220-1102 Software Troubleshooting Practice Question
A user reports that their Microsoft Office application crashes when opening a specific document, but other documents work fine. The user has rebooted. What should the technician try first?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is that candidates often jump to repairing or reinstalling Office (options A or C) because they assume the application itself is broken, but the question's key detail—'other documents work fine'—points to a document-specific or add-in issue, making Safe Mode the logical first step.
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
✓
Open the document in Safe Mode
The issue is isolated to a single document, indicating the problem is likely with the document itself or its associated add-ins, not the Office installation. Opening the document in Safe Mode (by holding Ctrl while launching or using the /safe switch) disables add-ins, extensions, and customizations, which often resolves crashes caused by third-party components. This is the quickest, least disruptive step before attempting repairs or reinstallation.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Reinstall Office
Why it's wrong here
Reinstalling Office is a drastic, time-consuming step that should be reserved for when the entire application fails across all documents. Since only one document triggers the crash, the installation itself is almost certainly intact, and a reinstall won't repair document-level corruption or remove third-party add-ins that might be causing the conflict. You'd also lose time reactivating licenses and reconfiguring settings, so this is a last resort after all targeted troubleshooting fails.
- ✗
Check for Office updates
Why it's wrong here
Checking for Office updates is a valid maintenance practice, but it's unlikely to resolve a crash that occurs with a single document while others open normally. Updates primarily deliver feature changes and security patches for known bugs; they do not repair a corrupted OOXML file or neutralize a malfunctioning add-in that only loads with that specific file. Isolating the problem's source by using Safe Mode is far more direct than waiting for an update that may never address this particular symptom.
- ✗
Run the Office repair tool
Why it's wrong here
The Office repair tool (Quick Repair or Online Repair) verifies and re-installs Office binaries, updates registry entries, and restores corrupted system files, but it does not touch user settings, add-ins, or document files themselves. Because Word/Office opens other documents without issue, the application installation is functioning; the crash is likely tied to the document's content or an add-in unique to that session. Running repair is therefore a low-probability fix that could take many minutes, so it should be deferred until after Safe Mode testing.
- ✓
Open the document in Safe Mode
Why this is correct
Launching the application in Safe Mode (e.g., winword.exe /safe) is the correct first step because it disables add-ins, global templates, and custom registry settings, allowing you to determine whether the crash is caused by the document or by background components. If the file loads without errors, an add-in or a startup item is the culprit; if it still crashes, the document is corrupted or contains an unsupported feature. This quick, non-destructive test directly isolates the failure layer, guiding every subsequent repair decision.
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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.