Chapter 4 RAM

Question 1

When not in use, programs and data are held in a mass storage device such as:
a. SSD
b. USB thumb drive
c. optical drive
d. All of the above

Answer 1

d. All of the above

Question 2

Because of its low cost, high speed, and capability to contain a lot of data in a relatively small package, ________ has been the standard RAM used in all computers—not just PCs—since the mid-1970s.
a. DRAM
b. SDRAM
c. RDRAM
d. DDR RAM

Answer 2

a. DRAM

Question 3

What does MCC stand for?
a. memory controller chip
b. memory cram chip
c. Magnetic controller chip
d. magnetic CPU chip

Meyers, Mike. CompTIA A+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, Tenth Edition (Exams 220-1001 & 220-1002) (p. 135). McGraw Hill LLC. Kindle Edition.

Answer 3

a. memory controller chip

The MCC knows the real location of the DRAM

The PC has very specific requirements for DRAM. The original 8088 processor had an 8-bit frontside bus. Commands given to an 8088 processor were in discrete 8-bit chunks. You needed RAM that could store data in 8-bit (1-byte) chunks, so that each time the CPU asked for a line of code, the memory controller chip (MCC) could put an 8-bit chunk on the data bus.

Question 4

The Intel ________ predates the Intel 8088 and was identical to the 8088 except for one small detail: it had a 16-bit frontside bus.
a. 8087
b. 8086
c. 8085
d. 8084

Answer 4

b. 8086

Question 5

Related to DRAM, SIMM stands for?
a. single inline memory module
b. single inside memory module
c. single inline mac module
d. single inline module memory

Answer 5

a. single inline memory module

DRAM manufacturers responded by creating wider DRAM chips, such as ×4, ×8, and ×16, and putting multiples of them on a small circuit board called a stick or module. An early stick, called a single inline memory module (SIMM), has eight DRAM chips.

Question 6

What does SDRAM stand for?
a. Synchronous DRAM
b. Sync DRAM
c. Silent DRAM
d. Super DRAM

Answer 6

a. Synchronous DRAM

SDRAM is still DRAM, but it is synchronous—tied to the system clock, just like the CPU and MCC, so the MCC knows when data is ready to be grabbed from SDRAM. This results in little wasted time.

Question 7

SDRAM made its debut in 1996 on a stick called a ___________________________
a. Duo inline memory mods
b. Dual inline memory module
c. Sync inline memory mods
d. Sync inline memory module

Answer 7

b. Dual inline memory module (DIMM)

Question 8

What does SO-DIMM stand for?
a. Sole DIMM
b. Silent DIMM
c. Small-outline DIMM
d. Solo DIMM

Answer 8

c. Small-outline DIMM

EXAM TIP: Some manufacturers (and CompTIA) drop the hyphen: SODIMM. You might see the RAM package spelled as SO-DIMM, SODIMM, or even SoDIMM.

The early SDRAM DIMMs came in a wide variety of pin sizes. The most common pin sizes found on desktops were the 168-pin variety. Laptop DIMMs came in 68-pin, 144-pin (see Figure 4-9), or 172-pin micro-DIMM packages; and the 72-pin, 144-pin, or 200-pin small-outline DIMM (SO-DIMM) form factors (see Figure 4-10). With the exception of the 32-bit 72-pin SO-DIMM, all these DIMM varieties delivered 64-bit-wide data to match the 64-bit data bus of every CPU since the original Pentium.

Question 9

True or False: To take advantage of SDRAM, you needed a PC designed to use SDRAM. If you had a system with slots for 168-pin DIMMs, for example, your system used SDRAM.

Answer 9

True

A DIMM in any one of the DIMM slots could fill the 64-bit bus, so each slot was called a bank. You could install one, two, or more sticks and the system would work. Note that on laptops that used the 72-pin SO-DIMM, you needed to install two sticks of RAM to make a full bank, because each stick only provided half the bus width.

Question 10

SDRAM was tied to the system clock, so its clock speed matched the frontside bus. Five clock speeds were commonly used on the early SDRAM systems:
a. 65, 76, 84, 100, and 134 MHz
b. 66, 75, 83, 100, and 133 MHz
c. 4, 16, 18, 24, and 48 MHz
d. 16, 32, 64, 128, and 254 MHz

Answer 10

b. 66, 75, 83, 100, and 133 MHz

The RAM speed had to match or exceed the system speed, or the computer would be unstable or wouldn’t work at all.

