A technician is building a high-performance workstation for video editing. The system uses an Intel Core i9-13900K CPU, a Z790 motherboard, and 64GB DDR5 RAM. After assembly, the system powers on, all fans spin, but there is no POST and no display output. The motherboard's CPU debug LED is lit. The technician has reseated the CPU and verified no bent pins, and tested the power supply with a multimeter (voltages within spec). The RAM is listed on the motherboard's QVL. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Good practice is not just finding the correct option. The wrong answers often show the exact trap the exam wants you to fall into.
Best answer
The CPU is not supported by the BIOS version
A BIOS that predates the 13th-gen CPU support will fail to initialize the CPU, causing the CPU debug LED to stay lit. Updating the BIOS to a version that supports 13th-gen is required.
Distractor review
The RAM is not seated properly
The technician has already reseated the RAM, and it is on the QVL. A RAM seating issue would typically cause a DRAM debug LED, not a CPU LED, and the system might beep. Since the CPU LED is lit, the issue is likely before RAM initialization.
Distractor review
The power supply is insufficient
A power supply issue would usually cause the system to not turn on at all, or to shut down under load. All fans spin, indicating the PSU is supplying power. The CPU debug LED points to the CPU not being recognized, not to power delivery.
Distractor review
The GPU is faulty
A faulty GPU would not cause the CPU debug LED to illuminate. The CPU debug LED indicates a problem with the CPU initialization process. The GPU is one of the last components to be initialized during POST.
Common exam trap
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Technical deep dive
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
- PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
- Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
- NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
- Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
- Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
- Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
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More questions from this exam
Keep practising from the same exam bank, or move into a focused topic page if this question exposed a weak area.
Question 1
A user reports intermittent network connectivity on a desktop computer. The technician observes that the Ethernet link light on the NIC turns off for a few seconds and then turns back on. The cable passes a wiremap test, the switch port is verified good with another device, and the NIC driver is updated. The issue occurs more frequently when the computer's case fan runs at high speed. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?
Question 2
A workstation is unable to connect to the internet. The technician runs the 'ipconfig' command and sees the IPv4 address is 169.254.15.200 with a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0. The workstation can ping other devices on the local subnet but cannot ping the default gateway or any external addresses. Which TWO actions should the technician take to resolve this issue? (Select two.)
Question 3
A workstation is connected to a managed switch. It obtains a valid IP address (192.168.10.50) from the DHCP server, but it cannot ping the default gateway (192.168.10.1). The link light on both the workstation NIC and the switch port are solid green. Other workstations on the same switch CAN ping the default gateway successfully. The technician accesses the switch management interface and finds that the workstation's port is configured as an access port on VLAN 10. The default gateway is located on VLAN 20. An inter-VLAN router is configured but not explicitly allowing VLAN 10 access to VLAN 20. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the problem?
Question 4
A company develops a web application that relies on a custom library available only for a specific Linux distribution. They want to deploy the application in the cloud with minimal administrative overhead, but they need full control over the software stack, including the ability to install the custom library and configure the web server. Which cloud service model BEST meets these requirements?
Question 5
A company has a legacy virtual machine running on a deprecated hypervisor (Hyper-V). They want to migrate this VM to a new hypervisor (VMware vSphere) hosted in a private cloud while preserving the VM's configuration, installed applications, and data. The migration must be performed with minimal downtime. Which of the following methods is MOST appropriate?
Question 6
A company hosts a critical database on a virtual machine in a public cloud. The database requires persistent storage that must be retained even if the VM is terminated. The storage must also be accessible from multiple VMs simultaneously for a future high-availability configuration. Which type of cloud storage BEST meets these requirements?
FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this 220-1101 question test?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The CPU is not supported by the BIOS version — Intel 13th-generation CPUs like the i9-13900K require a BIOS version that supports them. Z790 motherboards manufactured earlier may ship with a BIOS that only supports 12th-gen CPUs out of the box. The CPU debug LED indicates the motherboard cannot initialize the CPU, often due to BIOS incompatibility. Since the RAM is on the QVL and seating has been verified, and the PSU voltages are fine, the most likely cause is an outdated BIOS. Many Z790 boards support USB BIOS Flashback to update without a CPU.
What should I do if I get this 220-1101 question wrong?
Then try more questions from the same exam bank and focus on understanding why the wrong options are tempting.
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