Chapter 6 - Operating Systems Flashcards
You want to transfer files from your computer to a remote server. To do this, you want to
connect to a shared directory on the server and copy the files. Which command- line utility
will allow you to do this?
A. netstat
B. net
C. netshare
D. netdom
B. Depending on the version of Windows you are using, net can be one of the most powerful commands at your disposal. While all Windows versions include a net command, its
capabilities differ based on whether it is used on a server or workstation and the version of
the operating system. Commonly net share is used to create shared folders, and net use
is used to connect to shared resources. The net user command allows administrators to
create and manage user accounts. netstat shows what sockets (IP address plus port) are
being used and by which protocols. net share is a valid command for managing shared
resources, but netshare and netdom are not valid commands.
A technician is troubleshooting a computer that occasionally will not read data from the
hard drive. What should they try first?
A. Run Defragment and Optimize Drives.
B. Run chkdsk at a command prompt.
C. Format the hard drive and reinstall the OS.
D. Replace the hard drive.
B. It’s possible that the hard drive has some bad sectors, so run chkdsk to scan the drive
and attempt to repair them. If that doesn’t work, formatting is the second option, and replacing the drive is the third. If your drive is getting read/write errors, having an extra hard drive
on hand would be wise.
You have replaced a failed hard drive and need to prepare the new drive for data storage.
Which utility will you use first?
A. format
B. chkdsk
C. diskpart
D. gpupdate
C. The diskpart utility lets the user see and manage partitions on the computer’s hard
drives. Because of the enormous power it holds, the user must have administrator status to
run diskpart. Once a partition is created, the format command will set up the filesystem
on the new volume. The chkdsk command verifies the disk integrity, and gpupdate forces
Group Policy changes to take effect immediately
You are at a Windows computer with the Command Prompt open. You believe that a user is
improperly accessing files on a shared folder named docs. On the Windows computer, the
D:\userfiles folder is shared as docs. Which command will immediately stop the sharing
of this folder?
A. net share D:\userfiles /delete
B. net share D:\userfiles /stop
C. net share docs /delete
D. net share docs /stop
C. The net share command is used to share folders on a network as well as stop sharing
folders. The proper syntax to share a folder is
net share <share>=<drive>:<path>. To stop sharing, use
net share <share> /delete. You must be running the Command Prompt
as an administrator to create and delete shares.</share></path></drive></share>
You want to use BitLocker to encrypt the company president’s laptop drive, but when you
go into Control Panel to find it, it isn’t there. What Windows 10 edition does this com-
puter have?
A. Home
B. Pro
C. Pro for Workstations
D. Enterprise
A. Windows 10 Home edition does not offer BitLocker as an option. BitLocker is available
in the Pro, Pro for Workstations, and Enterprise editions.
Which of the following Windows editions support ReFS (Resilient File System)?
(Choose two.)
A. Home
B. Pro
C. Pro for Workstations
D. Enterprise
C, D. Resilient File System (ReFS) is a feature available on Windows Pro for Workstations
and Windows Enterprise editions. ReFS will detect when data on a mirrored drive has been
corrupted and will use a healthy copy of the data on other drives to attempt to correct corrupted data and protect data.
You just purchased a new computer that has four CPUs. What edition of Windows will you
need, at a minimum, to take advantage of the computer’s processing capability?
A. Home
B. Pro
C. Pro for Workstations
D. Enterprise
C. Windows Pro for Workstations is designed so that users can take advantage of the capa-
bilities of high- end workstations. Windows Home edition can support one physical processor,
Windows Pro can support up to two physical processors, while Windows Pro for Worksta-
tions can support up to four physical processors.
An employee wants to bring their Windows device to use at work. At work they will need to
log into a domain. Which reason below will prohibit the employee from using their device on
the domain?
A. Their device only has one processor.
B. Their device OS is Windows Home.
C. Their device only has 8 GB of RAM.
D. Their device must be Windows Enterprise.
1 Enterprise and Embedded Industry editions cannot be upgraded to Windows 10, but
the other Windows 8.1 editions can. No Windows 8 editions can be directly upgraded to
Windows 10. They must be first upgraded to Windows 8.1, then Windows 10. Only Win-
dows 10 Home can be upgraded to Windows 10 Pro, or an in- place upgrade from Win-
dows 10 Pro to the same or newer version of Windows 10 Pro can be done to troubleshoot
problems with the existing installation.
One of your technicians needs to use the Task Manager utility. What are ways they can open
Task Manager? (Choose two.)
A. Press Ctrl+Alt+Delete and then click Task Manager.
B. Press Ctrl+Shift+T.
C. Press Ctrl+Alt+T.
D. Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc.
A, D. Task Manager is a powerful tool that works in all versions of Windows, although it
has different capabilities in different versions. In Windows 10 and 11 it allows you to shut
down nonresponsive applications; view performance of CPU, memory, disks, Wi- Fi, and
GPUs; as well as show application usage history, services, and programs that are launched at
startup, users who are attached to the system, and other useful information.
You need to configure Internet connections on a Windows workstation. Which tabs of the
Internet Options utility in Control Panel would you use to set the home page and enable the
pop- up blocker?
A. Connections, Security
B. General, Security
C. General, Privacy
D. Connections, Privacy
C. The Internet Options utility in Windows Control Panel has six tabs that allow you to con-
figure how your browser interacts with the Internet. The six tabs are General, Security, Pri-
vacy, Content, Connections, Programs, and Advanced. Not all versions of Windows have the
Content tab. The General tab allows you to change the home page whereas the Privacy tab
has a Turn On Pop-u p Blocker option.
A network connection doesn’t seem to be working as it should. You’ve verified that the cables
are good from end to end. Where can you quickly look in the OS to see if there is a problem
with the onboard NIC driver?
A. Device Manager
B. Programs and Features
C. File Explorer Options
D. Ease of Access
Programs and
Features allows the user to add, remove, or troubleshoot installed programs (the options
will change by program) and add or remove Windows features. Indexing Options catalogs
words in files and the files’ metadata to provide faster file searches.
A salesperson in your company travels regularly to foreign countries, through different
time zones. They have asked you if there is a way to set their Windows 10 PC so that it will
always show the time and date for their location. How can this be done?
A. In Windows Settings, choose Time & Language, then Date & time, and select Set time
automatically.
B. In Control Panel, choose Date and Time, then select Set Time Zone Automatically.
C. In Windows Settings, choose Date And Time, then select Synchronize Your Clock.
D. In Windows Settings, choose Time & Language, then choose Date & time, and select Set
time automatically and Set time zone automatically.
D. To always show the time and date correctly for the salesperson’s location, you would
need to enable both Set time automatically and Set time zone automatically, as shown in
the graphic. Synchronize your clock would work in the moment but will not automatically
change the time and time zone as the salesperson travels. The Date And Time utility of Con-
trol Panel will let you change the date and time, but it does not have a setting for automat-
ically changing them as you move from place to place. In Windows 11 Time And Language
appears as Time & Language, but otherwise the choices are the same.
One of your Windows 10 users has limited eyesight and has asked you to enable voice
activation for as many applications as possible. Where can this be done?
A. In Control Panel, Default Programs
B. In Windows Settings, under Privacy, Notifications
C. In Windows Settings, under Privacy, Voice Activation
D. In Control Panel, Indexing Options
C. Voice activation, found under Privacy in Windows Settings will allow the user to turn on
microphone access and choose which apps are allowed to use voice activation, even when
the device is locked. The choices are slightly different in Windows 11. In Windows Settings,
choose Privacy & security, then Speech. The setting is on by default. The Default Programs
app of Control Panel allows you to manage default applications for opening types of files
such as photos or mail by opening those settings in Windows Settings. By choosing Privacy,
You are working with a customer that has a small workgroup (peer- to- peer) network with
Windows 10 PCs. The employee computers have a program that requires using the X: drive.
