CompTIA 220-1201 Online Practice Questions and Exam Preparation

CompTIA 220-1201 Online Questions & Answers

• Question 151:

  A company will retire a legacy application in one year but wants to decommission the physical environment now.

  Which migration method is best?

  A. Relocating the server to a colocated data center
  B. Performing a physical-to-virtual conversion and hosting on IaaS
  C. Deploying all components using PaaS
  D. Taking a backup and shutting down the server
  B. Performing a physical-to-virtual conversion and hosting on IaaS

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  Explanation

  CompTIA A+ emphasizes virtualization as an ideal solution during system phase-out or transition periods. The correct approach here is a P2V (physical-to-virtual) conversion and hosting the server in an Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) environment. This removes the need for physical hardware while still keeping the application operational for its final year. IaaS provides full control over OS and applications, making it suitable for legacy systems that cannot be rewritten.

  Colocation (Option A) still requires physical hardware. PaaS (Option C) is inappropriate because PaaS requires rewriting or replatforming the application. Shutting down the server after a backup (Option D) makes the application immediately unusable.

  Thus, the best method is to convert to a virtual machine and host it on IaaS.

• Question 152:

  Which of the following is used primarily for archiving data?

  A. PAN
  B. MAN
  C. SAN
  D. LAN
  E. WAN
  C. SAN

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  Explanation

  A Storage Area Network (SAN) is primarily used for data archiving and large-scale storage. SANs provide high-speed, block-level storage for enterprise environments.

  Why Not A (PAN): Personal Area Networks are for connecting personal devices like phones and smartwatches.

  Why Not B (MAN): Metropolitan Area Networks are for city-wide data communication, not storage.

  Why Not D (LAN): Local Area Networks are for general connectivity, not dedicated storage.

  Why Not WAN: Wide Area Networks are for connecting geographically dispersed networks, not storage.

  References:

  Core 1 (220-1201), Section 2.7, network types and purposes.

• Question 153:

  Client-side virtualization guest machines have security requirements similar to physical machines, but they also need to ensure separation from other guest machines.

  Which of the following BEST describes this client-side guest security requirement?

  A. Isolation
  B. Authentication
  C. Hardening
  D. Authorization
  A. Isolation

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  Explanation

  Client-side virtualization guest machines require isolation from other guest machines to maintain their security. Isolation ensures that each virtual machine is separated from others and runs its own operating system and applications, making it less vulnerable to attacks from other guest machines.

  References:

  CompTIA A+ Certification Exam Objectives 220-1002 - Virtualization and cloud computing - 4.1

• Question 154:

  A user turns on their laptop. The keyboard lights up, but the screen is black even after the user restarts the laptop.

  Which of the following should a technician do next to troubleshoot the issue?

  A. Connect the laptop to an external monitor.
  B. Remove the device bezel.
  C. Plug in a laptop charger.
  D. Replace the laptop.
  A. Connect the laptop to an external monitor.

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  Explanation

  When the keyboard backlight turns on, the laptop is receiving power and at least partially completing its startup hardware initialization. A black internal display can be caused by multiple issues, including a failed LCD/ backlight, a loose or damaged display cable, an incorrect display output selection, or a graphics subsystem problem. The best next troubleshooting step is to connect the laptop to an external monitor because it quickly isolates whether the problem is with the internal display assembly or with the system's ability to generate video at all.

  If the external monitor displays video normally, the GPU and motherboard are likely functioning, and the technician should focus on the laptop's internal screen components such as the LCD panel, backlight, display cable, or connector seating-often accessed by removing the bezel only after confirming this. If the external monitor also shows no video, the issue is more likely related to graphics output, memory, motherboard, or firmware/POST problems, and further internal diagnostics are required. Plugging in a charger is reasonable if the device seems underpowered, but it does not directly test the video path. Replacing the laptop is not an appropriate "next step" in troubleshooting.

• Question 155:

  A technician has built a new computer. On the initial startup, the computer passes POST but will not turn on the operating system.

  Which of the following components has failed?

  A. Audio card
  B. CPU
  C. Power supply
  D. HDD
  D. HDD

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  Explanation

  When a newly built computer successfully passes POST , it indicates that the CPU, RAM, motherboard, video output, and other essential components are functioning at a hardware level. POST will typically fail or display error codes if there are problems with the CPU, RAM, GPU, or power delivery. Therefore, the fact that POST succeeds allows us to eliminate those components from suspicion.

  The issue arises after POST, when the system attempts to load an operating system. For the OS to load, the BIOS/UEFI must detect a working storage device--such as an HDD, SSD, or NVMe drive--containing a bootable OS. If the computer cannot locate or read the drive, the system will halt at a boot error, such as "No boot device found," "Insert boot media," or similar messages. This is consistent with a failed or improperly connected HDD.

  A failed HDD prevents access to boot files, even though the rest of the system hardware functions normally. Audio cards are irrelevant to booting. A failed CPU would cause a POST failure, not an OS loading issue. A faulty power supply would affect system stability during POST, not specifically OS boot failure unless the system is not powering at all.

  Thus, the failed component is the HDD.

