Exam 4 Flashcards
Sarah is connecting a new wireless mouse to a client’s laptop. Which of the following technologies is MOST likely being used to connect the mouse to the laptop?
OBJ-1.5: Bluetooth is a wireless technology standard used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances using UHF radio waves in the industrial, scientific, and medical radio bands from 2.402 GHz to 2.480 GHz and building a personal area network (PAN). Bluetooth is commonly used when connecting wireless devices like mice, trackpads, headphones, and other devices. Infrared (IR) was a wireless networking standard supporting speeds up to about 4 Mbps with a direct line of sight for communications. Infrared sensors are used in mobile devices and with IR blasters to control appliances. While infrared (IR) used to be commonly used to connect wireless mice and keyboards to a laptop in the 1990s, it has fallen out of favor in the last 10-15 years since Bluetooth is more reliable and does not require a direct line of sight between the device and the laptop. Near field communication (NFC) is a standard for peer-to-peer (2-way) radio communications over very short (around 4”) distances that facilitates contactless payment and similar technologies. Universal serial bus (USB) is the main type of connection interface used on desktops and laptops. A larger Type A connector attaches to a port on the host; Type B and Mini- or Micro-Type B connectors are used for devices. USB 1.1 supports 12 Mbps while USB 2.0 supports 480 Mbps and is backward compatible with 1.1 devices which run at a slower speed. USB devices are considered hot-swappable and each device can draw up to 2.5 W of power over a USB port. USB 3.0 and 3.1 define 5 Gbps (SuperSpeed) and 10 Gbps (SuperSpeed+) rates and can deliver up to 4.5 W of power.
You are setting up a new wireless network at the local branch of your community’s public library. Previously, the library only had a small wired network that relied on statically assigned IP addresses. You just finished installing all of the wireless access points. You configured a server to automatically provide an IP address to wireless clients when connecting to one of the wireless access points. To test the new wireless network, you turn on your wireless adapter on your laptop and connect to the network. Your laptop is automatically assigned an IP address of 192.168.1.12 from the DHCP server, and you can ping the default gateway of 192.168.1.1. You open a web browser and attempt to connect to diontraining.com, but you cannot connect and instead receive an error. You attempt to ping the IP address for the Google DNS server (8.8.8.8) and are successful. Which of the following should you attempt to do NEXT to resolve this issue?
OBJ-5.7: Since you are already connected to the wireless network and can ping the gateway using its IP address, you already know the SSID and DHCP are properly configured (therefore, you should not select these options). It is a poor security practice to disable the firewall, so it is not recommended that you choose this option. Since we cannot access a website using its domain name (diontraining.com), we can successfully ping a remote server using its IP address (8.8.8.8). This indicates that your laptop has not been properly assigned a DNS server to use by the DHCP server. Therefore, you need to verify the DHCP server is properly configured to provide the IP address of a DNS server to the clients when it assigned them their IP address configuration information.
Your firewall is blocking outbound email traffic that is attempting to be sent. Which port should you verify is set to ALLOW in the firewall to ensure your emails are being sent?
OBJ-2.1: The simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP) is the protocol used to send mail between hosts on the Internet using TCP port 25. Port 25 must be set to OPEN or ALLOW in the firewall for SMTP (Sendmail transfer protocol) to function properly. Secure shell (SSH) is the protocol used for remote administration and file copying using TCP port 22. SSH is considered secure since it uses authenticated and encrypted sessions for communication. Secure shell (SSH) is the protocol used for remote administration and file copying using TCP port 22. SSH is considered secure since it uses authenticated and encrypted sessions for communication. The internet message access protocol (IMAP) is a TCP/IP application protocol that provides a means for a client to access email messages stored in a mailbox on a remote server using TCP port number 143. Unlike POP3, messages persist on the server after the client has downloaded them. IMAP also supports mailbox management functions, such as creating subfolders and access to the same mailbox by more than one client at the same time.
You work for the city’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). There are five DMV locations spread out across the city that you have been asked to connect with a network. You have created a list of requirements for this network, including that it must be wired and support at least 1 Gbps of bandwidth. Which of the following network types would MOST likely be used for the DMV to connect their internal networks across the city securely?