Several computer users need to be able to access this drive, which is actually a shared folder
located on the manager’s PC. What can you do to make this drive available for other com-
puters to access as drive X:? (Choose two.)
A. On each client computer, open File Explorer, click This PC, then click Map network
drive. Choose drive letter X, then navigate to the shared resource.
B. On the manager’s PC, navigate to the shared folder, then right- click it and choose Map
network drive.
C. On the manager’s PC, ensure that each user who will connect to the manager’s PC has a
user account.
D. On the client computer, create a folder called Drive X:, then on the manager’s PC,
map Drive X: to that folder.
A, C. In a workgroup (peer- to- peer) network, you would first need to ensure that each
person who will be using the shared resource has a username and password on the manager’s
computer. The resource would then be shared on the manager’s PC, and on each employee’s
computer, go into File Explorer, click This PC, then Map network drive and follow the
onscreen prompts to map drive X: to that shared resource. The choices in Windows 11 are
slightly different. In File Explorer, after clicking This PC you would click the three dots in the
ribbon then choose Map network drive.
You are setting up a network for a very small company. They have a total of 10 computers
running a mix of Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro computers, and they have a
network- attached printer. What will you use to allow them to share files and their printer?
A. Domain
B. Workgroup
C. Homegroup
D. Crossover cables
B. In order to have a domain, you would need a domain controller (DC), for which the
company would need Windows Server software installed on a network connected computer.
They only have Windows 10 workstations. Homegroups were a networking scheme that
shared a computer’s libraries with other people on the same Homegroup, but Homegroups
are no longer an option. Crossover cables are not a practical way to share anything among
10 computers. By default, the computers would belong to the workgroup named workgroup.
Each computer that is sharing a resource would need to have the user they are sharing with
listed on that computer, then the person sharing information could right- click a folder and
choose Give access to, then Specific people and choose who they want to share that particular
resource with. Workgroups are great for small groups of people, but if there are more than
20 or 30 people in the group, you’ll likely want to move up to a DC and centralized security.
A user’s Windows workstation seems to be using an excessive amount of memory. Which
management tool could you use to identify the application that is causing the problem?
A. Performance Monitor
B. Computer Management
C. Windows Memory Diagnostics
D. Processes tab of Task Manager
D. One of Task Manager’s many capabilities is allowing you to see what resources (memory,
CPU, GPU, network, and disk) are being used by application, and it allows you to end the
process or the entire process tree to free up those resources. Performance Monitor will show
resources used but not by application. Computer Management gives access to several other
resources, but not Task Manager, whereas Windows Memory Diagnostics is used to test the
health of RAM modules.
The CEO will be attending several meetings whose discussions must remain confidential.
They want to ensure that the microphone on their Windows 10 PC is not available while they
are using certain apps. Where can these settings be configured?
A. In Windows Settings, choose Privacy, then Microphone.
B. Device Manager.
C. Computer Management.
D. In Windows Settings, choose Personalization.
A. In Windows Settings, choosing Privacy, then Microphone opens a window that pro-
vides granular settings for microphone use, including which apps can use the microphone.
Device Manager could be used to disable the microphone, but it would be for all purposes.
Computer Management provides access to several tools, but not granular microphone set-
tings. In Windows Settings, Personalization options allow the user to change settings such as
background, colors, and lock screen. In Windows 11 the only difference is that you would
choose Privacy & Security, not Privacy.
You are manually configuring IPv4 addresses on a computer. The IP address is 200.100.1.10,
and the network number is 200.100.0.0. What is the appropriate subnet mask for
this computer?
A. 200.100.0.0
B. 255.255.0.0
C. 0.0.255.255
D. 192.168.0.0
B. The best way to understand IPv4 addressing is to convert the IP address and subnet
mask to binary numbers. This is essentially what the operating system is looking at when
determining the network and host portion of an IP address. What we see as dotted dec-
imal notation is seen by the computer as four sets of eight binary bits (either a 1 or a 0).
In the subnet mask, a binary 1 indicates that the position of that bit is part of the network
number and a 0 indicates that it is part of the host number. Network numbers always go
consecutively from left to right with no breaks between. Eight binary bits that are all ones
(11111111) equates to 255 in decimal, so the maximum value of a subnet mask’s octet is
You are configuring a Windows client computer on a network that has a DHCP and DNS
server attached. Where will the computer get its IP address and subnet mask?
A. You will manually configure them in Windows Settings by choosing Personalization.
B. You will manually configure them in Windows Settings, by choosing Network & Internet.
C. It will automatically get them from the DHCP server.
D. It will automatically get them from the DNS server.
C. The default setting for obtaining an IP address is automatic, which means that the computer
will look for a DHCP server to assign an IP address and subnet mask. No manual configura-
tion is required, but in Windows 10, you can verify that the connection is set to automatically
obtain an IP address, as shown in the graphic, by following these steps: Open Windows Set-
tings, then click Network & Internet. Choose Change adapter options, and right-c lick the net-
work connection in question. Then choose Properties, click Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/
IPv4), and click Properties. The process is the same for IPv6, except that you would choose
IPv6 instead of IPv4. This can also be done through Control Panel by clicking Network and
Sharing Center instead of Network and Internet, then the next steps are the same. In Windows
11, Windows Settings, choose Network & Internet, click Properties of the active network con-
nection at the top of the page. This will bring you to the network’s configuration page where
you can ensure that the setting for IP assignment is configured to Automatic (DHCP). The Con-
trol Panel options for Windows 11 are the same as Windows 10.
You have been told to configure a static IP of 110.110.1.5 for a server. This server will need
to be able to access the Internet. Which one of the following is not a required setting to
configure?
A. Default gateway
B. IP address
C. Proxy server
D. Subnet mask
C. An IP address on a device can be either dynamic or static. In a static IP address, the
minimum amount of information that needs to be configured is the IP address, subnet mask,
and, if the computer will access the Internet or other networks, a default gateway. A proxy
server is an added security measure between a device and the Internet. It is used to translate
between protocols and filter out certain types of traffic such as keeping inappropriate web-
sites out and confidential data in the network.
You’re creating a network diagram for a company that has just hired you as a network
admin. Which of the following could be the default gateway on the company’s network?
(Choose two.)
A. Web server
B. Proxy server
C. Router
D. Switch
B, C. Web servers provide web pages to users sometimes inside but often outside of the
company by answering HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) or HTTPS (HTTP Secure)
requests. They are often separate from the main network on a screened subnet for security
reasons. A proxy server can serve as a gateway for a network because, if one exists, traffic
will go through the proxy server before going into or out of the network. In the absence of
a proxy server, the router serves as a gateway, forwarding traffic on to the next network or
receiving external traffic and sending it to the proper device inside a network. A switch is an
internal networking device that provides a central connection point for network nodes and
uses the node’s MAC (Media Access Control) address that is found on the NIC (network
interface card) to send packets to the proper destination.
What is the purpose of a subnet mask?
A. Identifies the network portion of an IPv4 address
B. Identifies the network portion of an IPv6 address
C. Masks (hides) part of the IP address from a hacker
D. Masks (hides) the host number from a hacker
A. In IPv4 networking, a computer system will compare the subnet mask to the IP address
to identify the network and host number of the IP address. IPv6 addresses don’t use a subnet
mask. IPv6 addresses consist of eight segments. The first three are a site prefix, the fourth is
the subnet ID, and the last four segments are the interface ID, which is essentially the host
address. The subnet mask doesn’t hide anything.
You’ve been asked to help with a network for a company that has 50 computers. They’ve
been using workgroups, but it is getting too difficult. There is an assortment of Windows
editions on the computers, including Windows Home, Windows Pro, and Windows Pro for
Workstations. What will you do to set up their new network? (Choose two.)
A. Upgrade all the Windows Home PCs to Windows Pro.
B. Install a server with Active Directory.
C. Downgrade all the Windows Pro for Workstations to Windows Pro.
D. Upgrade all the workstations to Windows Enterprise.
A, B. A network with that many computers (typically more than 10) needs a domain for
security management. The Windows Home edition PCs can’t log into a domain, so they
would need to be upgraded to at least the Pro edition. It’s not necessary to upgrade them to
Pro for Workstations or Enterprise editions.