Question 11

When Intel was developing the Pentium 4, they knew that regular SDRAM just wasn’t going to be fast enough to handle the quad-pumped 400-MHz frontside bus. Intel announced plans to replace SDRAM with a very fast, new type of RAM developed by Rambus, Inc., called _____________________
a. SSDRAM
b. TDRAM
c. RDRAM
d. XDRAM

Answer 11

c. RDRAM aka Rambus DRAM

Hailed by Intel as the next great leap in DRAM technology, RDRAM could handle speeds up to 800 MHz, which gave Intel plenty of room to improve the Pentium 4.

Question 12

A stick of RDRAM was called a ________?
a. XIMM
b. SIMM
c. DIMM
d. RIMM

Answer 12

d. RIMM

In this case, the letters didn’t actually stand for anything; they just rhymed: SIMMs, DIMMs, and RIMMs, get it?

Question 13

AMD and many major system and memory makers threw their support behind an alternative to RDRAM, ____________________
a. single data rate SDRAM (SDR SDRAM)
b. double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM)
c. triple data rate SDRAM (TDR SDRAM)
c. quad data rate QDRRAM (QDR SDRAM)

Answer 13

b. double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM)

DDR SDRAM basically copied Rambus, doubling the throughput of SDRAM by making two processes for every clock cycle. bus. DDR SDRAM could not run as fast as RDRAM—although relatively low frontside bus speeds made that a moot point—but cost only slightly more than regular SDRAM.

Question 14

DDR SDRAM for desktops comes in ___________ DIMMs.
a. 196-pin
b. 184-pin
c. 176-pin
d. 180-pin

Answer 14

b. 184-pin

EXAM TIP:The 220-1001 exam loves to test you on pin counts with RAM! It will challenge your knowledge of the various RAM types, including DDR2, DDR3, and DDR4.

Make sure you know their individual characteristics and differences. DDR3 DIMMs have 240 pins, for example, and DDR3 SO-DIMMs have 204 pins.

Question 15

DDR SDRAM for laptops comes in either __________ SO-DIMMs or __________ micro-DIMMs
a. 200 pin / 170 pin
b. 180 pin / 300 pin
c. 150 pin / 200 pin
d. 200 pin / 172 pin

Answer 15

d. 200 pin / 172 pin

EXAM TIP:The 220-1001 exam loves to test you on pin counts with RAM! It will challenge your knowledge of the various RAM types, including DDR2, DDR3, and DDR4.

Make sure you know their individual characteristics and differences. DDR3 DIMMs have 240 pins, for example, and DDR3 SO-DIMMs have 204 pins.

Question 16

DDR sticks use a rather interesting naming convention based on the number of bytes per second of data throughput the RAM can handle. How do you determine the bytes per second?
a. take the MHz speed and multiply by 8 bytes (the width of all DDR SDRAM sticks).
b. take the MHz speed and multiply by 16 bytes (the width of all DDR SDRAM sticks).
c. take the MHz speed and multiply by 32 bytes (the width of all DDR SDRAM sticks).
d. take the MHz speed and multiply by 4 bytes (the width of all DDR SDRAM sticks).

Answer 16

a. take the MHz speed and multiply by 8 bytes (the width of all DDR SDRAM sticks).

So for an example, 400 MHz multiplied by 8 is 3200 megabytes per second (MBps). Put the abbreviation “PC” in the front to make the new term: PC3200.

Question 17

One of Rambus’ best concepts was the _____________________—using two sticks of RDRAM together to increase throughput.
a. dual-channel architecture
b. duo-channel architecture
c. double-channel architecture
d. duality-channel architecture

Answer 17

a. dual-channel architecture

Dual-channel DDR requires two identical sticks of DDR and they must snap into two paired slots. Many motherboards offer four slots

Some motherboards that support DDR3 also support features called triple-channel architecture or quad-channel architecture, which work a lot like dual-channel, but with three or four sticks of RAM instead of two.

