CompTIA A+ Practice.1

Motherboards connect everything together. Typical form factors include ATX (most common), BTX, microATX, and NLX. The chipset includes a northbridge that connects the CPU, RAM, and x16 PCIe devices, and southbridge that connects secondary systems such as USB, SATA, IDE, and sound. Types of expansion buses include PCI, AGP, PCI Express (PCIe), AMR, CNR, and PC Card (PCMCIA).

The central processing unit (CPU) or processor takes care of all calculations. Common CPUs such as the Core 2 can have multiple cores and usually connect to LGA775 sockets.

Random Access Memory (RAM) types includes SDRAM, DDR, DDR2, DDR3, RDRAM, and SODIMMs.

ATX Power Supplies connect to the motherboard by way of a P1 20-pin or 24-pin cable. Switchable between 115 and 230 VAC.

• Hard disk drives are nonvolatile devices that store data, generally 3.5". Types of hard disks include
• PATA: Parallel ATA drives range between 33 MHz and 133 MHz (Ultra ATA/33 through /133), use a 4-pin Molex power connector, 40-pin IDE ribbon cable for data, and can be jumpered as single, master, slave, or cable select.
• SATA: Serial ATA drives come in 150, 300, and 600MB/s versions, use a 15-pin power connector, and 7-pin data connector.
• SCSI: Small Computer System Interface drives range in transfer rates from 160MB/s to 640MB/s, and use 68-pin, 80-pin, or serial connectors.

RAID stands for Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks. RAID 0 is striping, RAID 1 is mirroring, and RAID 5 is striping with parity. RAID 0 is not fault tolerant.

• Optical disc drives use removable media to store and retrieve data, typically 5.25". Types of optical discs include
• CD-ROM: Data CDs can typically hold 700MBs, can read and write at up to 52x (7.8MB/s), and rewrite at up to 32x (4.8MB/s).
• DVD-ROM: DVDs have a capacity ranging from 4.7GB (DVD-5) to 17GB (DVD-18 dual-sided and dual-layered). Recording technologies include DVD+R, DVD-R, DVD+RW, and DVD-RW.
• Blue-Ray: Blue-Rays are used for HD and games, have a capacity of 50GB, and a write speed of between 1x and 8x (36Mbps-288 Mbps). Blue-Ray drives connect via SATA only.

Floppy drives use 1.44MB 3.5" disks and connect to the motherboard via 34-pin data cable and 4-pin mini power connector. A LED that won't shut off indicates an upside-down data cable.

Solid-state media includes USB flash drives, CompactFlash, and Secure Digital (SD) cards.

Laptops are smaller versions of desktop PCs. They have replaceable items such as keyboards, SODIMM RAM, displays, inverters, optical discs, and 2.5" hard drives. Laptops use PC Card, CardBus, and ExpressCard technologies. They have an Fn key for implementing secondary key functions.

Video cards connect to motherboards by way of x16 PCIe (black), AGP (brown), or PCI (white) expansion slots. Video connector types include DVI, VGA, HDMI, S-Video, and Component Video/RGB. Common color depths include 16-bit, 24-bit, and 32-bit. Common resolutions include XGA (1024x768), WXGA (1280x720), SXGA+ (1280x1024), UXGA (1600x1200), WSXGA+ (1680x1050), and WUXGA (1920x1200).

Sound cards connect as x1 PCIe or PCI cards, and normally have PC 99 color-coded 1/8" mini-jacks for I/O and speakers, and optical I/Os known as S/PDIF.

USB (Universal Serial Bus) can have up to 127 devices, USB 1.1 (full speed) runs at 12Mbps with a max, cable length of 3 meters; USB 2.0 (high-speed) runs at 480Mbps, max cable length of 5 meters. Computers usually have Type A connectors built in.

IEEE 1394a (FireWire 400) runs at 400Mbps. FireWire 800 runs at 800Mbps. IEEE 1394b incorporates FireWire 800 and also specifies 1600Mbps and 3200Mbps. IEEE 1394 chains can have up to 63 devices.

Printers include laser, inkjet, thermal, and impact (dot-matrix). The six steps in the laser printing process are 1. Cleaning, 2. Conditioning (charging), 3. Writing (exposing), 4. Developing, 5. Transferring, and 6. Fusing.