You work for a multinational corporation that is using Windows 10 laptops. All the
company laptops are configured to use United States English, but a worker that speaks
Bajan (Barbados English) would prefer to see apps and websites in their native language. Is
this possible?
A. No, this is not possible.
B. Yes, Add English (Barbados) in the Control Panel, Programs and Features utility.
C. Yes, add English (Barbados) in Windows Settings, Time & Language, Language section.
D. Yes, but it will require reinstalling the OS in Bajan.
C. It is possible to view apps and websites in many languages and dialects. In Windows
Settings, choose Time & Language, then Language (see the graphic). Click Add a language
to choose the appropriate language to install, then move it to the top of the language list.
Apps and websites that support that language will appear in the language that is at the top
of the list. The language may require downloading a Language pack. Icons to the right of
the installed language are used to indicate what is available in that language. In the graphic,
to the right of English (United States) from left to right the icons indication options avail-
able are as follows: Display language, Text- to- speech, Speech recognition, Handwriting, and
Spell- check.
A Windows workstation has an application that appears to be locked up, but the keyboard is
responsive in other applications. What system tool can you use to terminate the nonrespon-
sive application?
A. Event Viewer
B. Task Manager
C. Computer Management
D. msconfig.exe
B. The Processes tab of Task Manager will allow you to terminate the nonresponsive appli-
cation. Event Viewer keeps a log of security, application, and system events. Computer
Management gives access to several other resources, but not one that lets you end wayward
applications. The msconfig.exe application launches System Configuration, which gives
you access to boot configuration settings, running services, and links to other Windows tools.
Which of the following Control Panel utilities enables configuration of a proxy server?
A. Internet Options
B. File Explorer Options
C. Device Manager
D. Security and Maintenance
A. In Control Panel, choosing Internet Options, selecting the Connections tab, and then
clicking LAN settings will take you to a window that enables configuration of a proxy
server. Proxy server settings can also be configured through Windows Settings by choosing
Network & Internet and choosing Proxy. The File Explorer Options utility is used to con-
figure how files and folders are viewed, and how searches are conducted. Device Manager
is a great utility to use when troubleshooting hardware issues, and the Security and Mainte-
nance utility provides a quick way to see if security is configured on the PC and to see any
recent messages.
Given the IP address of fe80::308c:fee2:2abc:8337, what do we know about this address?
(Choose two.)
A. It is an IPv4 address.
B. It is an IPv6 address.
C. The subnet mask is 0.
D. It is not routable.
B, D. IPv4 addresses are 32 bits long and consist of 4 octets, which is a group of 8 bits
each, separated by a period (.) They are normally presented in dotted decimal notation,
meaning each group of 8 bits is shown as a decimal number less than 256, with a period
(.) between each number, such as 192.168.1.1. IPv6 addresses are a 128- bit IP address
presented as eight segments of four hexadecimal numbers each, separated by a colon (:).
Where the hexadecimal number is 0 in any segment, it can be omitted and replaced simply
by double colons (::). If consecutive segments are 0, they can all be replaced by a single set
of double colons, but only one set of double colons can exist in any given address— otherwise
you wouldn’t be able to tell how many sets of zero are in each part of the IP address.
In the example, fe80::308c:fee2:dabc:8337, the expanded address would be
fe80:0:0:0:308c:fee2:dabc:8337. The first three segments (48 bits) are the site
prefix, and the fourth segment (16 bits) is the subnet ID, also known as private topology or
site topology. The site prefix and subnet number together constitute the subnet prefix. The
last four segments (64 bits) are the interface ID, also sometimes called a token. The subnet
ID in this case would be 0. IPv6 addresses do not have a subnet mask. The value of the first
octet, fe80, tells us that this number is a link- local address, an internal number only and
not routable.
You see an IP address with /48 after it. What does the /48 tell you? (Choose two.)
A. There are 48 PCs on this network.
B. The prefix length is 48 bits.
C. This network uses the IPv6 addressing scheme.
D. This network uses the IPv4 addressing scheme.
B, C. The IP address in question must be IPv6 because IPv4 addresses are only 32 bits long.
The / indicates that the number behind it is the number of bits for the network address
in IPv4 or the prefix length in IPv6, both of which identify the network number of an IP
address. In IPv4 we call this CIDR (Classless Inter- domain Routing) notation.
Which of the following IPv6 address types are routable?
A. Global unicast
B. Link- local
C. Loopback
D. Unique local
A. Global unicast addresses are routable, like IPv4 public addresses. That means that a
global unicast address can be reached by any other PC on the Internet, unless you put secu-
rity measures in place like a firewall. You would likely want a global unicast address on a
web server, but not on your workstation. Link- local addresses can only be used to communi-
cate with devices that are on the same local link. They will start with fe80 and are assigned
in a manner similar to IPv4 APIPA addresses. The IPv6 loopback address is ::1, and is used
for testing just like the loopback address in IPv4 (127.0.0.1). A unique local address is akin
to an IPv4 private address. Unique local addresses are nonroutable, so a computer with only
a unique local address and a link-l ocal address (but no global unicast address) would need a
router with IPv6 NAT in order to access the Internet.
You are on a Windows computer that is joined to a workgroup. You’re going home and
ready to shut your computer down but want to be certain that no one is using the shared files
on the computer first. Where would you go to check?
A. Task Manager
B. Users and Groups
C. Performance Monitor
D. Control Panel ➢ Networking
A. The Task Manager’s Users tab provides information about any users that are connected
to the local machine. The Users tab shows the user’s identification and the resources that are
being used by them. Right- click and choose Expand to see what they are using on your com-
puter. You can also disconnect them from here, but it might be nicer to message them first.
You have a workstation with a 64-b it processor and no operating system. When you install
an operating system on the workstation, which of the following is true?
A. You can only install a 64-b it operating system.
B. You can only install a 32-b it operating system.
C. You can install either a 64-b it or 32- bit operating system.
D. You can install a 64- bit operating system or a 32- bit operating system running in com-
patibility mode.
C. With a 64- bit processor, you can install either a 32- bit or 64- bit operating system. A 32-
bit system will not be able to take advantage of the full processing power of the 64- bit pro-
cessor, though.
A customer has a PC from 2017 on which they would like to install Windows 10 Pro. What
is the minimum processor speed they must have to install Windows 10 64- bit?
A. 1 GHz
B. 2 GHz
C. 3 GHz
D. 10 GHz
A. Windows 10 minimum requirements are a 1 GHz or faster processor or SoC (System on
a Chip), DirectX 9 or later with the WDDM (Windows Display Driver Model) 1.0 driver,
and a minimum 800×600 display. For storage, the 32- bit version requires 16 GB and the 64-
bit version requires 20 GB available for the OS. RAM requirements are 1 GB for the 32- bit
operating system and 2 GB for the 64-b it operating system. Keep in mind that these are the
absolute minimum requirements, and the OS will run but not as well as we have come to
expect. In reality, a faster processor, more RAM, and more storage would be expected.
Which of the following is not a Windows 10 edition?
A. Home
B. Enterprise
C. Pro Artist
D. Pro Workstation
C. Windows 10 is available in many different editions. The editions on the CompTIA A+
exam (for both Windows 10 and Windows 11) are Home, Pro, Pro for Workstations, and
Enterprise. Other Windows editions (not on the CompTIA A+ exam) include Education, Pro
Education, Windows 10 in S mode, Windows for IoT, and Windows 10 Team.
What information do you need to connect to a PC using Remote Desktop?