Question 18

__________ is DDR RAM with some improvements in its electrical characteristics, enabling it to run even faster than DDR while using less power.
a. DDR2
b. DDT2
c. DDS2
d. DDX2

Answer 18

a. DDR2

The big speed increase from DDR2 comes by clock doubling the input/output circuits on the chips. This does not speed up the core RAM—the part that holds the data—but speeding up the input/output and adding special buffers (sort of like a cache) makes DDR2 run much faster than regular DDR.

Question 19

DDR2 uses a ________ DIMM that’s not compatible with DDR
a. 240-pin
b. 260-ping
c. 280-pin
d. 300-pin

Answer 19

a. 240-pin
Likewise, the DDR2 200-pin SO-DIMM is incompatible with the DDR SO-DIMM. You’ll find motherboards running both single-channel and dual-channel DDR2.

EXAM TIP:The 220-1001 exam loves to test you on pin counts with RAM! It will challenge your knowledge of the various RAM types, including DDR2, DDR3, and DDR4.

Make sure you know their individual characteristics and differences. DDR3 DIMMs have 240 pins, for example, and DDR3 SO-DIMMs have 204 pins.

Question 20

____________ boasts higher speeds, more efficient architecture, and around 30 percent lower power consumption than DDR2 RAM.
a. DDR4
b. DDR5
c. DDR3
d. DDR3s

Answer 20

c. DDR3

Just like its predecessor, DDR3 uses a 240-pin DIMM, albeit one that is slotted differently to make it difficult for users to install the wrong RAM in their system without using a hammer

Question 21

DDR3 uses a ______ DIMM
a. 260-pin
b. 280-pin
c. 204-pin
d. 240-pin

Answer 21

d. 240-pin

EXAM TIP:The 220-1001 exam loves to test you on pin counts with RAM! It will challenge your knowledge of the various RAM types, including DDR2, DDR3, and DDR4.

Make sure you know their individual characteristics and differences. DDR3 DIMMs have 240 pins, for example, and DDR3 SO-DIMMs have 204 pins.

Question 22

What does XMP (related to DDR3 topic) stand for?
a. Xy Memory Profile
b. Extreme Memory Profile
c. Xray Memory Profile
d. Extreme MAC Profile

Answer 22

b. Extreme Memory Profile

Some DDR3 (and later) modules also include a feature called XMP, or Extreme Memory Profile, that enables power users to overclock their RAM easily, boosting their already fast memory.

Question 23

AMD’s verison of XMP (Extreme Memory Profile) is called?
a. AMD mac profile
b. AMD module profile
c. AMD memory profile
d. AMD motherboard profile

Answer 23

c. AMD memory profile

Question 24

What is the low-voltage version of DDR3?
a. DDR3L
b. DDR3S
c. DDR3X
d. DDR3a

Answer 24

a. DDR3L

Memory manufacturers offer a low-voltage version of DDR3, most commonly labeled DDR3L, that provides substantial cost savings when used in massive RAM applications.

Question 25

DDR3L runs at _____ volts (V)
a. 1.65
b. 1.45
c. 1.55
d. 1.35

Answer 25

d. 1.35

DDR3L runs at 1.35 volts (V), compared to the 1.5 V or 1.65 V of regular DDR3, providing cost savings up to 15 percent—that adds up fast! The ultra-low-voltage version of DDR3, DDR3U, runs at a miserly 1.25 V.

Question 26

True or False: Lower voltage means more heat generated. In a server farm or data center, that can reduce the air conditioning bill by a lot.

Answer 26

False

Lower voltage means LESS heat generated. In a server farm or data center, that can reduce the air conditioning bill by a lot. That’s a good thing.

Question 27

__________ offers higher density and lower voltages than DDR3, and can handle faster data transfer rates.
a. DDR1
b. DDR3
c. DDR2
d. DDR4

Answer 27

d. DDR4

DDR4 arrived on the scene in late 2014 with much fanfare and slow adoption, although it’s the mainstream memory now.

Question 28

DDR4 uses a ___________ DIMM, so they are not backwardly compatible with DDR3 slots.
a. 288-pin
b. 290-pin
c. 294-pin
d. 298-pin

Answer 28

a. 288-pin

EXAM TIP:The 220-1001 exam loves to test you on pin counts with RAM! It will challenge your knowledge of the various RAM types, including DDR2, DDR3, and DDR4.