Windows Vista min. requirements: CPU=800MHz, RAM=512MB, and Free disk space=15GB. New features in Vista include GUI called Aero, extended partitions, and UAC (User Account Control) that requires administrator credentials from users to accomplish certain tasks.

Windows XP min. requirements: CPU=233MHz, RAM=64MB, Free disk space=1.5GB.

Setuperr.log contains setup errors during an installation of windows.

Graphical User Interface (GUI) includes the desktop, icons, taskbar, Start menu, Quick Launch, System Tray, application windows and dialog boxes, and the Sidebar and gadgets (Vista only).

Command Prompt is the command-line utility in Windows. To run in elevated mode: Click Start -> All Programs -> Accessories; then right-click Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.

Snap-ins are console windows that can be added to a Microsoft Management Console (MMC).

Common system tools include Device Management, System Information tool, Task Manager, Msconfig.

User data can be migrated using Windows Easy Transfer (Vista only), User State Migration Tool (USMT), and Files and Settings Transfer Wizard (XP).

The Registry is a database that stores the settings for Windows. It can be accessed by opening the Run prompt and typing regedit.exe. Hives store settings; a commonly modified hive is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE.

Remote Desktop software (Vista/XP) enables a user to see, and control, the GUI of a remote computer.

The %systemroot% in Vista/XP is C:\\Windows, and in 2000 is C:\\Winnt.

Vista boot files include Bootmgr, BCD, XP boot files include NTLDR, Boot.ini, and NTdetect.com.

Directories can be added with the MD command, removed with the RD command, and navigated to with the CD command.

File checking command-line tools that can be used in Windows include Chkdsk and SFC (System File Checker).

A hard disk can have four partitions: up to four primary partitions, but only one extended partition. Logical drives are sections of an extended partition. The Active partition is the one that is booted from; it usually contains the OS.

A service pack (SP) is a group of updates, bug fixes, updated drivers, and security fixes installed from one downloadable package or from one disc. The latest SPs include Vista SP2, XP SP3, and 2000 SP4.

Windows Update can be accessed from Start -> All Programs -> Windows Update.

A hard disk can be maintained with tools such as Disk Cleanup and Disk Defragmenter (defrag.exe).

Backups can be accomplished in Vista with the Backup and Status Configuration tool and in XP with NTBackup.

System Restore can fix issues caused by defective hardware or software by reverting back to an earlier time.

F8 brings up the Advanced Boot Options menu that includes options such as Safe Mode, Enable low-resolution video, and Last Known Good Configuration. Safe Mode boots the system with minimal drivers.

Windows Vista's Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) includes System Recovery Options such as Startup Repair, System Restore, and Command Prompt.

Windows XP uses the Recovery Console as its repair environment.

The Event Viewer warns about possible issues and displays errors as they occur within three main log files: System, Application, and Security. Security displays information if auditing has been turned on.

A stop error (also known as a Blue Screen of Death or BSOD) completely halts the operating system and displays a blue screen with various text and code.

IP addresses are 32-bit dotted-decimal numbers, for example, 192.168.1.1 and can be statically (manually) inputed or dynamically assigned (DHCP). IP Classes include

Class A range: 1-126, subnet mask: 255.0.0.0. Private: 10.x.x.x

Class B range: 128-191, subnet mask: 255.255.0.0. Private: 172.16.0.0-172.31.255.255

Class C range: 192-223, subnet mask: 255.255.255.0. Private: 192.168.x.x

Common network speeds are 1000Mbps and 100Mbps.

• Common protocols include
• FTP (File Transfer Protocol). Port 21
• SSH (Secure Shell). Port 22
• Telnet. Port 23
• SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol). Port 25.
• HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol). Port 80
• POP3 (Post Office Protocol). Port 110
• HTTPS (HTTP Secure). Port 443

• Common cabling protocols include
• Category 3: 10Mbps
• Category 5: 100Mbps
• Category 5e: Rated for 100Mbps and gigabit networks
• Category 6: Rated for 100Mbps and gigabit networks

• Common command-line tools include
• ipconfig: Displays current TCP/IP network configuration values; ipconfig/all shows additonal information
• ping: Tests whether another host is available over the network (example: ping 192.168.1.1)
• tracert: Sends packets to test destinations beyond the local computer's network
• netstat: Shows the network statistics for the local computer
• nslookup: Used to query DNS servers to find out DNS details including the IP address of hosts
• net: Used to map network drives, view computers, and start and stop services