A. The IP address of the PC
B. The password to the network that the PC resides on
C. The name under “How to connect to this PC” when Remote Desktop was enabled
D. The password of the signed-o n PC user
C. To connect, all you need to know is the name of the device you’re connecting to, but there
are steps that must have already taken place. If you’re using your smartphone to connect,
you need Remote Desktop Mobile installed on the smartphone and Remote Desktop must
be enabled on the target PC. Then you would simply open the app on your smartphone and
type the name that appeared under “How to connect to this PC” when Remote Desktop was
enabled on that PC.
You’re troubleshooting a PC and want to see what ports TCP is connected on and the IP
addresses of those connections. What command- line utility can you use to see statistics on
network interfaces?
A. ping
B. nbtstat
C. nslookup
D. netstat
D. The netstat command- line utility presents statistics related to the installed network
interfaces. By default, on a Windows machine, running the command will display a list
of connections and the associated protocol, the source and target address, and the current
state of the connection. Ping is used to test connectivity between two computers,
nbtstat is used for troubleshooting NetBIOS over TCP/IP, and nslookup is used to query
a DNS server.
A new technician asked you how to use a Windows command. In the spirit of sharing
knowledge with others, you show them how to get help on many commands instead of just
one. Which one of the following does not work with any commands?
A. help [command name]
B. [command name] help
C. [command name] /?
D. /? [command name]
D. The /? [command name] syntax simply does not work. The CompTIA A+ objectives
list [command name] /?, but there are other ways to get help at a command prompt.
Typing help and pressing Enter at a command prompt will provide a list of commands
that help can help you with. Armed with that information, you can type
help [command name], for example, help xcopy, and you will see the syntax, switches,
and explanations for how the command works. Some commands, for example, sfc, will not
work with that help syntax. To find help with sfc, you would type sfc /?, sfc /help or
sfc help, but none of those options work with all commands. For example, gpresult /?
works, but gpresult /help will tell you that /help is an invalid option. Remember that
the option CompTIA wants you to know is [command name] /?. There are upward of
200 commands supported by Windows 10 and Windows 11. CompTIA’s A+ objectives list
just a few, so focus on those.
Which Windows utility allows you to view error messages generated by system events, appli-
cations, or login failures?
A. System Information
B. Windows Defender
C. Event Viewer
D. Disk Management
C. Event Viewer (eventvwr.msc) is a Windows tool, available in most versions, that
allows you to view application error logs, security audit records, and system errors. System
Information (msinfo32.exe) shows a plethora of information about the hardware and
software of a system, but it doesn’t keep a log of changes. It provides static information avail-
able at the time you launch the program. Windows Defender is a Control Panel utility that
You find that you are often using System Configuration, Disk Cleanup, and Event Viewer.
What Windows 10 Control Panel utility gives you quick access to these and more tools?
A. Computer Management
B. Resource Monitor
C. Administrative Tools
D. Task Scheduler
C. Administrative Tools, which can be found in the Windows 10 Control Panel, has many
of the computer management tools that are used to maintain and troubleshoot computer
systems, not just the ones listed in this question. Computer Management is a Micro-
soft Management Console (MMC) that contains other tools as well. In it you can find
Task Scheduler, Even Viewer, Shared Folders, Performance, Device Manager, and Disk
Management, as well as Services and Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) Con-
trol. In Windows Pro and above editions Computer Management also contains Local Users
and Groups. Resource Monitor shows resources being used by process in real time, and Task
Scheduler is just as the name sounds—i t can be used to schedule other applications, even
batch files, to run based on time or other predetermined events. Administrative Tools is not
available in Windows 11, but the other tools listed in this question are.
Your manager has a laptop running Windows. They want to configure the laptop so that
when it is on battery power, the display shuts off after five minutes of inactivity. When the
laptop is plugged in, the display needs to stay active for up to 45 minutes of inactivity. Which
Control Panel utility is used to configure these settings?
A. Power Options
B. Computer Management
C. Performance Monitor
D. System Configuration
A. A power plan needs to be created with the user’s desired settings. This is done in the
Power Options utility of Control Panel. Different options, such as Hibernate or Standby, can
be configured for when the laptop is on battery power versus when it’s plugged in. There
are also power settings in Windows Settings, but they are not listed in the CompTIA A+
objectives.
You need to work at a command prompt on a Windows PC. When you open the prompt, you
are at C:\window\system32. You need to work on the second partition, which is listed as
drive D:. How will you navigate to drive D:? Assume you press Enter after the command.
A. root D:
B. D:
C. cd D:
D. cd D:\
B. The way to change to a different drive is to type the drive letter and a colon, such as D:,
and press Enter. cd is the change directory command. It can take you to a different directory
or change the working directory on a different drive but cannot take you to a different drive.
root is not a Windows command.
Which Windows 10 Editions support up to four CPU sockets? (Choose two.)
A. Home
B. Pro
C. Pro for Workstations
D. Enterprise
C, D. Windows Pro for Workstations and Enterprise editions support up to four physical
CPU sockets and 6 TB of RAM. The Home edition supports 128 GB of RAM and one CPU
socket whereas the Pro edition supports 2 TB of RAM and a maximum of two CPU sockets.
You have a workstation with a 32-b it processor and no operating system installed. When you
install an operating system on the workstation, which of the following is true?
A. You can only install a 32-b it operating system.
B. You can install a 64- bit operating system but it will run in compatibility mode.
C. You can install either a 32-b it or 64- bit operating system and either will run fine.
D. You can install a 64- bit operating system but it will only run half as fast.
A. A 32- bit processor doesn’t have the capability to run a 64- bit operating system in any
mode. It also won’t be able to run a 64-b it program. It simply doesn’t have a wide enough
data path.
You are installing the Windows 10 Home 64- bit operating system on a friend’s computer.
What is the minimum storage space that must be available for the OS installation?
A. 1 GHz
B. 2 GHz
C. 16 GB
D. 20 GB
D. Windows 10 minimum requirements are a 1 GHz or faster processor or SoC (System on
a Chip), DirectX 9 or later with the WDDM (Windows Display Driver Model) 1.0 driver,
and a minimum 800×600 display. For storage, the 32- bit version requires 16 GB, and the
64- bit version requires 20 GB available for the OS. RAM requirements are 1 GB for the 32-
bit operating system and 2 GB for the 64-b it operating system. Keep in mind that these are
the absolute minimum requirements, and the OS will run but not as well as we have come to
expect. In reality, a faster processor, more RAM, and more storage would be expected.
You are in the Windows 10 Command Prompt, using Run as administrator. There is a
directory named d:\files that you want to delete. It currently has six subdirectories and
dozens of files in it. Which command should you use to delete d:\files?
A. del d:\files /s
B. del d:\files /q
C. rmdir d:\files /s
D. rmdir d:\files /q
C. The cd, md, and rd commands are used to change, make, and remove directories, respec-
tively. They’re shorthand versions of the chdir, mkdir, and rmdir commands. The rd or
rmdir command will only delete empty directories by default. With that command, the /s
switch will remove all subdirectories and files. The /q switch is quiet mode, and when used
with the /s switch, it will not ask if it’s OK to remove all the files and subdirectories; it will
remove them without warning. The del command is for deleting files.
You’ve installed several identical new PCs and want to capture a baseline of their
performance for future troubleshooting. What tool would be best suited for that purpose?
A. Event Viewer
B. Performance Monitor
C. System Information
D. System Configuration
B. Performance Monitor (perfmon.msc) offers a graphic display of a wide range of
counters to track how well hardware such as RAM, drives, and CPUs are performing over
time. Those reports can be printed and filed as a baseline to compare to future performance
and used to identify bottlenecks in a system. Event Viewer (eventvwr.msc) keeps logs
of system, application, and security events that can be used for activities such as detecting
attempted unauthorized access to resources. System Information provides a snapshot of the
system’s hardware and software, including the OS version, RAM, processor, motherboard,
and much, much more. The program to launch it is msinfo32.exe. System Configuration
(msconfig.exe) has been appearing in Windows operating systems for many versions now,
but its features have changed over time. In Windows 10 and Windows 11, this utility is used
to control how Windows boots up and to provide quick access to other Windows tools.