Question 29

DDR4 SO-DIMMs have __________ that are not compatible with DDR3 204-pin SO-DIMM slots.
a. 260 pins
b. 280 pins
c. 300 pins
d. 240 pins

Answer 29

a. 260 pins

Question 30

Every type of RAM stick comes in one of two types: ____________________ and ____________________
a. single-sided RAM and double-sided RAM
b. one-sided RAM and two-sided RAM
c. three-sided RAM and four-sided RAM
d. There is only one RAM

Answer 30

a. single-sided RAM and double-sided RAM

single-sided sticks have chips on only one side of the stick. Double-sided sticks have chips on both sides

Question 31

The delay in RAM’s response time is called its ____________
a. Response time
b. Latency
c. Delayed response
d. Cycle delay

Answer 31

b. Latency

The delay in RAM’s response time is called its latency, but shorthand like CL17 or CL19 uses initials for the technical name: column array strobe (CAS) latency.

Question 32

What does CAS in latency stand for?
a. column align strobe
b. call align signal
c. column array strobe
d. call array signal

Answer 32

column array strobe

Question 33

True or False: If both have the same speed rating, RAM with a lower latency—such as CL17—is slightly faster than RAM with a higher latency—such as CL19—because it responds more quickly.

Answer 33

True

Question 34

The CL in RAM latency stand for?
a. Clock level delays
b. Clock cycle delays
c. Clock close delays
d. Clock low delays

Answer 34

b. Clock cycle delays

For example, CL17 or CL19. The 17 means that the memory delays 17 clock cycles before delivering the requested data; the 19 means a 19-cycle delay.

Question 35

___________ Latency numbers reflect how many clicks of the system clock it takes before the RAM responds.
a. Response time
b. Latency
c. Delayed response
d. Cycle delay

Answer 35

b. Latency

Question 36

True or False: If you put a high-latency stick in a motherboard set up for a low-latency stick, you’ll get an unstable or completely dead PC.

Answer 36

True

Question 37

The first type of error-detecting RAM was known as ___________
a. First RAM
b. Troubleshooter RAM
c. Fix RAM
d. Parity RAM

Answer 37

d. Parity RAM

Question 38

Compared with non-parity RAM, parity RAM stored an extra bit of data (called the ___________) that the MCC used to verify whether the data was correct.
a. parity byte
b. parity bit
c. parity one
d. parity single

Answer 38

b. parity bit

Question 39

Today’s PCs that need to watch for RAM errors use a special type of RAM called __________________ (ECC RAM)
a. error correction code RAM
b. error call code RAM
c. error code correction RAM
d. error code call RAM

Answer 39

a. error correction code RAM

Question 40

True or False: ECC is a major advance in error checking on DRAM. ECC does not detects and corrects any time a single bit is flipped, on-the-fly.

Answer 40

False

ECC detects and corrects any time a single bit is flipped, on-the-fly.

Question 41

True or False: ECC can detect but not correct a double-bit error.

Answer 41

True

Question 42

True or False: To take advantage of ECC RAM, you do not need a motherboard designed to support ECC.

Answer 42

False

To take advantage of ECC RAM, you NEED a motherboard designed to support ECC.

Question 43

Terms refer to a small register installed on some memory modules to act as a buffer between the DIMM and the memory controller.
a. registered RAM or buffered RAM
b. registered DRAM or buffered DRAM
c. registered DDR3 or buffered DDR3
d. registered DDR4 or buffered DDR4

Answer 43

a. registered RAM or buffered RAM

Question 44

True or False: a motherboard will use either buffered or unbuffered RAM (that’s typical consumer RAM), not both.

Answer 44

True

Question 45

True or False: Adding more RAM can improve overall system performance, processing speed, and stability.

Answer 45

True

Question 46

True or False:

To get the desired results from a RAM upgrade, you must first determine if insufficient RAM is the cause of system problems.
Second, you need to pick the proper RAM for the system.
Finally, you must use good installation practices.

Answer 46

True

Question 47

True or False: You do not need to store RAM sticks in anti-static packaging whenever they’re not in use, and you don’t have to use strict ESD handling procedures.

