CompTIA A+ Core 1 Certification Exam 220-1201 Practice Test 5

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| Questions: 25 | Updated: Sep 11, 2026
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1. Two motherboards use the same CPU socket and support the same CPU, but one offers more USB ports, more SATA ports, and PCIe lane options than the other. What most likely explains this difference?

Explanation

The motherboard's chipset governs many available I/O features, such as additional USB and SATA ports and certain PCIe lane allocations, independent of the CPU itself, which is why two boards supporting the same CPU can offer different I/O capabilities.

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About This Quiz
CompTIA A+ Core 1 Certification Exam 220-1201 Practice Test 5 - Quiz

This assessment focuses on the essential knowledge and skills required for the CompTIA A+ Core 1 Certification Exam 220-1201. It evaluates your understanding of hardware, networking, and troubleshooting concepts critical for IT support roles. Completing this assessment is beneficial for anyone preparing for the certification, ensuring you are well-equipped fo... see morethe exam and a successful career in IT. see less

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2. A previously working network printer suddenly can't be reached by any computer in the office, though the printer's display shows it is powered on and connected to Wi-Fi. The office recently replaced its router. What should be checked first?

Explanation

Replacing a router often resets DHCP assignments, so a printer's IP address may change even though it remains powered on and connected to Wi-Fi, breaking existing print connections configured with the old address.

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3. Shortly after a technician mistakenly connected two ports on the same switch together with a spare cable, the entire network became extremely slow, and switch port lights began blinking rapidly and continuously. What is the most likely cause?

Explanation

Connecting two ports on the same switch together, without a loop prevention protocol like Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) active, creates a switching loop where broadcast traffic circulates endlessly, rapidly degrading the entire network.

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4. A user's phone frequently crashes apps and runs sluggishly, and the technician finds the device's storage is at 98 percent capacity. Which two actions should be recommended?

Explanation

Freeing storage directly addresses the near-full capacity causing crashes and sluggish performance, and restarting the device afterward clears temporary memory and lets the system recognize the newly available space.

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5. After an OS update, a user's video calling app can no longer access the phone's camera or microphone, even though the app worked fine before the update and the hardware itself is confirmed functional in other apps. What should be checked first?

Explanation

Since the hardware works fine in other apps, the issue is isolated to this specific app's access, and OS updates sometimes reset or require re-granting of camera and microphone permissions for individual apps.

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6. A user with two monitors of different native resolutions and DPI scaling settings finds that dragging windows between the two displays causes text and icons to appear blurry or incorrectly sized on one of them. What is the most likely cause?

Explanation

When two monitors use different resolutions and DPI scaling settings, moving windows between them can cause the operating system to render text and icons incorrectly on one display, a scaling configuration issue rather than a hardware fault.

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7. An SSD that has been in service for several years shows gradually reduced available capacity being reported by diagnostic tools and slower sustained write speeds compared to when new. What is the most likely explanation?

Explanation

SSD flash memory cells have a finite number of write cycles, and as they wear out over years of use, the drive's controller may reduce available capacity or write performance to maintain reliability, a normal aging characteristic of SSDs.

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8. A desktop boots and runs normally, but the technician notices the fan inside the power supply unit itself is not spinning, while the CPU and case fans all spin normally. What is the most appropriate concern?

Explanation

Many modern power supplies use semi-fanless or zero-RPM modes that keep the fan off at low system loads, so a stationary PSU fan isn't automatically a failure; the technician should check the PSU's specification to confirm expected behavior.

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9. A startup wants to avoid a large upfront investment in physical servers and instead wants its infrastructure costs to scale directly with its monthly usage. Which cloud characteristic most directly supports this financial goal?

Explanation

Cloud computing's on-demand, pay-as-you-go consumption model lets companies pay only for what they use on an ongoing basis, avoiding the large upfront capital expenditure required to buy and maintain physical servers.

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10. A company wants to keep its most sensitive financial data on infrastructure it fully controls, while running its public-facing marketing website on infrastructure it doesn't have to maintain itself, and wants these to work together as one overall solution. Which cloud model fits this need?

Explanation

A hybrid cloud model combines privately controlled infrastructure for sensitive workloads with public cloud resources for less sensitive, publicly facing needs, letting the two work together as one overall solution.

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11. An IT team wants to deploy ten identical virtual machines with the same base OS and configuration quickly, rather than manually installing the OS on each one individually. Which virtualization feature should be used?

Explanation

A VM template or clone captures a pre-configured base VM's state, allowing it to be rapidly duplicated to deploy multiple identical virtual machines without manually repeating the OS installation process each time.

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12. An IT department is deploying new network printers and wants to reduce their exposure to unauthorized access from outside the building. Which two actions should be taken?

Explanation

Changing the default administrator password prevents easy unauthorized access to printer settings, and restricting the management interface to internal access only prevents exposure to the public internet.

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13. A technician wants a power supply where all cables can be completely detached from the unit, including the main 24-pin motherboard cable, for maximum cable management flexibility. Which PSU type should be selected?

Explanation

A fully modular power supply allows every cable, including the main motherboard cable, to be completely detached when not needed, offering the most cable management flexibility.

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14. A phone charges normally when plugged in with a cable, but placing it on a Qi wireless charging pad does nothing at all. Fill in the blank: the internal component responsible for inductive wireless charging, which may be damaged in this case, is called the wireless charging ____.