A user has called the help desk saying that the Internet is down on their Windows computer.
After asking a few questions, you want to examine their network configuration to determine
the cause of their computer’s connectivity problem. You’ve talked them through accessing the
Windows Command Prompt. What command will you have them type so they can read the
computer configuration to you?
A. ipconfig /all
B. ipconfig /renew
C. ip
D. tracert
A. The ipconfig command is used to display information about the computer’s current
network configurations. The /all switch will show more detailed information than
ipconfig alone will, such as whether DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) is
enabled and what the DNS (Domain Name System) settings are. Typing ipconfig /renew
will request a new IP address from a DHCP server, if one is available to the host PC. The
macOS equivalent of ipconfig is ip (replacing the old ifconfig command), and
tracert shows the path a packet takes to get from one computer to another.
A computer user that you support is having difficulty reading the words on the screen
because they have a visual impairment that makes distinguishing colors difficult for them.
What can you change in Windows Settings to make their screen more readable?
A. Go to Personalization, then Fonts.
B. Go to Personalization, then Background, and choose High contrast settings.
C. Select System, then Display, then Nightlight.
D. Select Accounts, then choose High Contrast Settings.
B. Select Windows Settings, then Personalization, choose Background, then click on High
contrast settings. On the next screen click the toggle to turn on high contrast, which will
make the colors more distinct and easier for visually impaired users to distinguish between
them. This may make it easier for the user to read the words on the screen. Like most Win-
dows options, there are other ways to access the High Contrast Settings. The Fonts selection
under Windows Settings, then Personalization, allows the user to add fonts to the system
that are not already there. While changing to a different font might help the computer user,
this isn’t the place to do it. The nightlight settings use warmer colors at night, which might
make PC use even more difficult for this user. High contrast settings are not available under
Accounts.
You need to work at a command prompt on a Windows PC. When you open the prompt, you
are at C:\window\system32. You need to be at the root of the C: drive for what you’ll be
doing. How do you get to C:\? Assume you would press Enter after the command.
A. cd c:
B. cd\
C. C:\
D. cd root
B. Typing cd\ will take you to the root of whatever drive you are on. You could also
type cd.. and press Enter to go back one directory at a time. For example, to go from
C:\windows\system32 to C:\, you would need to type cd.. and press Enter, then type
cd.. and press Enter. The other options will not get you to the root of the C: drive.
A laptop user has traveled to visit a client and forgot their power adapter. The user is heading
to lunch with the client and wants to conserve battery power but enable the fastest possible
startup when they get back, with the applications already open. Which power mode will con-
serve battery life but enable the fastest startup?
A. Shut down
B. Sleep
C. Hibernate
D. Resting
B. Sleep stores everything that’s open in RAM and enters a low power state. The display and
drives aren’t using power, but power is needed to continually refresh memory so that it can
retain the information. It uses very little power but “wakes up” very quickly with everything
open as it was. Sleep in some computer systems and other electronic devices may be called
standby or suspend. Shutting the computer down would cause the laptop to use no power
but starting up would take longer. Hibernate stores open programs and data to the hard
drive and once the computer is hibernated it would use no power, but it will not resume its
state as quickly as using Sleep would. There is no resting power state.
Which of the following operating systems is open source, allowing its users to customize it as
they wish to suit their individual needs?
A. Windows
B. Linux
C. macOS
D. Chrome OS
B. Linux is free and open source, so a user can modify the operating system’s source code to
behave and appear however they choose. The downside is that there might not be as much
support if something goes wrong as there would be with a commercial package. Windows
and macOS are commercial operating systems, meaning that you pay for them and can use
their utilities to configure the OS, but you don’t have access to the operating system’s source
code. Chrome OS is a commercial, proprietary operating system found only on Chrome-
books, but there is an open source version called Chromium OS.
What does Keychain provide for the user in macOS?
A. Password management
B. Local file sharing
C. Certificate management
D. Screen protection
A. Remembering the passwords for various websites is easily managed in macOS
with Keychain.
You’re installing Windows 10 Pro edition on a workstation. How much memory must there
be? (Choose two.)
A. 20 GB for the 64- bit version
B. 16 GB for the 32- bit version
C. 1 GB for the 32- bit version
D. 2 GB for the 64- bit version
C, D. Regardless of the version that is being installed, Windows 10 has the same minimum
requirements, which are a 1 GHz or faster processor or SoC (System on a Chip), DirectX
9 or later with the WDDM (Windows Display Driver Model) 1.0 driver, and a minimum
800×600 display. For storage, the 32- bit version requires 16 GB, and the 64- bit version
requires 20 GB available for the OS. RAM requirements are 1 GB for the 32- bit operating
system and 2 GB for the 64-b it operating system. Keep in mind that these are the absolute
minimum requirements, and the OS will run but not as well as we have come to expect. In
reality, a faster processor, more RAM, and more storage would be expected. Windows 11
requirements are different. It requires a 1 GHz or faster processor with a minimum of 2
cores on a 64- bit processor or SoC. The minimum RAM is 4 GB, UEFI firmware (not BIOS),
Trusted Platform Module (TPM) version 2.0, DirectX 12 or later with the WDM 2.0 driver,
and a high- definition display greater than 9″ diagonally. The Home edition requires a Micro-
soft account and Internet access for installation.
Which Windows 10 edition supports up to 2 TB of RAM?
A. Home
B. Pro
C. Pro for Workstations
D. Enterprise
B. Windows 10 Pro edition supports up to 2 TB of RAM and a maximum of two CPU
sockets. The Home edition supports only 128 GB of RAM and one CPU socket. Windows
Pro for Workstations and Enterprise editions support up to four physical CPU sockets and 6
TB of RAM.
You work at home with a computer that has a Windows Home edition installed. You’re try-
ing to run gpedit.msc to establish group policies on the computer that will limit what your
children can do on it. For some reason, gpedit.msc won’t launch. What do you do?
A. Reboot the computer, then run gpedit.msc.
B. Upgrade to Windows Pro edition.
C. Install Windows Active Directory.
D. Launch it from Administrative Tools.
B. The Local Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc) is not available in the Home editions
of Windows. It is available in the Pro, Pro for Workstation, and Enterprise editions. You
don’t need to have Active Directory installed on a server to use the Local Group Policy
Editor, although it is available there as well. Going to Administrative Tools won’t help
because the Group Policy Editor is not available anywhere on Windows Home editions, and
Administrative Tools is included in Windows 10 but not included in Windows 11.
You are at a Windows command prompt, on the C: drive. You need to create a directory
named files on the D: drive. What is the proper command and syntax to do this?
A. cd d:\files
B. cd files d:\
C. md d:\files
D. md files d:\
C. The cd, md, and rd commands are used to change, make, and remove directories, respec-
tively. They’re shorthand versions of the chdir, mkdir, and rmdir commands. The syntax
of the command is md [drive:]path, so the directory would appear after the drive letter
when typing the command. The drive letter must be included because it is not the drive that
you are on.
You will be installing several new resource-i ntensive applications on a Windows workstation,
and the user has concerns over system performance. You want to monitor memory and CPU
performance and set up the workstation so that it logs performance over time. Which utility
should you use to set this up?
A. Resource Monitor
B. Performance Monitor
C. Task Viewer
D. Event Viewer
B. There are three tools that quickly show you CPU and memory usage in Windows:
Resource Monitor, Performance Monitor, and Task Manager. The only one that lets you
set up logs is Performance Monitor. It will collect counter information and then send that
information to a console or event log. Event Viewer logs system, application, and security
events, not performance.
You don’t like the pictures that are on your desktop and change from time to time. Where
will you go in Windows Settings to change this setting?
A. Accounts
B. Apps
C. Personalization
D. System
C. From the Personalization menu of Windows Settings, you can change the desktop theme
and background colors. Accounts enables the user to manage what accounts have access to
this computer and at what level. The Apps settings deal with application- specific parameters
and not operating system settings. Finally, the System settings in Windows Settings has a mul-
titude of settings that relate to the system but not to the image that appears on the desktop.