• Question 156:

  A technician needs to figure out why a laser printer is intermittently not feeding paper to print. The technician verifies the issue by running several copy-and-print tests.

  Which of the following should the technician do next?

  A. Update the printer drivers.
  B. Select the correct paper size.
  C. Clean the pickup rollers.
  D. Replace the toner cartridge.
  C. Clean the pickup rollers.

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  Explanation

  When a laser printer intermittently fails to feed paper, the most common hardware cause is worn or dirty pickup rollers. These rollers grab the paper from the tray and move it into the printer. Over time, dust, paper debris, or worn rubber reduces their effectiveness, causing feeding issues.

  From the CompTIA A+ 220-1101 Official Study Guide, Objective 4.3 -Troubleshoot printing problems:

  "If the printer is not picking up paper correctly or is experiencing paper jams, check and clean or replace the pickup rollers and separation pads as these are responsible for feeding paper into the print path."

  Other options like updating drivers, selecting paper size, or replacing toner will not resolve a mechanical paper feed problem.

  Verified Source:

  CompTIA A+ Core 1 (220-1101) Official Study Guide, Chapter 4: Troubleshooting Printing Problems CompTIA Exam Objectives 220-1101, Domain 4.3

• Question 157:

  A technician for a cable provider is setting up high-speed Internet service at a residential customer's home. The type of cabling the technician will use to connect from the outside pole into the customer's home is MOST likely:

  A. coaxial.
  B. plenum.
  C. Cat 5e.
  D. STP.
  A. coaxial.

• Question 158:

  A network printer consistently produces faint printouts. Users report that the issue persists across different computers and print jobs.

  Which of the following steps should the technician take first?

  A. Run a printer calibration process.
  B. Replace the toner cartridge.
  C. Reinstall the printer drivers.
  D. Adjust the fuser temperature.
  B. Replace the toner cartridge.

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  Explanation

  Because the printer is a network printer and the issue occurs across multiple computers and different print jobs, the problem is very likely within the printer hardware/consumables, not the PC drivers or a single workstation configuration. Faint printing is a classic symptom of low or depleted toner (or an aging toner cartridge that is no longer distributing toner evenly). In CompTIA A+ troubleshooting methodology, you start with the most probable and simplest cause before performing deeper configuration changes or part-level adjustments. Replacing the toner cartridge is a straightforward first action that often resolves consistent faint output quickly and restores normal print density.

  Reinstalling printer drivers would typically be indicated if only one computer had issues or if output problems changed based on driver settings; that is not the case here. Adjusting fuser temperature is not a normal first-line step for faint prints and is usually associated with toner not bonding properly (smearing or flaking), not consistently light output. Calibration can be useful for alignment or color/quality tuning, but it does not usually fix a persistent, uniform faintness caused by insufficient toner. Therefore, replace the toner cartridge first.

• Question 159:

  A user ' s computer is connected to a docking station at their desk. The user cannot access the department file servers even though the docking station has a hardwired connection.

  Which of the following steps should a technician take to restore the user ' s access?

  A. Update the docking station firmware.
  B. Restart the computer.
  C. Disable Wi-Fi.
  D. Replace the Ethernet cable.
  C. Disable Wi-Fi.

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  Explanation

  In CompTIA A+ Core 1 (220-1201) networking and troubleshooting, a common cause of "can't reach internal resources" while docked is that the laptop is still using the wireless interface (or has a higher interface priority for Wi-Fi) instead of the docking station's wired Ethernet connection. If the Wi-Fi network is a guest/isolated VLAN, uses different routing, or has stricter access controls, the user may be blocked from reaching department file servers even though an Ethernet cable is physically connected to the dock. Disabling Wi-Fi is a fast, low-risk step that forces the system to use the wired NIC path through the docking station, which typically provides the correct corporate network access, DHCP scope, and routing to internal servers.

  Restarting the computer might help in some cases, but it's less targeted and not the "best next step" when the likely issue is interface selection. Replacing the Ethernet cable is appropriate if link lights are off or the wired connection is clearly down, but the scenario highlights that the dock has a hardwired connection-suggesting the physical layer may be fine. Dock firmware updates are not a first-line fix for basic connectivity/access symptoms.

• Question 160:

  A user reports cursor issues on a company laptop. Technician finds a bulge under the trackpad.

  Which component should be replaced first?

  A. Motherboard
  B. Heat sink
  C. Battery
  D. Trackpad
  C. Battery

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  Explanation

  A physical bulge under the trackpad is a classic CompTIA-identified symptom of a swollen lithium-ion battery. As batteries degrade, internal gas buildup expands the casing, pushing upward on the laptop chassis--often distorting the trackpad, keyboard, or bottom shell. This can cause cursor issues, clicking problems, and safety hazards.

  Replacing the battery first is essential because swollen batteries can rupture, leak, or ignite. Only after the battery is removed and replaced should the technician evaluate whether the trackpad suffered permanent damage.

  Replacing the trackpad (D) without addressing the battery fails to correct the root cause. The motherboard (A) and heat sink (B) are unrelated to the physical bulge.

  Thus, the correct first step is replacing the battery.