OBJ-2.7: A metropolitan area network (MAN) is a computer network that interconnects users with computer resources in a geographic region of the size of a metropolitan or city area. This is the most appropriate choice based on the requirements provided. MAN is a term applied to the interconnection of local area networks (LANs) or campus area networks (CANs) across a city into a single larger network. A MAN is larger than a CAN or LAN but smaller than a WAN. A local area network (LAN) is a network where all the nodes or hosts participating in the network are directly connected with cables or short-range wireless media. A wide area network (WAN) is a network that spans multiple geographic locations such as the internet. Wide area networks are often established with leased telecommunication circuits. A personal area network (PAN) is a close-range network that is usually based on Bluetooth or NFC for communications between personal devices, such as smartphones, laptops, printers, and other peripheral devices.
What is the fifth step of the CompTIA troubleshooting methodology?
OBJ-5.1: For the exam, it is important that you can list and identify the 6 steps of the CompTIA troubleshooting methodology in order. (1) Identify the problem. (2) Establish a theory of probable cause (question the obvious). (3) Test the theory to determine the cause. (4) Establish a plan of action to resolve the problem and then implement the solution. (5) Verify full system functionality and, if applicable, implement preventative measures. (6) Document findings, actions, and outcomes.
You are working at the service desk on your first day as a computer repair technician. You answer the phone and begin to ask the customer about the issue they are experiencing. Which of the following steps of the best practice troubleshooting methodology are you performing?
OBJ-5.1: For the exam, it is important that you can list and identify the 6 steps of the CompTIA troubleshooting methodology in order. (1) Identify the problem. (2) Establish a theory of probable cause (question the obvious). (3) Test the theory to determine the cause. (4) Establish a plan of action to resolve the problem and then implement the solution. (5) Verify full system functionality and, if applicable, implement preventative measures. (6) Document findings, actions, and outcomes.
A user submits a trouble ticket for their laptop. The user states that every time they move the laptop from one place to another, the system loses power and shutdowns. You have examined the laptop fully and then removed and reinstalled the hard drive, RAM, ribbon cable to the LCD, and the battery, but the laptop is still shutting down whenever it is moved. Which of the following is MOST likely causing the issue with this laptop shutting down?
OBJ-5.5: Based on the symptoms provided (laptop shutting down whenever it is moved), it is most likely a loose battery connection causing the issue. If the battery connection wasn’t loos and the laptop was unplugged, the laptop would continue to run on battery power. Overheating can cause a laptop to shut down, but it wouldn’t necessarily happen each time the laptop is moved. If the CMOS battery fails, it will not cause the laptop to shut down, but instead will cause the laptop to lose the correct date/time.
A user called the help desk to complain about an issue with their laptop’s keyboard. Every time they type a word like “help” or “none,” it is displayed as something cryptic like “he3p” or “n6ne”. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of this issue with the laptop keyboard?
OBJ-5.5: Most keyboards have a numeric side (numbers only) and an alphanumeric side (numbers and letters and symbols). However, to minimize space usage, companies create some keyboards with the alphanumeric side only. This is quite common in laptops that insist on minimizing space for the sake of portability, as seen on mini-laptops and notebooks. Usually, the alphanumeric side is split into function keys (F1 to F12), followed by numeric keys (0-9), and then alphabetic keys (A-Z). To fix this, the fastest way to do this is to turn off NumLock using your laptop keyboard. If you hit the NumLock key, it will turn off. A light beside the key or on the laptop’s top will go off to confirm that the NumLock is disabled.
Jennifer just moved from France to the United States. She unpacks her computer and plugs it into the wall using a power adapter to ensure the plug connects properly. When she tries to power on the computer, the screen remains blank, she doesn’t hear the fans spinning, and nothing appears to be happening. What is MOST likely the problem?