• Wireless Ethernet versions, including the name, data transfer rate, frequency, and modulation used
• 802.11a, 54Mbps, 5 GHz, OFDM
• 802.11b, 11Mbps, 2.4 GHz, DSSS
• 802.11g, 54Mbps, 2.4 GHz, OFDM
• 802.11n, 600Mbps (300 typical), 5 and 2.4 GHz, OFDM

Bluetooth is a short range technology aimed at simplifying communications and synchronization among network devices. Bluetooth is divided into three classes. Class I has a maximum transmission range of 100 meters. Class II (the most common) has a range of 10 meters, and Class III is short range and hardly used at 1 meter. Bluetooth Version 1 has a maximum data transfer rate of 721Kbps, and version 2 is 2.1Mbps.

• Wireless encryption protocols include
• WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy), 64-bit key size (typical)
• WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access), 256-bit
• TKIP (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol), 128-bit
• AES (Advanced Encryption Standard), 128-bit, 192-bit, and 256-bit

Port forwarding forwards an external network port to an internal IP address and port

Port triggering enables you to specify outgoing ports that your computer uses for special applications; their corresponding inbound ports open automatically when the sessions are established.

• Data security is the act of protecting data from threats and possible corruption. Threats include
• Malicious software: Known as malware, this includes computer viruses, worms, Trojan Horses, spyware, rootkits, and adware.
• Unauthorized access: Access to computer resources and data without consent of the owner.
• System failure: Computer crashes or individual application failure.
• Social engineering: The act of manipulating users into revealing confidential information or performing other actions detrimental to the user.

• Data security technologies that can protect against, or help recover from, the preceding threats include
• Authentication: This is the verification of a person's identity, and it helps protect against unauthorized access. It is a preventative measure that can be broken down into three categories: 1. Something the user knows, for example a password or PIN. 2. Something the user has, for example, a smart card or other security token, and 3. Something the user is, for example, the biometric reading of a fingerprint or retina scan.
• Antimalware software: Protects a computer from the various forms of malware, and if necessary, detects and removes them.
• Data backups: Backups enable you to recover data after an attack or other compromise, or system failure.
• Encryption: The act of changing information using an algorithm known as a cipher to make it unreadable to anyone except users who possess the proper "key" to the data.
• Data removal: Three common options: 1. Clearing. This is the removal of data with a certain amount of assurance that it cannot be reconstructed. 2. Purging. Also known as sanitizing; this is once again the removal of data, but this time, it's done in such a way so that it cannot be reconstructed by any known technique. 3. Destruction. This is when the storage media is physically destroyed through pulverizing, incineration, and such.
• User awareness: Employee training and education, easily accessible and understandable policies, security-awareness emails, and online security resources.

BIOS security includes supervisor and user passwords, drivelock passwords, disabling removable media, and setting the boot device priority to hard drive first.

• Malicious software, or malware, is software that is designed to infiltrate a computer system and possibly damage it without the user's knowledge or consent. Types include
• Virus: A virus is code that runs on a computer without the user's knowledge; it infects the computer when the code is accessed and executed. Types include Boot Sector, Macro, Program, Polymorphic, Stealth, and Multipartite.
• Worms: Worms are much like viruses except that they self-replicate whereas a virus does not.
• Trojan Horses: Appear to perform desired functions but are actually performing malicious functions behind the scenes.
• Spyware: Type of malicious software that is either downloaded unwittingly from a website or is installed along with some other third-party software.

Permission Inheritance: If you create a folder, the default action it takes is to inherit permissions from the parent folder.

• Types of encryption include
• Symmetric key: Uses a common shared key between the sender and the receiver. Examples of symmetric key technology include Encrypting File System (EFS), BitLocker, WEP, WPA, Kerberos, AES, 3DES, and Rivest Cipher.
• Asymmetric key: Uses two keys, one is public, the other private. Examples of asymmetric key technology include RSA and ECC.
• Encrypting File System (EFS): Encrypts one or more files or folders directly within the Properties page.
• BitLocker: Encrypts an entire disk, available only on Vista Ultimate and Vista Enterprise.

• Following is the newly revised CompTIA six-step troubleshooting process:
• 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 implement the solution.
• 5. Verify full system functionality and and if applicable implement preventative measures.
• 6. Document findings, actions, and outcomes.

