Lesson 3: Objectives Flashcards
What are the 3 parts of troubleshooting a problem?
Cause
Symptom
Consequence
From a buisness perspective, what is the most important part of the problem to solve, the cause, the symptom or the consequence?
Consequence
Step 1 in CompTIA’s troubleshooting model is what?
Identify the problem
Step 2 in in CompTIA’s troubleshooting model is what?
Establish a theory of probable cause (Question the obvious)
Step 3 in CompTIA’s troubleshooting model is what?
Test the theory to determine the cause
Step 4 in CompTIA’s troubleshooting model is what?
Establish a plan of action to resolve the problem and implement the solution
Step 5 in CompTIA’s troubleshooting model is what?
Verify full system functionality and, if applicable, implement preventitive measures
Step 6 in CompTIA’s troubleshooting model is what?
Document the findings, actions, and outcomes.
According to CompTIA’s troubleshooting model, during which step should you perform backups?
Step 1: Identify the problem
According to CompTIA’s troubleshooting model, during which step should you conduct external or internal research based on symptoms, if necessary?
Step 2: Establish a theory of probable cause (Question the obvious)
According to CompTIA’s troubleshooting model, what should you do if you test a theory and determine the theory is not confirmed? (Step 3)
Re-establish a new theory of escalate the problem.
According to CompTIA’s troubleshooting model, what should you do while establishing a plan of action to resolve the problem and implement a solution? (Step 4)
Refer to the vendor’s instructions for guidance.
Identifying the problem means establishing what?
The consequence or impact of an issue and listing symptoms.
What should be used to prioritize each support case within the overall process of problem management?
The consequence.
Where will you find one of your best sources of information once a problem arises?
From the first report of the problem, generally a user or another technician if you can ask the right questions.
What are some good questions to ask when gathering information from the user? (6)
-What are the exact error messages appearing on the screen or coming through the speaker?
-Is anyone else experiencing the same problem?
-How long has the problem been occurring?
-What changes have been made recently to the system? Were these changes initiated by you or via another support request?
-If something worked previously, then experiences mechanical failures, it’s likely the problm has arisen because of some user-initiated change or some environmental or infrasture change
-Has anything been tried to solve the problem?
What is the Severity of the problem?
How many are affected
How do you determine the probable cause of a problem?
By identifying the symptoms and considering possible causes to determine what the probable cause is.
When researching a problem, be aware of what? (2)
-Internal documentation and information and
-External support resources such as vendor support or forums
What steps should you take when researching a problem? (5)
-Physical inspection—look and listen
-If symptoms / problem is no longer apparent, attempt to reproduce the problem, repeat the exact circumstances that cause the failure or error.
-Check system documentation, installation, and event logs and diagnostic tools for useful information
-Consult other technicians who might have worked on the system recently or might be working on some related issue. consider environmental and infrastructure changes might have been instigated by a different group within the company.
-Consult vendor documentation and use web searches and forum resources to see if the issue is well-known and has an existing fix
Name 3 generic escalation routes:
-Senior technical and admin staff, SME’s (Subject Matter Experts), and developers/ programmers within your company
-Suppliers and manufacturers via warranty and support contracts and helplines or web contact portals
-Other support contractors / consultants, websites, and social media
What are the 3 generic approaches to resolving an IT problem?
Repair
Replace
Workaround
What is the main factor of consideration when repairing a problem?
Cost of repair
What is the main factor when replacing an IT problem?
Often more expensive and can be time-consuming if a part isn’t available. Upgrades may be possible though
When might you use a workaround to solve an IT problem?
When a problem isn’t critical and neither repair nor replacement is cost-effective. It may be best to just document the issue and move on.
To replace a system or part undar warranty what do you need from the vendor?
A RMA Returned Materials Authorization ticket
When devising a plan of action, what considerations should be made?
(4)
Resources
Time
Cost
Impacts
What will an effective configuration management system help with?
Understanding how different systems are interconnected
When implementing a solution, when should you test?
After each change
When implementing a solution and testing after each change, what should you do if the change doesn’t fix the problem?
Reverse the change and try something else.
Name 5 examples of tests to ensure the system as a whole is functioning.
-Trying to use a componenet or performing the activity that prompted the problem report
-Inspecting a component to see whether it is properly connected or damaed or whether any status or indicator lights show a problem
-Disabling or uninstalling the component if it might be the cause of a wider problem
-Consulting logs and software tools to confirm a component is configured properly
-Updating software or a device driver
What are the three main areas of documentation for IT problems?
Findings
Actions
Outcomes
According to CompTIA’s troubleshooting model, what two steps should you take to identify the problem (Step 1)
-Gather information from the user, identify user changes, and, if applicable, perform backups before making changes.
-Inquire regarding environmental or infrastructure changes
For many years, the system firmware for a PC was a type called the BIOS or Basic Input / Output System. Newer models use a different kind of firmware called what?
UEFI Unified Extensible Firmware Interface
UEFI Unified Extensible Firmware interface provides support for what? (6)
A 64-bit CPU operation at boot
A full GUI Graphical User Interface
Mouse operation at boot
Network functionality at boot
Better boot security.
May also support a legacy BIOS mode
The key combinations to reach the UEFI Unified Extensible Firmware Interface vary from system to system but typical examples include (6)
Esc
Del
F1
F2
F10
F12
If a computer boots too quickly to press the key combination to reach the UEFI Unified Extensible Firmware Interface screen, how can you access it?