Explanation

Since wired charging works fine, the battery and charging circuitry are functional, isolating the fault to the wireless charging coil itself, which handles inductive charging separately from the wired charging port.

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15. A user needs to install software from an old DVD onto a new laptop that has no built-in optical drive. What is the most practical solution?

Explanation

An external USB optical drive lets a laptop without a built-in drive read from a physical DVD, allowing the software to be installed or its files copied over.

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16. A user has a fixed budget and must choose between more RAM capacity at a lower speed rating, or less RAM capacity at a higher speed rating, for a system primarily used for running many browser tabs and office applications simultaneously. Which factor should be prioritized?

Explanation

For workloads dominated by many simultaneous applications and browser tabs, having enough RAM capacity to hold everything in memory typically matters more than marginal differences in RAM speed.

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17. A warehouse wants tablets that workers can operate reliably while wearing standard work gloves. Which touchscreen technology should be prioritized?

Explanation

Resistive touchscreens register physical pressure rather than relying on the skin's electrical properties, making them more reliable with gloved hands or a stylus, unlike standard capacitive touchscreens. Panel type (OLED vs LCD) is unrelated to touch-sensing technology.

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18. Match each tool to its correct purpose.

Explanation

A protocol analyzer captures and inspects packet contents for application-layer troubleshooting, a Wi-Fi analyzer surveys wireless spectrum conditions, a cable tester verifies wiring and continuity, and a toner probe traces unlabeled cable runs with an audible tone.

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19. A household wants the lowest possible latency and most consistent connection for competitive online gaming, and both cable and satellite internet are available at their address. Which should be recommended, and why?

Explanation

Cable internet has substantially lower latency than satellite, since satellite signals must travel to and from an orbiting satellite, adding significant round-trip delay that negatively affects real-time applications like competitive gaming.

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20. A homeowner has several smart home IoT devices (cameras, plugs, thermostats) they don't fully trust and wants to protect their primary computers and phones from a compromised IoT device. Which two actions would best address this concern?

Explanation

Isolating IoT devices onto a separate network segment limits what a compromised device can reach, and keeping firmware updated patches known vulnerabilities, both directly reducing risk. Combining everything on one network, disabling the firewall, or reusing passwords would all increase risk instead.

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21. A company needs to extend an Ethernet connection beyond the 100-meter copper distance limitation to a building 500 meters away, using the company's existing fiber run between the buildings. Which device should be used at each end of the fiber run?

Explanation

A media converter converts electrical Ethernet signals into optical signals suitable for fiber transmission and back again at the far end, allowing a copper-based network to extend well beyond the 100-meter copper distance limit.

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22. An office wants its network printer to always be reachable at the same IP address, but also wants that address centrally managed and easy to change later if the network is restructured. Which configuration approach best fits this need?

Explanation

A DHCP reservation provides a consistent IP address tied to the printer's MAC address while keeping the address centrally managed on the DHCP server, making future changes easier than a static IP configured directly on the device.

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23. A large home with many dead zones wants a wireless solution where devices automatically and seamlessly hand off between multiple access points without manually reconnecting as the user moves through the house. Which solution best fits this need?

Explanation

A mesh Wi-Fi system uses multiple nodes that share a single SSID and coordinate to hand devices off seamlessly as they move through the home, unlike a single router, a single extender, or multiple separately named networks.

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24. A remote employee needs their phone to securely access internal company resources as if it were on the office network, without exposing that traffic over the open internet. Which configuration should be set up on the device?

Explanation

A VPN profile encrypts traffic between the device and the company's VPN gateway, allowing secure access to internal resources as if the device were on the office network.

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25. A user recently added a thick metal-backed phone case and now finds that wireless charging no longer works reliably, requiring precise repositioning to start charging. What is the most likely cause?

Explanation

Metal components in a case can interfere with the inductive coupling and alignment magnets used in wireless charging, causing inconsistent or failed charging even though the phone and pad both function normally otherwise.

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Two motherboards use the same CPU socket and support the same CPU, but...
A previously working network printer suddenly can't be reached by any...
Shortly after a technician mistakenly connected two ports on the same...
A user's phone frequently crashes apps and runs sluggishly, and the...
After an OS update, a user's video calling app can no longer access...
A user with two monitors of different native resolutions and DPI...
An SSD that has been in service for several years shows gradually...
A desktop boots and runs normally, but the technician notices the fan...
A startup wants to avoid a large upfront investment in physical...
A company wants to keep its most sensitive financial data on...
An IT team wants to deploy ten identical virtual machines with the...
An IT department is deploying new network printers and wants to reduce...
A technician wants a power supply where all cables can be completely...
A phone charges normally when plugged in with a cable, but placing it...
A user needs to install software from an old DVD onto a new laptop...
A user has a fixed budget and must choose between more RAM capacity at...
A warehouse wants tablets that workers can operate reliably while...
Match each tool to its correct purpose.
A household wants the lowest possible latency and most consistent...
A homeowner has several smart home IoT devices (cameras, plugs,...
A company needs to extend an Ethernet connection beyond the 100-meter...
An office wants its network printer to always be reachable at the same...
A large home with many dead zones wants a wireless solution where...
A remote employee needs their phone to securely access internal...
A user recently added a thick metal-backed phone case and now finds...
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