Answer 47

True

Question 48

Will is experiencing PC issues such as general system sluggishness and excessive hard drive access. Programs take forever to load and running programs seem to stall and move more slowly. What could be the cause of the issues?
a. the problem could stem from poor ventilation
b. the problem could stem from insufficient RAM
c. the problem could stem from no thermal paste
d. the problem could stem from bad wiring

Answer 48

b. the problem could stem from insufficient RAM

Question 49

Computers use a portion of the hard drive (or solid-state drive) as an extension of system RAM called _________________
a. virtual RAM
b. virtual memory
c. RAM extender
d. SSD extender

Answer 49

b. virtual memory

At a certain point, you won’t have enough RAM to run any more programs . Sure, you could close one or more programs to make room for yet another one, but you can’t keep all of the programs running simultaneously. This is where virtual memory comes into play.

Question 50

The operating system uses part of the available drive space to save a __________or __________
a. file page or file swap
b. page file or swap file
c. bit file or byte file
c. memory file or RAM file

Answer 50

b. page file or swap file
When a computer starts running out of real RAM because you’ve loaded too many programs, the system swaps less-used programs from RAM to the page file, opening more space for programs currently active

Question 51

The default and recommended page-file size in Windows is __________ times the amount of installed RAM on your computer.
a. 1
b. 1.5
c. 2.0
d. 2.5

Answer 51

b. 1.5

Question 52

True or False: If you have enough RAM to run all your programs, Windows does not need to use the page file—Windows brings the page file into play only when insufficient RAM is available to run all open programs.

Answer 52

True

Question 53

What is the default name for the page file?
a. pagefile.txt
b. pagefile.sys
c. pagefile.ext
d. pagefile.doc

Answer 53

b. pagefile.sys

Question 54

If Windows needs to access the page file too frequently, you will notice the hard drive access LED going crazy as Windows rushes to move programs between RAM and the page file in a process called ___________
a. disk thrashing
b. disk partition
c. disk clean-up
d. disk deletion

Answer 54

a. disk thrashing

Question 55

True or False: Windows uses the page file all the time, but excessive disk thrashing suggests that you need more RAM.

Answer 55

True

Question 56

True or False: fine. Microsoft recommends a minimum system requirement of 1 GB of RAM for 32-bit versions of Windows and 2 GB of RAM for 64-bit versions.

Answer 56

True

Question 57

Provide a system RAM recommendation for a 32-bit Windows:
a. 1 GB to get by; 2 GB for best results
b. 2 GB to get by; 4 GB for best results
c. 2 GB to get by; 2 GB for best results
d. 1 GB to get by; 4 GB for best results

Answer 57

b. 2 GB to get by; 4 GB for best results

Question 58

Provide a system RAM recommendation for a 64-bit Windows:
a. 4 GB to get by; 8 GB for a solid machine; 16+ GB for any machine doing serious, processor-intensive work
b. 2 GB to get by; 4 GB for a solid machine; 8+ GB for any machine doing serious, processor-intensive work
c. 1 GB to get by; 2 GB for a solid machine; 4+ GB for any machine doing serious, processor-intensive work
d. 4 GB to get by; 16 GB for a solid machine; 16+ GB for any machine doing serious, processor-intensive work.

Meyers, Mike. CompTIA A+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, Tenth Edition (Exams 220-1001 & 220-1002) (p. 155). McGraw Hill LLC. Kindle Edition.

Meyers, Mike. CompTIA A+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, Tenth Edition (Exams 220-1001 & 220-1002) (p. 155). McGraw Hill LLC. Kindle Edition.

Meyers, Mike. CompTIA A+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, Tenth Edition (Exams 220-1001 & 220-1002) (p. 155). McGraw Hill LLC. Kindle Edition.

