it does not strip the SID, computer name, or driver caches that would cause conflicts when the same image is cloned onto multiple computers.
- ✗
Windows PE (Preinstallation Environment)
Why it's wrong here
Windows PE is a minimal bootable operating system used as a preinstallation environment to launch deployment tools, run disk partition operations, or recover corrupted Windows installations, not a utility for preparing an OS image for cloning. While you can boot into Windows PE to run Sysprep or DISM, Windows PE itself contains no functionality to reseal, generalize, or otherwise alter the Windows 10 installation to remove machine-specific settings.
- ✗
Disk Management
Why it's wrong here
Disk Management is a Microsoft Management Console snap-in that performs low-level storage tasks such as creating, extending, shrinking, or formatting volumes, assigning drive letters, and initializing disks; it has no access to Windows characteristics like the SID, computer name, or hardware abstraction layer. It cannot make an image hardware-independent because it is solely concerned with the physical and logical layout of disks, not with the operating system's identity or driver bindings.
Go deeper
Related to this question
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macOS System Preferences and Settings
Key term
Windows 10
Windows 10 is a personal computer operating system developed by Microsoft that combines the familiarity of Windows 7 with the modern features of Windows 8, designed to run on a wide range of devices from desktops to tablets.
Key term
Windows
Windows is a family of operating systems developed by Microsoft that manages computer hardware and software, providing a graphical user interface for users to interact with their devices.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 220-1102 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 220-1102 exam.