What operating system developed by Google is used on tablets or laptops used mainly for
accessing the Internet and using Android applications?
A. Ubuntu
B. iOS
C. Windows 11 Pro
D. Chrome OS
D. The Google Chrome OS was developed by Google. It comes preinstalled on laptops and
tablets called Chromebooks. A freeware version, Chromium OS, can be installed on tablets,
smartphones, laptops, and desktops. The main user interface for Chrome OS is the Google
Chrome browser. Chrome OS can also support Android apps. Ubuntu is based on the open
source Linux OS kernel. iOS is Apple’s proprietary operating system, and Windows 11 Pro
was developed by Microsoft.
On your laptop running macOS, what is the name of the utility used to browse through files
and folders?
A. Spotlight
B. Remote Disc
C. iCloud
D. Finder
D. Finder in macOS is similar to File Explorer in Windows. Both allow you to browse
through folders and find files, disks, and applications. Both can be used to change the view so
that entries can be seen as images, a list, a column, and so on. Spotlight is the tool for search-
ing on a Mac, and iCloud is similar to Microsoft’s OneDrive for storage.
You’re troubleshooting a network connectivity issue and want to see if the local computer
can reach a particular server on the web. What command will you use?
A. ping
B. tracert
C. ipconfig
D. pathping
A. The ping (packet Internet groper) command sends a series of four packets to a remote
computer and waits for a reply. If the reply is received, you know that the local computer
is able to reach the remote host. It also displays how long the transaction took. ping
can be used with domain names like Wiley.com or the IP address, if known. When
ping localhost or ping 127.0.0.1 or ping ::1 is run, the command verifies that
TCP/IP is working on the local computer. tracert shows the routers that a packet traverses
to reach its destination. The ipconfig command is used to view network configuration, and
pathping is a combination of the abilities of ping and tracert.
Which command in a Linux environment is used to display the full path to the current
directory?
A. ls
B. pwd
C. cp
D. yum
B. All of the answer options are Linux commands. The pwd (print working directory)
command writes the full path to the current (working) directory from the root on whatever
the default output device is (usually the display.) The path might be, for example, /home/
audrey/documents. The ls command provides a list of all the files and folders found
in the current directory, the cp command is used to copy files and directories, and yum
(Yellowdog Updater Modified) is used to install, update, remove, and search for software
packages.
One of the users you support has a MacBook. They’re finding that their desktop is too clut-
tered. What can they use to have quick access to what they want and help them organize
their desktop? (Choose two.)
A. Finder
B. Time Machine
C. Spaces
D. Multiple desktops
C, D. If a user finds their desktop getting out of hand, they can create multiple desktops,
which macOS calls Spaces, to organize their desktop objects, or simply to make more space.
Multiple desktops are created using Mission Control. Once multiple desktops are created,
apps can be moved from one desktop to another by dragging, similar to using a smartphone.
Finder is used to drill down through the file structure to find what you’re looking for, and
Time Machine is used to make backups.
What Windows feature best describes Event Viewer (eventvwr.msc), Disk Management
(diskmgmt.msc), and Certificate Manager (certmgr.msc)?
A. Services
B. Processes
C. Policies
D. Snap- ins
D. Event Viewer, Disk Management, and Certificate Manager are all Microsoft Management
Console (MMC) snap-i ns. A Microsoft Management Console provides an interface where
a user can configure and easily access their own list of tools that they use most often. These
tools are called snap- ins, and there are more than twenty of them available. A console con-
tains shortcuts to the tools, and when the console is saved, it can be identified by a toolbox
icon. Services are programs that run in the background on a Windows system such as a print
manager and WLAN AutoConfig. Processes are parts of a program that are running, usually
consisting of multiple threads. Threads are the section of code being worked on by the pro-
cessor. Policies are rules for granting access such as the ability to log on locally or settings for
passwords that require complexity. Policies are configured through the Group Policy Editor
(gpedit.msc) and are not available in Windows Home editions. There are literally hun-
dreds of policies that can be set in a Windows system. The Group Policy Editor is also an
MMC snap- in.
Your laptop battery is getting older and won’t hold a charge as long as it once did, so you
want to ensure that, when you walk away from it for a period of time and it isn’t plugged in,
it will not use any power but save everything and let you pick up where you left off working.
What power state will work for this scenario?
A. Always On
B. Sleep
C. Hibernate
D. Hyper- V
C. Once the Hibernate power setting has saved everything from RAM to a system file
(hiberfil.sys) on the hard drive, it will turn the system off and use no power. Hibernate
takes longer to get back to a running state than Sleep does, but Hibernate won’t use any
power after it has stored the data. When the system is resumed, the contents of the system file
are copied back into RAM and the user can continue where they left off. Sleep needs a small
amount of power to keep the data in RAM refreshed. Always On will obviously use power
continuously, and Hyper- V is Microsoft’s virtualization product, not a power setting.
You are at a command prompt on a Windows PC, at C:\, and need to get to C:\Windows\
system32. Which command listed will get you there? Assume you press Enter after the line.
(Choose two.)
A. c:\windows cd system32
B. cd C:\windows\system32
C. cd windows\system32
D. cd system32 windows
B, C. Because you are already on the C: drive, you would not need to specify the drive letter
to change to a directory on that drive. If you did specify the drive (as in option B) it’s not a
problem, because if you were going to a directory on a different drive, you would need to
specify the drive letter. Because you’re already at the root of the C: drive, you can simply
enter the cd command and the path (option C), cd windows\system32. If you were any-
where else in the C: drive, you would need to include the \ to denote the root of the drive
in your command (cd \windows\system32). You could go to that directory with two com-
mands, changing one directory at a time, by typing cd windows and pressing Enter, then
typing cd system32 and pressing Enter, but that would be inefficient and is not one of the
options given.
You have installed Windows 10 32-b it on a desktop computer that has a 32-b it processor. It
seems to be working fine, but when you install more RAM, bringing the total up to 12 GB,
the operating system doesn’t recognize anything above 4 GB. What is the problem?
A. You need to tell the BIOS that the extra RAM is there.
B. A 32- bit OS can support a maximum of only 4 GB of RAM.
C. You need to go to Device Manager to add the RAM.
D. You need to replace the motherboard.
B. Any 32- bit operating system has a limit of 4 GB of RAM. The limitation is caused by
the bus width. There simply aren’t enough numbers available to identify memory locations
above 4 GB.
You’re at a friend’s house when a manager at your company calls to say they are having a
problem with their Windows Pro PC while working at home. You listen and tell them you
can easily fix it using Remote Desktop to take over their computer for a minute or two.
Which of the following would not be an option to use Remote Desktop from where you are?
A. Use your friend’s Windows Home PC.
B. Use your friend’s Windows Pro PC.
C. Use Remote Desktop Mobile on your iOS device.
D. Use Remote Desktop Mobile on your Android device.
A. Remote Desktop can only be enabled on a Windows Pro or better operating systems.
Windows Home edition does not have this capability. However, using a PC with Windows
Pro, Pro for Workgroups, or Enterprise edition is not the only way to access the manager’s
computer. The Remote Desktop Mobile app is available for iOS and Android devices.
You are at a Windows workstation and have a command prompt open. Which of the follow-
ing commands is used to refresh Group Policy settings and force their changes to take effect?
A. gpedit
B. gpresult
C. gprefresh
D. gpupdate
D. The gpupdate tool is used to update Group Policy settings immediately. It refreshes,
or changes, both local and Active Directory–based policies. The gpedit command allows
the user to edit group policies, and the gpresult command will show the Resultant Set
of Policy (RSoP) for a user or computer. RSoP is the culmination of all policies that affect
the target user or computer. It is particularly helpful in troubleshooting conflicting policies.
gprefresh is not a valid command.