OBJ-3.7: It is always important to ensure the correct power supply input setting is used for your computer based on the location in which you are using it. In Europe, the nominal voltage of a power outlet is 220V. Therefore, Jennifer’s computer is probably still selected for a power supply input setting of 220V. In the United States, the nominal voltage is 115V. Therefore, Jennifer needs to flip the power configuration switch on the power supply’s input selector from 220V to 115V to operate properly. If the computer was incorrectly set to 115V and plugged into a 220V outlet, the power supply could be destroyed or catch fire.
Your company received a large bill for file storage from your online cloud provider this month. Upon investigation, you noticed that one of your employees has uploaded over 1 TB of data to the service. What type of plan is your company utilizing?
OBJ-4.1: This scenario describes a measured or metered service plan. For every file or amount of data uploaded, there is an associated fee. It is important to understand what plan your organization is using and match your company’s use case to avoid an end of the month billing surprise. Metered services are pre-paid, a-la-carte, pay-per-use, or committed offerings. A metered service like a database may charge its users based on the actual usage of the service resources on an hourly or monthly basis. For example, Dion Training used the AWS Lambda serverless product in some of our automation. This service charges us $0.20 for every 1 million requests processed.
Which of the following ports is used by SNMP by default?
OBJ-2.1: The simple network management protocol (SNMP) is a protocol for monitoring and managing network devices over UDP ports 161 and 162. A management system collates data sent by agents running on each device. The agents maintain a Management Information Base of configuration and usage data. An agent can also generate a trap, alerting the management system of some notable event. The simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP) is the protocol used to send mail between hosts on the Internet using TCP port 25. The domain name system (DNS) protocol is the protocol used to provide names for an IP address based on their mappings in a database using TCP/UDP port 53. The network basic input/output system (NetBIOS)/NetBIOS over TCP/IP (NetBT) is a session management protocol used to provide name registration and resolution services on legacy Microsoft networks and those using WINS. NetBIOS/NetBT operates on TCP/UDP ports 137 and 139.
Which of the following types of hard drives would be used in a gaming laptop to increase the system’s boot-up performance while providing a large amount of storage at a lower overall cost?
OBJ-1.1: A hybrid hard drive (SSHD) is a storage drive that combines the large storage capacity of an HDD with the faster read/write speed of an SSD. The majority of the drive uses a spinning disk and actuator arm, like a traditional magnetic drive, but it also contains a small SSD (solid-state drive) as part of the combined hybrid drive unit. This allows data to be written to either the SSD portion (for data accessed more frequently like the OS and programs) while using the HDD portion to store larger amounts of rarely accessed files (such as photos and video files). Hybrid hard drives constantly monitor the data retrieved from storage, and it automatically determines which data you open the most. It places the files that you use most often on the SSD to read/write that data faster. A magnetic drive is a traditional hard disk drive (HDD). A hard disk drive (HDD) is a device providing persistent mass storage for a workstation or laptop by saving data even when the computer is turned off. Data is stored using platters with a magnetic coating that are spun under disk heads that can read and write to locations on each platter known as sectors. A solid-state drive (SSD) is a personal computer storage device that stores data in non-volatile special memory instead of on disks or tape. An optical drive is a storage device that uses a CD, DVD, or Blu-Ray disc to store and retrieve data.
You have been asked to fix a laptop with a screen image that is being displayed upside down. What is the BEST method to fix this issue?
OBJ-1.3: Windows offers a beneficial function for viewing documents or playing pranks on your friends. With a simple key combination, you can rotate your screen in any direction - flip it upside-down, or lay it on the side. To change your laptop screen orientation, hold down the Ctrl and Alt keys on your keyboard, then press the up/down/left/right arrow key. You can also change your screen orientation in the Windows display settings. An integrated GPU is part of the laptop’s CPU and cannot be easily replaced. The display drivers and the LCD panel are not the cause of the issue since you can see the screen image properly (although it is being displayed upside down).
What type of cloud service would allow you to provide a cloud-based application to your employees using their smartphones?