Question 59

How do you determine the current RAM capacity?
a. Windows displays this amount in the System Control Panel applet
b. You can also access the screen with the WINDOWS-PAUSE/BREAK keystroke combination on standard keyboards
c. A and B
d. A and B, and Windows also includes the handy Performance tab in the Task Manager

Answer 59

d. A and B, and Windows also includes the handy Performance tab in the Task Manager

Question 60

What is one way of accessing Task Manager from your PC?
a. CTRL+SHIFT+ESC
b. CTRL+ALT+ESC
c. CTRL+SHIFT+ALT
d. CTRL+SHIFT+F4

Answer 60

a. CTRL+SHIFT+ESC

Question 61

True or False: Traditional (spinning) hard drives for virtual memory offer slow performance. High-speed flash drives offer much better virtual memory performance

Answer 61

True

Question 62

Windows offers a feature called __________ that enables you to use flash media devices—removable USB thumb drives or memory cards—as super-fast, dedicated virtual memory.
a. ReadyBoost
b. EnableBoost
c. ApprovedBoost
d. VirtualBoost

Answer 62

a. ReadyBoost

Question 63

True or False: ReadyBoost isn’t for every system. A modern system running SSDs won’t see much benefit with ReadyBoost.

Answer 63

True

Question 64

True or False: To do the perfect RAM upgrade, determine the optimum capacity of RAM to install and then get the right RAM for the motherboard.

Answer 64

True

Question 65

True or False: You do not need to check the motherboard book or RAM manufacturer’s Web site to determine the total capacity of RAM the system can handle and what specific technology works with your system.

Answer 65

False

Question 66

True or False: You may often find yourself tempted to mix speeds of DRAM in the same system. Although you may get away with mixing speeds on a system, the safest, easiest rule to follow is to use the speed of DRAM specified in the motherboard book, and make sure that every piece of DRAM runs at that speed.

Answer 66

True

Question 67

True or False: When inserting DIMMs, make sure that you touch the contacts on the stick of RAM to ensure a solid connection.

Answer 67

False
Pick up a stick of RAM—don’t touch those contacts—and line up the notch or notches with the raised portion(s) of the DIMM socket

Question 68

When inserting DIMMS, the term SPD stands for?
a. serial presence dual
b. serial presence detect
c. serial PC detect
d. serial PC dual

Answer 68

b. serial presence detect

Your motherboard should detect and automatically set up any DIMM you install, assuming you have the right RAM for the system, using a technology called serial presence detect (SPD).

Question 69

True or False: If you add a RAM stick with a bad SPD chip, you’ll get a POST error message and the system will not boot.

Answer 69

True

Question 70

True or False: You can fix a broken SPD chip; you do not need to buy a new stick of RAM.

Answer 70

False
You can’t fix a broken SPD chip; you just buy a new stick of RAM.

Question 71

What type of DIMMS are installed on laptops?
a. SO-DIMMs
b. TO-DIMMs
c. LO-DIMMs
d. DO-DIMMs

Answer 71

a. SO-DIMMs

Most larger laptops still provide relatively convenient access to their SO-DIMMs, making it easy to add or replace RAM.

Question 72

True or False: Before doing any work on a laptop, turn the system off, disconnect it from the AC wall socket, and remove all batteries. Use an anti-static wrist strap because laptops are far more susceptible to ESD than desktop PCs.

Answer 72

True

Question 73

Every once in a while, your PC crashes and can manifest a BSoD. What do you call the interruption of the CPU that cannot be ignored?
a. non-maskable interrupt
b. non-maskable error
c. non-maskable default
d. non-maskable crash

Answer 73

a. non-maskable interrupt (NMI)

An NMI manifests as a proprietary crash screen.

Question 73

What does BSoD stand for?

Answer 73

Blue Screen of Death

Question 74

What does SPoD stand for?

Answer 74

Spinning Pinwheel of Death

The CompTIA A+ objectives refer to the SPoD as the pin wheel of death.

Question 75

What does GPF stand for?
a. general protection fault
b. general positive fault
c. generic protection fault
d. generic positive fault

Answer 75

a. general protection fault

Question 76

________________is an error that can cause an application to crash. Often GPFs are caused by programs stepping on each other’s toes.
a. general protection fault
b. general positive fault
c. generic protection fault
d. generic positive fault

Answer 76

a. general protection fault (GPF)

Question 77

Steve adds a second 8-GB 288-pin DIMM to his PC, which should bring the total RAM in the system up to 16 GB. The PC has an Intel Core i7 4-GHz processor and four 288-pin DIMM slots on the motherboard. When he turns on the PC, however, only 8 GB of RAM shows up in Windows Settings app. Which of the following is most likely to be the problem?
A. Steve failed to seat the RAM properly.
B. Steve put DDR4 in a DDR3 slot.
C.The CPU cannot handle 16 GB of RAM.
D.The motherboard can use only one RAM slot at a time.

