220-1201 Practice Questions

Question 1

A client in a dense urban apartment building wants internet service but cannot install a satellite dish due to HOA rules. They have a phone line but no cable TV outlet. Which connection type is most practical and cost-effective?

Accepted Answer

DSL. DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) uses existing telephone lines to provide internet access, making it the most practical and cost-effective option when cable TV outlets are unavailable and satellite dishes are prohibited. DSL is widely available in urban areas and does not require new cabling.

Answer

Cable broadband

Answer

Satellite

Answer

Fiber-optic

Question 2

A customer reports that their desktop computer, which is connected to the network via a wall jack, can access the internet but cannot see other computers on the same local network. The network uses a single switch and a router. What is the most likely misconfiguration causing this issue?

Accepted Answer

The computer's network profile is set to 'Public', disabling Network Discovery.. When a Windows computer's network profile is set to 'Public', the Windows Firewall automatically enables the 'Public' profile rules, which block Network Discovery and file sharing. This prevents the computer from seeing other devices on the local subnet even though internet access (which uses the default gateway) remains functional. The symptom—internet works but LAN visibility fails—is a classic indicator of a network profile misconfiguration.

Answer

The switch is a hub, not a switch.

Answer

The router is blocking multicast traffic.

Answer

The Ethernet cable is a crossover cable.

Question 3

A company's network uses a managed switch with VLANs. Users in VLAN 10 can ping the default gateway but cannot communicate with users in VLAN 20. The switch is connected to a router that handles inter-VLAN routing. What is the most likely misconfiguration?

Accepted Answer

The switch port connecting to the router is configured as an access port instead of a trunk.. The most likely misconfiguration is that the switch port connecting to the router is configured as an access port instead of a trunk. For inter-VLAN routing to work, the router must receive traffic from multiple VLANs on the same physical interface. A trunk port (using 802.1Q tagging) allows frames from VLAN 10 and VLAN 20 to be forwarded to the router, which then routes between them. An access port can only carry traffic for a single VLAN, so frames from VLAN 20 would be dropped or misdirected, preventing communication.

Answer

The router's firewall is blocking traffic between VLANs.

Answer

The default gateway for VLAN 20 is misconfigured.

Answer

The switch has Spanning Tree Protocol enabled, blocking the link.

Question 4

A company has a network with the IP range 172.16.0.0/16. They need to create 8 separate subnets for different departments, each with at least 1000 usable hosts. What subnet mask should be used?

Accepted Answer

255.255.224.0. To support 8 subnets with at least 1000 usable hosts each, you need to borrow enough bits from the host portion to create 8 subnets (2^3 = 8) while leaving at least 10 host bits (2^10 - 2 = 1022 usable hosts). Starting from /16, borrowing 3 bits gives a /19 prefix, which translates to subnet mask 255.255.224.0. This mask provides exactly 8 subnets and 8190 total hosts per subnet (2^13 - 2 = 8190), well exceeding the 1000-host requirement.

Answer

255.255.240.0

Answer

255.255.248.0

Answer

255.255.192.0

Question 5

A user reports that their VoIP phone works but the connected PC cannot access the network. The phone is connected to the wall jack, and the PC is connected to the phone's passthrough port. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The switch port is not configured for the data VLAN, so the PC cannot get an IP address.. The VoIP phone and PC share a single physical switch port via the phone's passthrough port. For the PC to access the network, the switch port must be configured as a trunk (or access port with voice VLAN) carrying both the voice VLAN (for the phone) and the data VLAN (for the PC). If the switch port is not configured for the data VLAN, the PC will not receive an IP address from the DHCP server and cannot communicate on the network, even though the phone works because it uses its own voice VLAN.

Answer

The PC's network cable is faulty.

Answer

The VoIP phone's passthrough port is disabled.

Answer

The PC's network adapter is set to a static IP address that conflicts with the phone.

Question 6

A technician is deploying a new VoIP phone and needs to ensure the Ethernet cable connecting the phone to the wall jack provides sufficient power for the phone to operate. The network switch supports Power over Ethernet (PoE). Which tool can verify that PoE is active on the cable?

Accepted Answer

PoE tester. A PoE tester is specifically designed to detect the presence and voltage of Power over Ethernet on a cable, confirming that the switch is delivering power. Unlike a standard cable tester, it checks for the DC voltage (typically 48V) that powers the VoIP phone, ensuring the phone will operate without needing a separate power adapter.

Answer

Multimeter

Answer

Cable tester

Answer

Loopback plug

Question 7

A user reports that their laptop cannot connect to the internet, but other devices on the same wired network work fine. The technician checks the IP configuration and sees the laptop has an IP address of 169.254.3.12. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The DHCP server is not responding. The IP address 169.254.3.12 falls within the Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) range (169.254.0.0/16), which Windows assigns when a DHCP discovery broadcast fails to receive a response. Since other devices on the same wired network work fine, the issue is isolated to this laptop's inability to reach the DHCP server, most likely due to a local configuration problem or a faulty network interface.

Answer

The DNS server is unreachable

Answer

The default gateway is misconfigured

Answer

The network cable is faulty

Question 8

A user has a laptop that supports Thunderbolt 3 and wants to connect two external 4K monitors at full resolution. They currently have a single USB-C hub that only supports DisplayPort over USB-C. What is the most likely limitation?

Accepted Answer

The hub does not support Thunderbolt 3 bandwidth.. Thunderbolt 3 supports up to 40 Gbps bandwidth, which is required to drive two 4K monitors at full resolution (60 Hz) over a single connection. A standard USB-C hub that only supports DisplayPort over USB-C is limited to USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) or USB 3.2 (20 Gbps) bandwidth, which is insufficient to carry two uncompressed 4K video streams simultaneously. Therefore, the hub itself is the bottleneck because it lacks Thunderbolt 3 controller and bandwidth capabilities.

