CompTIA 220-1001 (A+ Core 1) Practice Exam
Questions with Answers and Rationales
The exam domains and weight distribution are:
• Hardware – 27%
• Hardware & Network Troubleshooting – 27%
• Networking – 20%
• Mobile Devices – 14%
• Virtualization & Cloud Computing – 12%
1. Which of the following is the MOST likely symptom of a dirty drum or roller in a laser
printer?
• A) Vertical lines down the entire page
• B) Faded print on one side of the page
• C) Lines or splotches repeated at regular intervals on the print job
• D) Blank pages
Answer: C) Lines or splotches repeated at regular intervals on the print job
Rationale: A dirty drum or roller picks up toner and transfers it repeatedly as the drum rotates,
creating a repeating defect. The distance between defects corresponds to the circumference of
the roller/cartridge. Regular intervals are the hallmark of this issue, not random marks.
, 2. Your company relocated you to their United Kingdom office. Your computer was
previously configured for 110V AC, but London uses 230V AC. Which of the following would
allow your computer to run on 230V AC?
• A) Replace the power supply with a 230V-rated unit
• B) Toggle the voltage switch on the power supply to the different voltage
• C) Use a step-up transformer
• D) Replace all internal components
Answer: B) Toggle the voltage switch on the power supply to the different voltage
*Rationale: Most desktop power supplies have a small red voltage selector switch
(115V/230V). Switching it to 230V adapts the PSU for higher voltage regions. Not all PSUs
have this (modern ones auto-switch), but the correct answer is to find/use the manual
switch on existing hardware.*
3. Which type of network medium is used by an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN)
adapter?
• A) Coaxial cable
• B) Fiber optic
• C) Copper telephone wire
• D) CAT6 Ethernet
Answer: C) Copper telephone wire
*Rationale: ISDN operates over traditional铜电话线 (twisted pair copper telephone wiring),
the same physical medium as POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service). ISDN adapters connect to
RJ-45 or RJ-11 telephone jacks, not Ethernet or coax.*
, 4. Which of the following cloud computing solutions delivers software applications to a
client either over the internet or on a local area network?
• A) IaaS
• B) PaaS
• C) SaaS
• D) DaaS
Answer: C) SaaS
*Rationale: Software as a Service provides fully functional applications (e.g., Office 365,
Gmail) accessed via web browser or thin client. IaaS provides infrastructure (servers,
storage). PaaS provides platform for developers. SaaS is the correct "end-user software
delivery" model.*
5. A technician is unable to install virtualization software. The host has more free disk space
than required. Which of the following is MOST likely the cause?
• A) The CPU is 32-bit and does not support virtualization extensions
• B) The motherboard UEFI/BIOS doesn’t support hardware-assisted virtualization
• C) The operating system is not activated
• D) Insufficient RAM
Answer: B) The motherboard UEFI/BIOS doesn’t support hardware-assisted
virtualization
Rationale: Virtualization software (VMware, VirtualBox, Hyper-V) requires hardware
virtualization extensions (Intel VT-x or AMD-V) to be enabled in BIOS/UEFI. This is commonly
disabled by default. Even with sufficient disk space and RAM, virtualization won't work if these
CPU features aren't enabled.
, 6. Which of the following features lets you allow or reject client connections by hardware
address on a wireless network?
• A) WPA2 encryption
• B) SSID broadcast
• C) MAC address filtering
• D) Port forwarding
Answer: C) MAC address filtering
Rationale: MAC address filtering uses the unique physical address (MAC) of a device's network
interface to allow or deny network access. This is a basic security feature on SOHO routers,
despite being easily spoofed.
7. A technician must press a cable connector's retaining tab to remove a faulty fiber optic
network cable. Which of the following connectors does the cable use?