Answer: A. You would have to look for an older system to find a floppy disk drive in a computer. Answers B and C are incorrect because most computers today have HDD and CD/DVD drives, and answer D is incorrect because Blue-Ray is a newer form of an optical drive.

Answer: B. DS/HD 3 1/2" disk can hold 1.44 MB of formatted data. DS is short for double-sided and HD is short for high density. Therefore, answers, A,C, and D are incorrect.

Answer: A and D. Answers A and D are correct because USB devices are considered to be hot swappable devices. Answers B and C are not typically hot swappable.

Answer: D. Answer D is correct because a Blu-Ray disk disk can hold 25 GB on a single-layer disk and 50 GB on a double-layer disk. Answers A, B, and C are incorrect because a CD including CD-RW can store anywhere from 640 to 800 MB, and a DVD can store up to 8.5 GB.

Answer: A. Answer A is correct because a CD-RW disk will usually store between 650 MB and 700 MB depending on the disk and disk burning CD drive. Answers B, C, and D are incorrect because they describe the storage space for a DVD based on single-sided versus double-sided and single-layer versus double-layer. E is incorrect because 25 GB is the size for a Blu-Ray disk.

Answer: A and B. Answers A and B are correct because the USB thumb drive and SD card are solid state electronic devices. Therefore, they do not have any mechanical moving parts. CD-RW drives (answer C) and hard drives (answer D) have mechanical parts, which make them high failure items compared to components that do not have mechanical parts.

Answer: E. Answer E is correct because solid state drives have a limited amount of writes for a disk area. Answers A, B, C, and D are incorrect because solid state devices typically have a faster start-up because there is no spin-up. They have a fast random access for reading because they are no read-write heads. They are also quieter and consume less power because they are no movable mechanical parts.

Answer: B. Answer B is correct because SD cards (short for Secure Digital) is smaller than a USB thumb drive, which is smaller than a CD-RW drive and hard drive. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: B. Answer B is correct because a tape drive uses magnetic tapes to store data in a sequential fashion. Answers A, C, and D are incorrect because floppy disk drives, hard drives, and rewritable DVD drives use random access, which means they can jump to the spot where the data is to start reading or writing without having to read the data or after the desired data.

Answer: A. A standard Secure Digital (SD) memory card can store anywhere from 4 MB to 4 GB. Therefore, answers B, C, and D are incorrect. An SDHC memory card can store from 4 GB to 32 GB while an SDXC can store from 32 GB to 2 TB.

Answer: E. Answer E is correct because standard SD memory cards are widely used in digital cameras (answer C), handheld computers, PDAs (answer D), media players, mobile phone (answer B), GPS receivers, and video game consoles. They can also be inserted into a USB thumb device (answer A) which can be moved between various devices and your PC.

Answer: D. The common format for SD memory cards is the standard SD card, Mini SD card, and Micro SD card. There is no such thing as a compact SD card. Therefore answer D is correct and the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: A. Answer A is correct because hot swappable means that a device can be connected and disconnected while the computer is running. Answer B is incorrect because there is no such thing as power-charged technology. Answer C is incorrect because plug-and-play devices are devices that can be connected without needing to be configured. Answer D is incorrect because compact technology does not refer to power or hot-swappable technology.

Answer: C. Answer C is correct because the BTX motherboard is designed to take over the aging ATX specification. Answers A and B are incorrect because LPX and NLX are older designs used in slimline computers. Answer D is incorrect because the CTX is a form factor that does not exist.

Answer: A. Answer A is correct because the ATX is an aging motherboard form factor that is still commonly used today. Answer B is incorrect because the BTX was designed to replace the ATX design but still has not quite caught on. Answer C is incorrect because the NLX is an older design used in slimline computers. Answer D is incorrect because PCA is not a motherboard form factor. The BTX motherboard establishes a straighter path of airflow with few obstacles.

Answer: D. Answer D is correct because the figure shows an ATX motherboard. The ATX motherboard has the processor and memory slots at right angles to the expansion cards, which puts the processor and memory in line with the fan output of the power supply, allowing the processor to run cooler. The ATX motherboard has a 20-pin power connector that accepts a single power connector.

Answer: D. Answer D is correct because a serial port is a two-row 9-pin male connector. Answer B is incorrect because the VGA port is a three-row 15-pin female connector. Answer C is incorrect because a PS/2 is a four-pin connector. Answer E is incorrect because the parallel port is a two-row 25-pin female connector.