OBJ-4.1: Software as a service (SaaS) allows users to connect to and use cloud-based apps over the Internet. Common examples are email, calendaring, and office tools. SaaS provides a complete software solution that you purchase on a pay-as-you-go basis from a cloud service provider. You rent the use of an app for your organization, and your users connect to it over the Internet, usually with a web browser. All of the underlying infrastructure, middleware, app software, and app data are located in the service provider’s data center. The service provider manages the hardware and software, and with the appropriate service agreement, it will ensure the availability and the security of the app and your data. SaaS allows your organization to get quickly up and running with an app at minimal upfront cost. Platform as a Service (PaaS) is a cloud computing service that enables consumers to rent fully configured systems that are set up for specific purposes. Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is a cloud computing service that enables a consumer to outsource computing equipment purchases and running their own data center. Desktop as a Service (DaaS) provides a full virtualized desktop environment from within a cloud-based service. This is also known as VDI (Virtualized Desktop Infrastructure) and is coming in large enterprise businesses focused on increasing their security and minimizing their operational expenses.
Your home network has a wireless access point (WAP) that allows your smartphone and tablet to connect to your internal network. The WAP is connected to a router and a cable modem to provide internet access. A coaxial cable carries the network traffic from the cable modem to the cable company’s central office for transmission to and from the internet. Which of the following types of networks would best describe this network configuration between your home network and the internet through your cable modem connection?
OBJ-2.7: A wide area network (WAN) is a network that spans multiple geographic locations such as the internet. Wide area networks are often established with leased telecommunication circuits. This is usually a DSL, cable connection, fiber connection, or satellite connection in a home network. A local area network (LAN) is a network where all the nodes or hosts participating in the network are directly connected with cables or short-range wireless media. A personal area network (PAN) is a close-range network that is usually based on Bluetooth or NFC for communications between personal devices, such as smartphones, laptops, printers, and other peripheral devices. A metropolitan area network (MAN) is a computer network that interconnects users with computer resources in a geographic region of the size of a metropolitan or city area.
You are troubleshooting a storage issue on a customer’s computer. During the computer’s operation, you hear a loud, rhythmic sound. Which of the following storage components is likely failing?
OBJ-5.3: A hard disk drive (HDD) is a mechanical storage device that relies on a storage platter and a read arm. When a hard drive begins to fail, the drive will begin to make a loud clicking noise. This noise is usually rhythmic since the failed spot makes the noise every time the drive rotates during the read/write process. The other options (M.2 PCIe, SSD, and RAM) have no moving parts; therefore, no rhythmic noise would be created during their failure.
You are working at the service desk when a customer calls up and complains that their laptop’s monitor looks strange. When pressed for further details, they state that there are black bars on the left and right sides of the screen and that the image appears squashed and distorted. What is MOST likely the cause of this issue?
OBJ-5.4: This is likely a screen resolution problem. Each LCD/LED has a native resolution that fits perfectly on the screen. If a resolution other than the native resolution is used, the screen could become squished, distorted, or have black vertical or horizontal lines filling up the excess space. For example, most laptops operate as a 16:9 or 16:10 aspect ratio. Older VGA monitors relied on a 4:3 aspect ratio using 1024x768 pixels whereas newer monitors use a 16:9 ratio at 1920x1080 pixels.
John is setting up 100 Windows 10 computers for a new corporate office. He wants to ensure that no one can change the boot order and boot from an unauthorized operating system. What feature should he ensure is enabled?
OBJ-3.5: John should utilize the BIOS to set up a password to prevent unauthorized access to the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) by other users. The BIOS is software that utilizes a small memory chip on the motherboard to hold the settings specialized for an organization to prevent access and tampering, thus reducing the workstations’ overall attack surface and the network. Full disk encryption is used to encrypt the user and system data stored in the device’s internal storage. RAM integrity checking is conducted by default on most systems during the initial boot process but it doesn’t prevent a user from booting the system or changing the boot order. The purpose of Secure Boot is to prevent malicious and unauthorized apps from loading into the operating system (OS) during the startup process. Secure Boot is enabled by default in Windows 10. When the PC starts, the firmware checks the signature of each piece of boot software, including UEFI firmware drivers (also known as Option ROMs), EFI applications, and the operating system. If the signatures are valid, the PC boots and the firmware gives control to the operating system.
A customer’s system clock is continually resetting itself causes discrepancies with the date and time. Which of the following components of the system should you investigate as the root cause of this issue?