Answer 77

A. Steve failed to seat the RAM properly.

Question 78

Scott wants to add 8 GB of PC3-12800 DDR3 to an aging but still useful desktop system. The system has a 200-MHz motherboard and currently has 4 GB of non-ECC DDR3 RAM in the system. What else does he need to know before installing?
A. What speed of RAM he needs
B. What type of RAM he needs
C. How many pins the RAM has
D.If the system can handle that much RAM.

Answer 78

D.If the system can handle that much RAM.

Question 79

What is the primary reason that DDR4 RAM is faster than DDR3 RAM?
A.The core speed of the DDR4 RAM chips is faster.
B.The input/output speed of the DDR4 RAM is faster.
C.DDR3 RAM is dual-channel and DDR4 RAM is quad-channel.
D.DDR3 RAM uses 240-pin DIMMs and DDR4 uses 288-pin DIMMs.

Answer 79

B.The input/output speed of the DDR4 RAM is faster.

Question 80

What is the term for the delay in the RAM’s response to a request from the MCC?
A. Variance
B. MCC gap
C. Latency
D. Fetch interval

Answer 80

C. Latency is the term for the delay in the RAM’s response to a request from the MCC.

Question 81

How does an NMI manifest on a Windows system?
A. Blue Screen of Death.
B. Spinning Pinwheel of Death.
C. Interrupt of death.
D. NMIs only happen on macOS systems.

Answer 81

A. A non-maskable interrupt on a Windows system often results in the Blue Screen of Death.

Question 82

Silas has an AMD-based motherboard with two sticks of DDR3 RAM installed in two of the three RAM slots, for a total of 8 GB of system memory. When he runs CPU-Z to test the system, system, he notices that the software claims he’s running single-channel memory. What could be the problem? (Select the best answer.)
A. His motherboard only supports single-channel memory.
B.His motherboard only supports dual-channel memory with DDR2 RAM, not DDR3.
C.He needs to install a third RAM stick to enable dual-channel memory.
D.He needs to move one of the installed sticks to a different slot to activate dual-channel memory.

Answer 82

D. Motherboards can be tricky and require you to install RAM in the proper slots to enable dual-channel memory access. In this case, Silas should move one of the installed sticks to a different slot to activate dual-channel memory. (And he should check the motherboard manual for the proper slots.)

Question 83

Which of the following Control Panel applets will display the amount of RAM in your PC?
A. System
B. Devices and Printers
C. Device Manager
D. Action Center

Answer 83

A. You can use the System applet to see how much RAM is currently in your PC.

Question 84

What is the best way to determine the total capacity and specific type of RAM your system can handle?
A. Check the motherboard book.
B. Open the case and inspect the RAM.
C. Check the Device Manager.
D.Check the System utility in the Control Panel.

Answer 84

A. The best way to determine the total capacity and specific type of RAM your system can handle is to check the motherboard book.

Question 85

Gregor installed a third stick of known good RAM into his Core i7 system, bringing the total amount of RAM up to 12 GB. Within a few days, though, he started having random lockups and reboots, especially when doing memory-intensive tasks such as gaming. What is most likely the problem?
A.Gregor installed DDR2 RAM into a DDR3 system.
B.Gregor installed DDR3 RAM into a DDR4 system.
C.Gregor installed RAM that didn’t match the speed or quality of the RAM in the system.
D.Gregor installed RAM that exceeded the speed of the RAM in the system.

Answer 85

C. Most likely, Gregor installed RAM that didn’t match the speed or quality of the RAM in the system.

Question 86

Cindy installs a second stick of DDR4 RAM into her Core i5 system, bringing the total system memory up to 16 GB. Within a short period of time, though, she begins experiencing Blue Screens of Death. What could the problem be?
A. She installed faulty RAM.
B.The motherboard could only handle 12 GB of RAM.
C. The motherboard needed dual-channel RAM.
D.There is no problem. Windows always does this initially, but gets better after crashing a few times.

Answer 86

A. If you have no problems with a system and then experience problems after installing something new, chances are the something new is at fault.