Shift-click the restart button from the windows logon screen to access UEFI boot options
What are the typical choices for boot device order? (4)
Fixed Disk HDD or SDD
Optical Drive
USB
Network / PXE
Fixed Disk (HDD or SDD) boot devide order: How should SATA boot disk be connected?
-Sata boot disk should generally be connected to the lowest numbered port but its usually possible to select the hard drive sequence if multiple fixed drives are installed.
-An SSD attached with SATA will be listed with SATA/AHCI devices
-AN SSD installed as a PCIe AIC Add-in Card or the M.2 interface will be listed under NVMe.
When would you need to make the Optical Drive the highest boot priority?
If you’re performing a repair install from optical media
When would you set Network / PXE as the highest boot priority?
When you’re using the network adapter to obstain boot settings from a specially configured server.
Why is allowing USB setup a security risk?
Because a setup program might alow individual ports to be enabled or disabled.
Where would cooling fans be controlled?
System settings typically under a menu such as cooling, power, or advanced.
What sort of fan options are available in the system settings? 5
Balanced
Cool (Runs fans harder)
Quiet (Reduce fan speed and allow higher temperatures)
Fanless
Custom
What are Duty Cycle Settings used for?
To control the frequency of power pulses to keep the. Fan running. A high % makes the fan run faster
What two types of boot passwords might be used?
-Supervisor / Admin / Setup: Protect access to the system setup program
-User / System: Lock access to the whole computer. Very secure way of protecting the entire PC as nothing can be done until the firmware as initialized the system.
Under a secure boot, how is the firmware configured?
With cryptographic keys that can identify trusted code. The system firmware checks the OS boot loader using the stored keys to ensure that it’s been digitally signed by the OS vendor. This prevents a boot loader that’s been modified by malware or an OS installed without authorization from being used
TPM (Trusted Platform Module) establishes what?
Root of trust
Each TPM (Trusted Platform Module) microprocessor is hard-coded with what?
Trusted Platform Module
A unique, unchangeable key, referred to as the endoresement key.
TPM has a secure storage area used for what?
Disk encryption programs such as BitLocker can write their keys to.
TPM can be enabled, disabled, and reset where?
Trusted Platform Module
System setup program, though it’s possible to
During the boot process, the TPM compares what?
Trusted Platform Module
The hashes of the key system state data (System firmware, boot loader, and OS kernel) to ensure they haven’t been tampered with.
Is hardware or software based cryptographic key storage more prone to tampering and insider threats?
Software is more susceptible
When might you want to use a removable USB thumb drive (AKA a HSM) to store keys?
-If a computer doesn’t support TPM
-As a recovery mechanism in case the TPM is damaged
-If a disk needs to be moved to another computer.
A computer that won’t start and a PC that suddenly turns off or restarts has what as a common cause?
Power problems
What kind of voltage is used to power motherboard components and peripheral devices?
VDC DC voltages
What voltage of power does a PSU supply immediately and what computer components start up as a result?
12 V power is supplied immediately and fans and hard disks should spin up.
Once the fans and hard disk have been supplied power, the PSU tests what power supplies and that power is sent where?
5 V and 3.3 V supplies are tested and power is sent to the processor
How would you diagnose no power symptoms?
Check if the LED’s on the front panel of the system case are lit up and whether you can hear the fans.
Name 4 causes of a power issue
-A fault in the PSU
-Incoming electricity supple
-Power cables / connectors
-Fuses
To isolate the cause of no power, what tests should you try? (6)
- Check that other equipment in the area is working—there may be a fault in the power circuit or a complete power failure
- Try plugging another piece of known-good basic electrical equipment into the wall socket.
- Check that the PSU cabling is connected to the PC and on the wall socket correctly and that all switches are on
- Try another power cable—there may be a problem with the plug or fuse. Check that all wires are connected to the orrect terminals in the plug.check the fuse resistance with a multimeter or swap for a known good fuse.
- Try disconnecting extra devices, such as plug-in graphics card. If this solves the problem, either the PSU is underpowered and you need to fit one with a higher wattage rating or one of the devices is faulty
- If you can ensure a safe working environment, test the PSU using a multimeter or power supply tester
What should you do if you suspect that a power supply is faulty?
Do not leave it turned on for longer than necessary and do not leave it unattended. Turn off immediately if there are any unusual sights, smells, or noises
A Black Screen—power present but the computer doesn’t start and there are no beeps from the internal speaker, what kind of a failure are you likely experiencing?
Either the display is faulty or the POST procedure isn’t executing.
What steps should you take to troubleshoot POST? (5)
- Ask what changed—such as firmware updated and pc hasn’t been booted since, reset procedure
- Check cabling and connections, especially if maintenance work has just been performed on the PC—incorrectly oriented storage adapter cable or badly seated adapter card can stop POST from running.
- Check for faulty interfaces and devices—faulty adapter card or device can hault POST.
- Check the PSU—even though fans are receiving power, there may be a fault that’s preventing the power good signal from being sent to the CPU, preventing POST
- Check for a faulty CPU or system firmware—if possible, replace CPU chip with known good one or update the system firmware.
What resource might you use to find the meaning of a POST beep code?
The manufact’s website.
Original IBM PC Beep Code: 1 short beep:
Normal POST, modern machines are configured to boot silently
Original IBM PC Beep Code: 2 short beeps
POST error, error code shown on screen
Original IBM PC Beep Code: No Beep
Power Supply, motherboard problem, or faulty onboard speaker