You’ve been having trouble with network communications to one of your company’s offices.
You want to determine the source of latency on the connection. What command will you use
in the Windows Command Prompt to see where the latency is?
A. grep
B. pathping
C. tracert
D. mv
B. The pathping command works like ping and tracert combined. It shows the path
a packet takes from point A to point B, and then will show the time at each hop. (A hop
is the number of times a packet moves from one router to another to get to its destination
after it leaves the initial router.) grep and mv are Linux Terminal commands, which are
used to search for text from a file, and to move files and folders, respectively. The tracert
command shows the path a packet takes to its destination.
Your spouse is trying to work at home but has started to complain about the constant noti-
fications appearing on the computer and interrupting their work. What category can you
access in Windows Settings to turn them off?
A. System
B. Gaming
C. Update and Security
D. Apps
A. To turn off all notifications, or manage whether and how individual notification senders
can interact with you, go to Windows Settings, choose System, then Notifications & actions.
From there you can turn off all notifications or some, and choose whether or not a sound is
played when they arrive. The Gaming option lets you configure the system to be optimized
for gameplay and recording. Update & Security settings don’t address notifications. The Apps
option lets you manage where apps can be installed from, default apps for opening files, and
other application configuration settings.
Which of the following commands is used by an administrator on a Red Hat Linux system to
update software?
A. pwd
B. ls
C. cp
D. yum
D. All of the answer options are Linux commands. The yum (Yellowdog Updater Modi-
fied) command is used to install, update, remove, and search for software packages. The
syntax is yum [options] [
A macOS user is complaining that their MacBook has been acting strangely lately, and it’s
very slow to start. What utility will you use to repair any potential disk errors?
A. FileVault
B. Terminal
C. Disk Utility
D. Force Quit
C. The macOS Disk Utility can be used to find and fix errors in the directory structure of
a Mac disk. If the Mac won’t boot into the OS, the utility can be accessed through macOS
Recovery. Depending on the hardware your Mac is using, you would either hold the power
button until startup options appear, or press and hold Command+R while the computer is
starting to bring up macOS Recovery. From there choose Utilities and then Disk Utility.
FileVault provides encryption, Terminal is the macOS and Linux command- line user inter-
face, and Force Quit can be used when a single app is causing problems and refuses to close.
You’ve created a batch file that needs to run every day before the employees arrive. What can
you use to ensure that this batch file is run every weekday at 6 a.m.?
A. Task Scheduler
B. Event Viewer
C. Device Manager
D. Local Users And Groups
A. Task Scheduler is a Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap- in and, as its name
implies, a tool for running programs and performing tasks based on a trigger such as date,
time, or events such as logon, idle, or locking the workstation. Event Viewer keeps logs of
system, security, and application events. Device Manager is a tool for working with hardware
and lets you update drivers and scan for newly attached devices, for example. Local Users
and Groups is an MMC snap- in for creating and managing users and groups.
A smartphone user recently found their phone on an EOL list. They asked you what this
means. Why will you recommend they purchase a new phone?
A. They can’t download any more apps.
B. Their phone will stop working by the date on the list.
C. Their phone may not receive any more security updates.
D. Their phone will no longer connect to cellular service.
C. When an OS, smartphone, PC or any electronic device is at end- of- life (EOL), it gener-
ally is no longer sold or supported, meaning that replacement parts and product and security
updates are no longer available. While you may be able to scavenge parts, not getting security
updates should be a great concern. At an electronics end- of- life, the best course of action is to
recycle the device and procure a newer one.
You are on a Windows computer working at a command prompt and need to see a list of
files in the directory that you are working in. What command will you type?
A. dir
B. ls
C. pwd
D. grep
A. The dir command will show you a list of all the files and folders that are in the directory
you are working in, along with the date created. Using the switches that work with dir, you
can view much more information. ls is a Linux command that lists information about files
in the working directory. The pwd Linux command prints the complete path to the working
directory, and the grep Linux command will search for files with a pattern that you specify.
A user with a Windows workstation recently received a second hard drive. Another adminis-
trator created a partition on the hard drive, and it’s ready for use. The user will store the raw
video files they create on that drive and insists that it be called the R: drive. Which of the fol-
lowing statements is true?
A. You can use Disk Management to change the drive letter to R:.
B. You can use Disk Management to change the drive letter to R:, but only if it’s a dynamic
disk.
A. Disk Management is a Windows tool that has been available for many Windows ver-
sions. With it you can reassign or change a drive letter, create and format volumes, shrink
or expand volumes, change basic drives to dynamic drives, import foreign drives, and even
establish software RAID. In Windows 10 it can be launched through Control Panel by
choosing Administrative Tools, then Computer Management, or you can launch it by typing
diskmgmt.msc in the search box. Administrative Tools is not available in Windows 11, but
Disk Management is. The easiest way to access Disk Management in Windows 10 or 11 is to
press Windows Key+X to bring up the Quick Link menu, which is a list of commonly used
tools, and click Disk Management on the list.
A salesperson at your company travels with their macOS laptop every week. You want
to encrypt the data on their startup disk to ensure data security. What macOS utility
will you use?
A. Finder
B. Time Machine
C. FileVault
D. BitLocker
C. FileVault is the macOS utility for encrypting data. Finder is the macOS utility for drilling
down through folders to find objects. Time Machine is used to create and restore backups of
data on a Mac, and BitLocker is the Windows drive encryption utility.
A user wants to perform a backup on their MacBook. Which software utility should be used
to make backups?
A. Image Recovery
B. Time Machine
C. iBackup
D. Accessibility
B. Time Machine is the macOS backup utility. It can be accessed through System Prefer-
ences, and once set up, it will run on schedule much like any other backup software. Image
Recovery and iBackup are not macOS tools. Accessibility options can be found in System
Preferences and are used to adjust settings for different vision, hearing, and mobility needs.
One of your network users has a MacBook Pro. Where should this user go to see whether
there are any OS updates available?
A. Open the App Store and click Updates in the toolbar.
B. Open Safari and click Updates in the toolbar.
C. Open System Preferences and click Updates in the toolbar.
D. Open Finder and click Updates on the menu bar.
A. Updates to MacOS can be found at the App Store. Open it and click Updates in the
toolbar to see which updates are available. There will be an Install button to begin the instal-
lation. In System Preferences, there is generally a Software Update icon to help with updates
as well. Update is not an option on the toolbar of Safari, which is the web browser. Finder is
used for drilling down through directories to find files and folders.
Which Linux command is used to copy files, groups of files, or whole directories from one
place to another?
A. mv
B. cp
C. find
D. cat
B. All of the commands listed are Linux commands. The cp command is used to copy files.
There are three syntaxes for the cp command, as follows:
■ cp [option] source destination
■ cp [option] source directory
■ cp [option] source- 1 source- 2 source- n directory
For example, if the copy command has two filenames, it will create a copy of the first
filename and save it as the second. The command would be cp file1 file2. The mv
command is used to move files, and the find command is used to find files and directories
and perform operations on them. The cat command is a powerful tool that can be used to
view contents of a file, create new files, and concatenate (put together) files.
Despite your great objections, someone you know is still running a Windows OS that pre-
dates Windows 10 and has reached its end of extended support. The software they regularly
use on it still works, and they have an antivirus installed. Why should they update to a newer
OS? (Choose two.)
A. They will not receive security updates.
B. They will not receive feature updates.
C. Their apps will stop working.
D. Their OS will stop working at end-o f- life.
A, B. Operating systems (OS) and electronics have a life cycle, just as living things do. They
are introduced, grow, reach maturity (mainstream support), decline (extended support), and
reach their end- of- life (EOL) which means there is no support. The last Windows OS prior to
Windows 10 was Windows 8.1, which ended mainstream support on January 9, 2018, and
the end of extended support date is January 10, 2023. End of mainstream support means
there are no updates other than security. End of extended support means there is no support,
including security updates and patches. Essentially, if (when) a vulnerability is discovered by
a hacker, the user of an end-o f- life OS is at risk for being attacked. Applications may con-
tinue to work just fine, but updates might not work with the OS. The OS will not magically
stop working, but if a problem occurs there will be no official support available.
