Question 156 of 144
SK0-005 troubleshooting Practice Question
A file server running Windows Server 2016 is critical for a department's daily operations. For the past two weeks, it has been crashing with a blue screen every 1–2 days. The IT team collects minidump files and opens the latest one in WinDbg. After running '!analyze -v', they obtain the following output: ``` DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL (d1) An attempt was made to access a pageable (or completely invalid) address at an interrupt request level (IRQL) that is too high. This is usually caused by drivers using improper addresses. Arguments: Arg1: fffff80012345678, memory referenced Arg2: 0000000000000002, IRQL Arg3: 0000000000000000, value 0 = read operation, 1 = write operation Arg4: fffff80abcde1234, address which referenced memory Debugging Details: ... PROCESS_NAME: fileserver.exe SYMBOL_NAME: NetAdapterCx.sys!NetAdapterCxSetLinkState+0x1234 IMAGE_NAME: NetAdapterCx.sys ... ``` The server has 64GB ECC RAM, two Intel Xeon processors, and a Broadcom NetXtreme quad-port 10GbE NIC. The NIC driver was updated from version 7.12.6 to 7.14.8 two weeks ago as part of patch management. The BSODs started occurring immediately after that driver update; prior to the update, the server had been stable for over six months. The driver was obtained from the server manufacturer's support site and installed without error. The administrator wants to restore stability with minimal downtime and risk. Which action should the administrator take FIRST?
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
✓
Boot into Safe Mode and roll back the network adapter driver to the previous version (7.12.6).
Option A is correct because the crash dump explicitly denotes NetAdapterCx.sys (the network driver framework) as the cause, and the problem started right after the driver was updated. Rolling back is the quickest and safest step to restore operational stability. Option B is wrong because an OS reinstall is extreme and unlikely to fix a driver-specific issue. Option C is wrong because the dump identifies a driver, not a memory fault, and ECC memory typically reports errors before causing crashes. Option D is wrong because a hardware replacement is costly and unnecessary when a driver rollback is available.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Replace the Broadcom NIC with a different brand network adapter and disable the onboard NIC in the BIOS.
Why it's wrong here
Replacing hardware is unnecessary if rolling back the driver resolves the issue, and would incur additional cost and downtime.
- ✓
Boot into Safe Mode and roll back the network adapter driver to the previous version (7.12.6).
Why this is correct
The crash dump points directly to the network driver, and the problem timeline coincides exactly with the driver update. Rolling back to the known-good version is the most targeted and minimally disruptive corrective action.
- ✗
Reinstall Windows Server 2016 and restore data from backups to eliminate any corrupted system files.
Why it's wrong here
Reinstalling the OS is excessive, causes significant downtime, and does not guarantee that the same driver issue would not recur if the same update is applied again.
- ✗
Run Windows Memory Diagnostic overnight to check for hardware memory errors that might corrupt driver loading.
Why it's wrong here
While memory errors can cause random crashes, the consistent pattern tied to a specific driver update and the crash dump identifying the network driver make RAM unlikely. Moreover, the server uses ECC memory which would log correctable errors before these crashes.
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Last reviewed: Jul 26, 2026
This SK0-005 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 SK0-005 exam.
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