220-1102 Operating Systems Practice Question
A technician is tasked with deploying a standard Windows 10 Pro image to multiple new laptops. The technician needs to ensure that each deployed system has a unique Security Identifier (SID) for proper network and security functionality. Which tool should the technician run on the reference computer before capturing the image?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse Sysprep with Diskpart because both are command-line tools used in imaging workflows, but Diskpart only handles storage configuration and has no role in system identification or SID management.
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 with the /generalize option
Sysprep with the /generalize option removes computer-specific information, including the Security Identifier (SID), from the Windows installation. This ensures that when the image is deployed to multiple laptops, each system generates a unique SID upon first boot, which is critical for proper network authentication and security functionality in a domain environment.
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 with the /generalize option
Why this is correct
The sysprep tool with the /generalize switch prepares a Windows 10 Pro installation for duplication by stripping computer-specific artifacts such as the machine SID, the unique computer name, and other per-system registry settings. After generalizing, Windows boots into the Out-of-Box Experience (OOBE) on first start, which forces each deployed machine to generate its own fresh SID and accept a new name. This is the correct step before capturing or cloning the image.
- ✗
Diskpart
Why it's wrong here
Diskpart is a command-line utility for managing disks, partitions, and volumes, such as creating, deleting, formatting, and assigning drive letters. It operates at the storage layer and has no capability to alter operating system identity, remove the SID, or generalize a Windows image. Even if you script diskpart to prepare storage during deployment, the OS image it writes remains fully specific to the original machine without a preceding sysprep /generalize.
- ✗
bcdedit
Why it's wrong here
bcdedit is the Boot Configuration Data (BCD) editor, used to configure boot loader entries, boot parameters, and Windows Boot Manager options. It adjusts how the OS boots but never touches the system SID, machine name, or any per-installation identifiers. Since the issue is generalization of the OS image for unique SIDs, bcdedit is irrelevant to this task.
- ✗
dism /capture-image
Why it's wrong here
DISM /capture-image saves a Windows partition or image into a .wim or .esd file, but it captures the current state exactly as-is, including the existing machine SID and other system-specific data. DISM has no --generalize equivalent and, by itself, cannot reset machine identifiers for multicast deployment. A sysprep /generalize must be executed before DISM capture so that every client that receives the image can generate unique SIDs.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
PXE Boot and Windows Deployment Services
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.
Key term
Security
Security in IT is the practice of protecting systems, networks, and data from unauthorized access, damage, or theft.
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JA
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.