OBJ-5.2: The BIOS (basic input/output system) is the program that a computer’s microprocessor uses to get the computer system started after you turn it on. The BIOS settings are stored in the CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor). Some of these BIOS settings include the system time and date as well as hardware settings and configurations. If the CMOS battery dies or the BIOS becomes faulty, then the system time and date will be affected. The power supply, RAM, and CPU do not affect the system clock of the workstation.
You are working at a Managed Service Provider for a large chain of doctor’s offices. The company is opening a new office downtown. It needs 2 devices to be installed at the front desk to allow customers to self-check-in for their appointments and view/edit their personal contact information. Which of the following type of devices would BEST meet the needs of this doctor’s office?
OBJ-3.8: An touch screen kiosk is a computer terminal featuring specialized hardware and software that provides access to information and applications for communication, commerce, entertainment, or education. These are commonly used for check-in functions at the airport, hotel, and doctor’s offices since they do not require a keyboard or mouse to utilize them. A thin client is a business computer that relies heavily on another system, typically a server, to run most of its programs, processes, and services. A thick client is a business computer that performs most or all computing functions on its own. A thick client is also called a standard client or fat client. A CAD workstation is a computer designed to make technical drawings and schematics.
You are configuring a print server on the network. Which type of IP address should you configure it with?
OBJ-2.6: A static IP address should be used for servers to ensure they are easy to find, access, and manage on the network. When configuring a static IP address, you need to include the IP address, subnet mask, gateway, and DNS server’s IP address. A static IP address is used when the DHCP server is disabled and clients are configured manually to join the network properly. A dynamic IP address is configured automatically by a DHCP server when a new host joins the network. Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) is a feature of Windows-based operating systems that enables a computer to automatically assign itself an IP address when there is no Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server available to perform that function. When a host uses an APIPA address, it can communicate with other hosts on the same network using APIPA. Still, it cannot reach other networks or communicate with hosts who have managed to obtain a valid DHCP lease. An APIPA address is also known as a link-local address.
Your college has several campuses located across the city. Within each campus, the buildings are interconnected with a campus area network. If you connect each of the campuses across the city, what type of network would this become?
OBJ-2.7: A metropolitan area network (MAN) is a computer network that interconnects users with computer resources in a geographic region of the size of a metropolitan or city area. The term MAN is applied to the interconnection of local area networks (LANs) or campus area networks (CANs) across a city into a single larger network. A MAN is larger than a CAN or LAN, but smaller than a WAN. A wide area network (WAN) is a network that spans multiple geographic locations such as the internet. Wide area networks are often established with leased telecommunication circuits. A local area network (LAN) is a network where all the nodes or hosts participating in the network are directly connected with cables or short-range wireless media. A personal area network (PAN) is a close-range network that is usually based on Bluetooth or NFC for communications between personal devices, such as smartphones, laptops, printers, and other peripheral devices.
You are working as a technician for a college. One of the professors has submitted a trouble ticket stating that the projector connected to the workstation in his classroom displays artifacts on the screen. The image is displayed on the screen is bright and appears to be displayed with the right size and in the right position, but the artifacts are obscuring certain portions of the image. What is the FIRST thing you should do to remove the artifacts from being displayed on the screen?
OBJ-5.4: Visual artifacts displayed on the screen are often caused by a projector bulb near its end of life or if the projector bulb is defective. Therefore, you should attempt to replace the bulb in the projector to see if this solves the visual artifact issues described in this question. Changing the contrast would increase or decrease the brightness of the image, but it wouldn’t remove the artifacts. The video driver on the workstation and the resolution would affect the entire image, not just a small portion of it containing the artifacts.
What type of connector can be inserted into the port in either direction without damaging the port?
OBJ-3.1: A USB Type C (USB-C) is a 24-pin USB connector with a rotational symmetrical connector, which means it can be plugged into the port in either direction. USB-C makes it easier and more convenient to plug into a USB-C female port than previous versions like Type A and Type B. FireWire and USB Type B use a d-shaped connector that can only be inserted in one direction. USB Type A uses a rectangular connector with a protrusion on one half of the connector to force insertion in only one direction.