A smartphone user has come to you for help. They would like a laptop so they can use a big-
ger screen but don’t know what to choose. They’re accustomed to doing their work online
with Google Docs and their smartphone and saving it to the cloud. They would like to be
able to use some of the same apps that they have available on their Android phone. Cost is a
factor. What type of laptop would you recommend for this user?
A. Windows Home
B. Linux
C. macOS
D. Chromebook
D. The Chromebook, which has Chrome OS preinstalled, is the best option for this user. It’s
main user interface is the Google Chrome browser, and it can run apps designed for Android
smartphones. Chromebooks are also known for being less expensive laptop options. Win-
dows Home and macOS would be fine for accessing the Internet, but they would not support
the applications that the user is accustomed to using, and the user would experience a
learning curve. Linux might be able to run their Android apps using third- party software, but
again the user would have a learning curve.
A user called the help desk because they were denied access to a secure server and received
a message that they have an invalid certificate. Their computer was recently updated. Where
can you go to manage their certificates?
A. Device Manager
B. Local Users and Groups
C. Certificate Manager
D. Group Policy Editor
C. Certificates are a way of proving who someone or a website is by means of a digital sig-
nature. A user’s certificates hold the private key of a key pair for encryption. If certificates are
outdated or otherwise no longer valid, then encryption doesn’t happen and the transmission
can be intercepted by someone with malicious intent. Normally you wouldn’t need to worry
about certificates, but if a problem occurs, the certificate may need to be deleted and a new
one requested. Certificate Manager allows you to view and manage certificates by user or
computer. Device Manager is a hardware management tool. Local Users and Groups allows
for organizing users by access need and assigning permissions and access to the group rather
than the user, simplifying access management. Group Policy Editor allows administrators to
further control what users and computers are allowed to do on the network.
Which desktop operating system is a proprietary product of Apple?
A. Apache
B. Red Hat Linux
C. macOS
D. FreeBSD
C. macOS is Apple’s proprietary desktop operating system (OS). Apache is a popular web
server OS, not a desktop OS. Red Hat Linux is a distribution of the open source Linux OS,
and FreeBSD is a freeware, open source OS based on Unix.
A user on your network complains that they are unable to type a human- friendly name like
Sybex.com into their browser to reach a website, but typing an IP address in the browser
works. What client network configuration setting do you suspect is the problem?
A. Authentication server
B. DNS server
C. DHCP server
D. Proxy server
B. DNS has one function on the network, and that is to resolve hostnames to IP addresses.
For a computer or phone to open a website, it needs to know the IP address of that website.
Each DNS server has a database, called a zone file, which maintains records of hostname-
to- IP address mappings. If the network settings for DNS server on a client computer are
improperly configured and the client can’t reach the DNS server, then human- friendly names
are not resolved to IP addresses, causing the problem this user is having. Authentication
servers are used to verify whether a user has the proper credentials to gain access to resources
on a network. A Microsoft domain controller is a type of authentication server. DHCP
(Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) is used to automatically provide an IP address to
a client based on a list (scope) of IP addresses made available on the DHCP server. A proxy
server sits between the client and the outside world and is used to filter content incoming
or outgoing.
You need to start a new shell on a Linux workstation with root permissions. Which
command should you use to do this?
A. su
B. sudo
C. apt- get
D. ps
A. The su command (switch user, substitute user, or super user) is used to start another shell
on a Linux computer. Without specifying the username, it’s assumed you are trying to start
a shell with super user (or root) authority. This can be dangerous because as the root, the
user can do anything on the system, including delete parts of the operating system, and there
is no undo or warning message. You must know the root password to run su. It’s far safer
to run the sudo command. The sudo command stands for superuser do, or substitute user
do, and will run a single command as the alternate user. The apt- get command is used to
download or remove software packages, and the ps command will list the processes that are
currently running along with their process IDs (PIDs).
A user wants to change the resolution on their MacBook. Which System Preferences pane
would they use to do that?
A. Printers & Scanners
B. Desktop & Screen Saver
C. Accessibility
D. Displays
D. The Displays pane in System Preferences is used to set resolution and brightness (turn
Night Shift on and off), and possibly other settings depending on whether there is a display
connected. The Printers & Scanners pane is where you would add or manage a printer and
its print jobs. Accessibility preferences include settings for hearing, mobility, and vision. The
Desktop & Screen Saver options allow you to configure the desktop and screen saver.
You want to be able to access your Windows Pro desktop PC at home no matter where you
are. Which of the following do you not need to do?
A. Upgrade to Windows Enterprise.
B. Enable Remote Desktop on your PC.
C. Open Remote Desktop Connection, provide the PC name, and click Connect.
D. Install the Remote Desktop App on your smartphone.
A. Home editions of Windows do not support Remote Desktop, but the Windows business
editions (Pro, Pro for Workstation, and Enterprise) do. Since you have Windows Pro, you
would not need to upgrade your operating system edition. The steps to use Remote Desktop
to access a PC from a smartphone are as follows:
You are at a Windows command prompt. You believe that some of the Windows system files
are corrupted. Which command should you use to scan and repair problematic system files?
A. sfc /scanfile
B. sfc /scannow
C. sfc /verifyfile
D. sfc /verifyonly
B. The System File Checker (SFC) is a command-l ine utility that checks and verifies the
versions of system files on your computer. If system files are corrupted, the SFC will replace
the corrupted files with correct versions. The /scannow option will scan and repair files,
whereas /scanfile will just check one specified file. The /verifyonly option will scan
the integrity of protected system files but not attempt to repair them. The /verifyfile
option will verify the integrity of a specific file.
You are at a Windows command prompt. Which command allows you to copy files and
directories, copy NTFS permissions, and mirror a directory tree?
A. copy
B. xcopy
C. robocopy
D. copyall
C. The robocopy utility (Robust File Copy for Windows) has the big advantage of being
able to accept a plethora of specifications and keep NTFS permissions intact in its opera-
tions. For example, the /mir switch, can be used to mirror a complete directory tree. copy
and xcopy are both valid commands but have nowhere near the power that robocopy
does. copyall is not a valid command.
The hard drive performance on your Windows workstation has deteriorated over time. To
attempt to improve performance, you want to ensure that files on the hard drive are writ-
ten in contiguous blocks. Which Windows tool should you use to make this happen?
A. Disk Management
B. Optimize Drives
C. Disk Optimizer
D. Device Manager
B. When files are written to a hard drive, they’re not always written contiguously or with
all the data in a single location. Defragmenting a disk involves analyzing the disk and then
consolidating fragmented files and folders so that they occupy a contiguous space (con-
secutive blocks), thus increasing performance during file retrieval. The executable for Disk
Defragment is dfrgui.exe, which brings up the Optimize Drives window. By default,
drives are automatically scheduled to be optimized, but it can be done here on command
or the schedule settings changed. The Disk Management utility is used to create and format
volumes and other tasks related to managing drives. Disk Optimizer is not a Windows tool,
and Device Manager is useful in examining and troubleshooting issues with hardware.
Your client is taking over a business and wants to upgrade the computer systems, which
are currently all legacy Windows machines. They will be using Microsoft 365 along with
accounting and manufacturing software that is part of the business. They are concerned
about compatibility of other files with their customers, vendors, and historical company
data. What operating system would you recommend for them?
A. Chrome OS
B. Linux
C. macOS
D. Windows
D. Since the majority of business users are still using Microsoft products, and there may be
compatibility concerns with data from older systems, a Windows OS would be the correct
choice in this situation. Chrome OS is most appropriate where users would be working in
the cloud. Linux and macOS may have compatibility issues with data from other sources.
Microsoft 365 does come in a version for macOS, but the company- specific software must
also be considered.