Answer: B. Answer B is correct because the VGA port is a three-row 15-pin female connector. Answer A is incorrect because a game port is a two-row 9-pin female connector. Answer C is incorrect because a PS/2 is four-pin connector. Answer E is incorrect because the parallel port is a two-row 25-pin female connector.

Answer: C. Answer C is correct because a DVI port used in video systems is shown in the figure. Answer A is incorrect because a game port is a two-row 9-pin female connector. Answer B is incorrect because the VGA port is a three-row 15-pin female connector. Answer D is incorrect because a serial port is a two-row 9-pin male connector. Answer E is incorrect because the parallel port is a two-row 25-pin female connector.

Answer: A. Answer A is correct because the figure shows a USB port. Therefore, answer B, C, D, and E are incorrect.

Answer: D. Answer D is correct becasue the figure shows a PS/2 port used for keyboards and mice. Therefore, answers A, B, C, and E are incorrect.

Answer: A. Answer A is correct because a game port is a two-row 15-pin female connector. Answer B is incorrect because the VGA port is a three-row 15-pin female connector. Answer C is incorrect because a PS/2 is a four-pin connector. Answer D is incorrect because a serial port is a two-ro 9-pin male connector. Answer E is incorrect becasue the parallel port is a two-row 25-pin female connector.

Answer: A. Answer A is correct because an RJ-45 connector resembles a phone connector but is a little bit larger because it has eight connectors instead of four. A game port is a two-row 15-pin female connector. Answer B is incorrect because the VGA port is a three-row 15-pin female connector. Answer C is incorrect because a PS/2 is a four-pin connect. Answer D is incorrect because a serial port is a two-row 9-pin male connector. Answer E is incorrect because the parallel port is a two-port 25-pin female connector.

Answer: A. Answer A is correct because the keyboard port is purple. Answers B, C, and D are incorrect because green is used for the PS/2 mouse, pink is used for the parallel port, and blue is used for the VGA port.

Answer: C. Lime green identifies analog line level audio output used for front speakers or headphones. Answer A is incorrect because pink identifies analog microphone audio input. Answer B is incorrect because light blue identifies analog line level audio input. Answer D is incorrect because gold identifies a game port or MIDI port.

Answer: C. Answer C is correct because Small-Outline DIMMS (SODIMM) are used in laptops while RIMMS, DIMMs, and SIMMs are used in desktop computers.

Answer: B. Answer B is correct because Dual In-line Memory Modules (DIMMs) are the most common form of memory. RIMMs and SIMMs are obsolete forms of memory and SODIMMs are usually found in laptops.

Answer: C. A RIMM, short for Rambus Inline Memory Module, has 184-pins and 26-bit-wide bus. DIMMs (Answer B) come with 168 pins, 184 pins, or 240 pins. SODIMMs (Answer D) have 72, 100, 144, 200, or 204 pins. DIMMs have a 64-bit data path. The 72- and 100-pin SODIMM packages support 32-bit data transfer, while the 144-, 200-, and 204-pin SODIMM packages support 64-bit data transfer.

Answer: D and E. DIMMs, short for Dual In-line Memory Module come with 168 pins or 184 pins. A RIMM, short for Rambus Inline Memory Module, has 184-pins and 16-bit-wide bus. SODIMMs have 72, 100, 144, 200, or 204 pins.

Answer: B and C. DIMMs have a 64-bit-wide data paths. SIMMs and RIMMs have 32-bit-wide data paths.

Answer: B. AGP is short for Accelerated Graphics Port. It was created when teh PCI could not be pushed any further. Instead of a shared bandwidth, the AGP is a dedicated bus that runs at a faster speed. Answers C and D are incorrect because AMR (short for Audio/Modern Riser) is made for sound cards and moderns while a CNR (Communications and Networking Riser) is made for audio, networking, and modern cards.

Answer: C. Answer C is correct because the PCMCIA is short for Personel Computer Memory Card International Association. PCMCIA cards (also known as PC Cards) are used to store data or to expand the capabilities of a laptop computer or notebook computer. Answers A, B, and D are incorrect because PCI, AGP, and CNR are primarily found on desktop computers.

Answer: D. The South Bridge is generally used for slower devices such as USB ports, IDE drives, and ISA slots. The North Bridge (Answer B) is for faster components on the motherboard such as graphics and memory. PCI Bus (Answer A) and PCMCIA (Answer C) are incorrect because the PCI bus and PCMCIA bus are used to expand your system.