Answer

The laptop's graphics card cannot drive two 4K monitors.

Answer

The monitors are not compatible with USB-C.

Answer

The user needs a USB-C to HDMI adapter for each monitor.

Question 9

A technician is setting up a temporary network for a conference where attendees' laptops need to share files directly without any central access point or router. The conference room has no existing network infrastructure. Which network type should be configured, and what is a potential security risk?

Accepted Answer

Ad hoc network; each laptop connects directly to others, but encryption may not be enforced.. An ad hoc network (IBSS) allows laptops to communicate directly without a central access point, which matches the requirement for direct file sharing with no existing infrastructure. The security risk is that encryption (like WEP or WPA2-Personal) may not be enforced by default in ad hoc mode, leaving data transmissions vulnerable to eavesdropping.

Answer

Infrastructure mode WLAN; configure a laptop as a software access point.

Answer

PAN network using Bluetooth; all laptops pair via Bluetooth.

Answer

Mesh network; each laptop acts as a node forwarding traffic.

Question 10

A user's iPhone connects to a public Wi-Fi hotspot but cannot load any web pages. The Wi-Fi icon shows full signal. Other devices on the same network work fine. What is the most likely issue?

Accepted Answer

The iPhone is not accepting the captive portal's terms and conditions.. The most likely issue is that the iPhone has connected to the Wi-Fi network but has not completed the captive portal authentication process. Captive portals require users to accept terms and conditions or log in via a web page before internet access is granted. Since other devices work fine, the network itself is functional, and the iPhone's full signal indicates a good physical connection, pointing to a failure in the portal acceptance step.

Answer

The iPhone's DNS settings are misconfigured.

Answer

The iPhone's Wi-Fi antenna is faulty.

Answer

The public Wi-Fi network is using an incompatible security protocol.

Question 11

A technician is replacing a cracked screen on a smartphone. After removing the old screen, they notice a small, flat, rectangular component with a metal shield is loose near the battery connector. What should they do?

Accepted Answer

Reattach it using double-sided adhesive tape.. The loose component is a battery connector bracket or grounding clip, which is typically secured with adhesive to prevent the battery connector from dislodging. Reattaching it with double-sided adhesive tape restores mechanical stability without soldering, as these parts are not soldered to the motherboard. This ensures reliable power delivery and prevents intermittent shutdowns or charging issues.

Answer

Discard it as it is not needed for the screen replacement.

Answer

Solder it back onto the motherboard.

Answer

Leave it loose; it will not affect screen operation.

Question 12

During a conference call, a user complains that their wireless earbuds keep disconnecting from their smartphone every few minutes. The earbuds work fine when paired with a different phone. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

Bluetooth interference from other devices in the conference room.. Bluetooth operates in the 2.4 GHz ISM band, which is shared with Wi-Fi, cordless phones, and other wireless devices. In a conference room with many active devices, RF interference can cause packet loss or retransmission delays, leading the Bluetooth Adaptive Frequency Hopping (AFH) mechanism to fail to avoid all congested channels, resulting in periodic disconnections. The fact that the earbuds work fine with a different phone isolates the issue to the smartphone's environment rather than the earbuds themselves.

Answer

The earbuds have a low battery.

Answer

The smartphone's Bluetooth driver is outdated.

Answer

The earbuds are not compatible with the smartphone's Bluetooth version.

Question 13

A technician is setting up a mobile point-of-sale system using a tablet and a portable receipt printer. The printer supports both Bluetooth and NFC. Which connection method should the technician use for reliable, low-latency printing?

Accepted Answer

Bluetooth. Bluetooth is the correct choice because it provides a reliable, low-latency wireless connection specifically designed for peripheral devices like printers. Unlike NFC, which is optimized for very short-range (under 4 cm) tap-to-pair operations and not sustained data streaming, Bluetooth maintains a stable link over distances up to 10 meters and supports the Serial Port Profile (SPP) or Bluetooth Basic Rate/Enhanced Data Rate (BR/EDR) for consistent print job throughput.

Answer

NFC

Answer

Infrared

Answer

Wi-Fi Direct

Question 14

A technician is configuring a dual-monitor setup for a stock trader. One monitor is a 24-inch 1080p display, and the other is a 27-inch 4K display. The user wants the mouse to move seamlessly between them. What setting must the technician configure in the OS display settings?

Accepted Answer

Arrange the displays in the OS to match their physical positions.. The OS display arrangement settings (e.g., in Windows Display Settings or macOS Displays) allow the technician to drag and position the virtual representations of the monitors to match their physical placement. This ensures that the cursor moves seamlessly across the bezel edge from one screen to the other, preventing it from getting 'stuck' at an invisible boundary. Without this alignment, the mouse may jump to an unexpected location or fail to cross between displays smoothly.

Answer

Set both monitors to the same resolution.

Answer

Adjust the scaling settings on the 4K monitor.

Answer

Set the 4K monitor as the primary display.

Question 15

A user wants to use a wired headset with their tablet for voice calls, but the tablet only has a single USB-C port and no 3.5mm jack. The headset has a 3.5mm plug. Which accessory should you recommend?

Accepted Answer

A USB-C to 3.5mm adapter.. A USB-C to 3.5mm adapter converts the digital audio signal from the USB-C port into an analog signal that the wired headset can use. This adapter typically includes a built-in DAC (Digital-to-Analog Converter) to handle the conversion, enabling voice calls through the tablet's USB-C port without requiring additional power or Bluetooth pairing.

Answer

A USB-C hub with multiple ports.

Answer

A Bluetooth audio adapter for the headset.

Answer

A 3.5mm Y-splitter cable.

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CompTIA A+ Core 1 220-1201 practice questions