• A) ST
• B) SC
• C) LC
• D) MTRJ
Answer: C) LC (Lucent Connector)
*Rationale: LC connectors have a small form factor with a retaining tab/clip that must be
pressed to release the connector. Unlike SC (push-pull) or ST (bayonet), LC uses a latch
mechanism similar to RJ-45 but smaller.*
Questions with Answers and Rationales
The exam domains and weight distribution are:
• Hardware – 27%
• Hardware & Network Troubleshooting – 27%
• Networking – 20%
• Mobile Devices – 14%
• Virtualization & Cloud Computing – 12%
1. Which of the following is the MOST likely symptom of a dirty drum or roller in a laser
printer?
• A) Vertical lines down the entire page
• B) Faded print on one side of the page
• C) Lines or splotches repeated at regular intervals on the print job
• D) Blank pages
Answer: C) Lines or splotches repeated at regular intervals on the print job
Rationale: A dirty drum or roller picks up toner and transfers it repeatedly as the drum rotates,
creating a repeating defect. The distance between defects corresponds to the circumference of
the roller/cartridge. Regular intervals are the hallmark of this issue, not random marks.
, 2. Your company relocated you to their United Kingdom office. Your computer was
previously configured for 110V AC, but London uses 230V AC. Which of the following would
allow your computer to run on 230V AC?
• A) Replace the power supply with a 230V-rated unit
• B) Toggle the voltage switch on the power supply to the different voltage
• C) Use a step-up transformer
• D) Replace all internal components
Answer: B) Toggle the voltage switch on the power supply to the different voltage
*Rationale: Most desktop power supplies have a small red voltage selector switch
(115V/230V). Switching it to 230V adapts the PSU for higher voltage regions. Not all PSUs
have this (modern ones auto-switch), but the correct answer is to find/use the manual
switch on existing hardware.*
3. Which type of network medium is used by an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN)
adapter?
• A) Coaxial cable
• B) Fiber optic
• C) Copper telephone wire
• D) CAT6 Ethernet
Answer: C) Copper telephone wire
*Rationale: ISDN operates over traditional铜电话线 (twisted pair copper telephone wiring),
the same physical medium as POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service). ISDN adapters connect to
RJ-45 or RJ-11 telephone jacks, not Ethernet or coax.*
, 4. Which of the following cloud computing solutions delivers software applications to a
client either over the internet or on a local area network?
• A) IaaS
• B) PaaS
• C) SaaS
• D) DaaS
Answer: C) SaaS
*Rationale: Software as a Service provides fully functional applications (e.g., Office 365,
Gmail) accessed via web browser or thin client. IaaS provides infrastructure (servers,
storage). PaaS provides platform for developers. SaaS is the correct "end-user software
delivery" model.*
5. A technician is unable to install virtualization software. The host has more free disk space
than required. Which of the following is MOST likely the cause?
• A) The CPU is 32-bit and does not support virtualization extensions
• B) The motherboard UEFI/BIOS doesn’t support hardware-assisted virtualization
• C) The operating system is not activated
• D) Insufficient RAM
Answer: B) The motherboard UEFI/BIOS doesn’t support hardware-assisted
virtualization
Rationale: Virtualization software (VMware, VirtualBox, Hyper-V) requires hardware
virtualization extensions (Intel VT-x or AMD-V) to be enabled in BIOS/UEFI. This is commonly
disabled by default. Even with sufficient disk space and RAM, virtualization won't work if these
CPU features aren't enabled.
, 6. Which of the following features lets you allow or reject client connections by hardware
address on a wireless network?
• A) WPA2 encryption
• B) SSID broadcast
• C) MAC address filtering
• D) Port forwarding
Answer: C) MAC address filtering
Rationale: MAC address filtering uses the unique physical address (MAC) of a device's network
interface to allow or deny network access. This is a basic security feature on SOHO routers,
despite being easily spoofed.
7. A technician must press a cable connector's retaining tab to remove a faulty fiber optic
network cable. Which of the following connectors does the cable use?
• A) ST
• B) SC
• C) LC
• D) MTRJ
Answer: C) LC (Lucent Connector)
*Rationale: LC connectors have a small form factor with a retaining tab/clip that must be
pressed to release the connector. Unlike SC (push-pull) or ST (bayonet), LC uses a latch
mechanism similar to RJ-45 but smaller.*