Answer: A. PCI slot are 32-bit and 64-bit slots that operate at 33.33 MHz clock speed. On a 32-bit bus, they transfer up to 133 Mbps. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: D. The AGPx8 has a clock speed of 533 MHz and has a transfer rate of approximately 2.1GBps. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: B. The PCIe, short for PCI Express, is designed to replace the older PCI, PCI-X, and AGP standards. V1.x runs at 250 Mbps per lane while v3.0 runs at 1 GBps per lane. An eight-lane PCIe slot will transfer at a rate faster than the fastest version of AGP (Answer C), which only runs at 66 MHz and has a bandwidth of 266 Mbps for a 64-bit slot. PCI (Answer A) runs at 33 MHz and transfers 133 Mbps for a 32-bit slot and 266 Mbps for a 64-bit slot. The slowest of these is the PCMCIA interface.

Answer: A. Answer A is correct because parallel ATA uses 40-in gray ribbon cables. Answer B is incorrect because the serial ATA uses 7-pin cables. Answer C is incorrect because the PCMCIA is an expansion standard for laptop computers. Answer D is incorrect because CNR is used for audio, modems, and network interfaces.

Answer: C. The serial, parallel, and USB interfaces can all be used for printers, but the USB interface is the newest interface. Answer B is incorrect because DVI is a video interface.

Answer: C. While serial ATA (SATA) use only four wires to transmit data, it transmits them at a far faster speed. Serial ATA transmits up to 6.0 GBps while IDE/EIDE can transmit up to 133 Mbps. Answer D is incorrect because USB 2.0 can transmit up to 480 Mbps, which is equal to 60 Mbps.

Answer: B. In systems that support parallel ATA, you can connect up to four IDE devices, two on each of the two cables. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: B. eSATA provides a variant of Serial ATA (SATA) meant for external connectivity. PATA (Answer A), short for parallel ATA, is the first ATA standard. The IEEE 1394 (Answer C), sometimes referred to as Firewire, is an external interface usually used for digital audio, digital video, and other similar applications. Answer D is incorrect because there is no USATA interface.

Answer: A. The maximum cable length for eSATA, short for External SATA, is 1 M. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: C. The transfer speed for the initial release of eSATA is 300 Mbps. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: B. RAID is short for Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks. RAID-1 is used for disk mirroring in which two disks are copies of each other. If one disk fails, you will keep on working. In RAID-0, multiple disks act together as one for faster performance. Unfortunately, RAID-0 is not true RAID because if one disk fails, the entire set fails. Answer C is incorrect because RAID-5 uses a set of disks that act as one. Different from RAID-0, RAID-5 uses part of the disks to hold parity information. If one disk fails, you can keep working and rebuild the failed disk when it is replaced. RAID-10 combines both striping and mirroring.

Answer: A. Processors are considered the brain of the computer. RAM (Answer B) is considered the short-term memory for the computer. The chipset (Answer C) is the electronic devices that conrol the other devices with your PC. The ROM (Answer D), short for Read-Only Memory, can be used to store the most basic commands for the computer. You can think of the ROM as the instincts of the computer.

Answer: D. The CMOS battery will keep the clock running even when the computer is not running. The switching power supply (Answer A) is the component that converts AC into clean DC power. The processor (Answer B) is the brains of the computer that requires the computer to be running to operate. PCMCIA (Answer C) is a technology used to expand laptop and notebook computers.

Answer: C. POST is short for Power-on Self Test. It resides in the firmware. When the computer is first turned on, the computer must do basic diagnostics to make sure everything is running fine. It then looks for a boot device to boot or load an operating system. Answer A is incorrect because CMOS is a type of chip that is typically used to store computer configurations. This information is usually managed through the BIOS setup program. The firmware (Answer B) is the instincts or basic instructions that the computer follows. ROM (Answer D), short for Read-Only Memory, is a type of memory that remembers its content even when the computer is turned off.

Answer: A. The power supply is used to convert AC into clearn DC power. While there are no such things as power inductors and power resistors, inductors and resistors are electronic components used in most electronic devices, including power supplies. Answer D is incorrect because the power conversion kit is not an official PC component but would be used to convert electricity from one format to another.

Answer: B. Power supply is measured in watts, which determines how much power can be supplied at one time. Voltage (Answer A) is used to measure the pressure in an electrical line and the resistance of the electrical line is measured in ohms (Answer D). Hertz (Answer C) is used to measure the frequency of an electrical signal.

Answer: B. The voltage used in the United States is 110 VAC, and Europe uses 220 VAC. Of course, the other answers would be incorrect.

Answer: C. The voltage used in the United States is 110 VAC, and Europe uses 220 VAC. Of course, the other answers would be incorrect.

Answer: A. ATX is overwhelmingly the most commonly used power supply. The BTX (Answer B) and LPX (Answer C) are not form factors used for power supplies; they only describe motherboard form factors. The AT form factor (Answer D) is an obsolete form factor only found in older computers.

Answer: C and D. The original form for the ATX power supply included a 20-pin connector. Later, it was revised and 4 pins were added for a total of 24-pins. Answer A is incorrect because the power cable to power disk drives used four pins (Answer A). The older AT power supplies had two 6-pin (Answer B) connectors known as P8 and P9. Forty pins (Answer E) is the number of pins used for IDE cables.

Answer: A, B, D, E, and F. The ATX power supply supplies +/-5 volts, +/-12 volts, and +3.3 volts. It does not supply -3.3 volts (Answer C).

Answer: A. A power supply's 4-pin auxiliary connector is a +5 and +12 VDC connector. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: A. The front-side bus (FSB) is the bus that carries data between the processor and the primary memory or RAM, usually through the Northbridge or equivalent. There is no name for the wires that connect to the front of the case (Answer B). Because motherboards vary greatly, there is no rule on what is placed on the front of the motherboard; therefore, no special name is given to the front of the motherboard. The bus that connects the processor to the Level 2 cache (Answer D) is the back side bus.

Answer: A. Processors are considered the brain of the computer. RAM (Answer B) is considered the short-term memory for the computer. The chipset (Answer C) is the electronic chips located on the motherboard that controls and coordinates the other devices within your PC. The ROM (Answer D), short for Read-Only Memory, can be used to store the most basic commands for the computer. You can think of the ROM as the instincts of the computer.

Answer: C. The 3.8 GHz Pentium 4 processor used the Socket 478. The Socket 478 has 478 pins. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: D. The 426 socket was used by the Intel Core2 processor. The Pentium 4 processors (Answer A) used a Socket 423, Socket 478, or Socket T. The AMD Athlon processor (Answer B) used a Socket A, which has 426 pins, and the Athlon 64 (Answer C) used a Socket 939 or Socket 940.

Answer: D. The Intel Core i7 uses the Socket B, which has 1,366 pins. The Pentium 4 processors use the Socket 478 (Answer A), and the Athlon 64 uses the Socket 754 (Answer B). Athlon and Duron processors use Socket A (Answer C), which has 426 pins.

Answer: C. The AMD Phenom processors use 3 or 4 core use the Socket AM2+, which has 940 contacts. The Socket A sockets (Answer A) are used for AMD Athlon and Duron processors. The Socket B (Answer B) is used for the Intel Core i7 processor. There is no such thing as a Socket 1 (Answer D).

Answer: A. The AMD Socket 462/Socket A specification has been used with Athlon, Duron, Athlon XP, Athlon XP-M, Athlon MP, and Sempron processors. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: B. Hyper-Threading Technology, used in newer Intel processors, allows the processor to act like two processors (logical processors) so that it can utilize the processor resources more efficiently and improve performance. MMX technology (Answer A) consists of 57 instructions that improve the performance of multimedia tasks. SSE (Answer C), short for Streaming SIMD Extensions, is an instruction set that contains 70 instructions to process multiple numbers in one transaction. A processor that has multiple cores (Answer D) means it has more than one physical core, not logical core.

Answer: B. By having multiple processors or multiple core, you can process several items at the same time. Increasing the RAM (Answer A) would most likely increase the performance of the computer but would not increase the power of the processor. Today, you cannot add a cache chip (Answer C) to your motherboard. Processor cache is part of the processor. Lastly, there is no such thing as Turbo mode (Answer D) on today's processors.

Answer: B. The L1 and L2 cache is used to cache instructions and data kept in the RAM. While increasing the RAM (Answer A) and using faster disks (Answer C) will not increase the link between the RAM and processors. Lastly, using larger paging files (Answer D) will increase the amount of available memory but would most likely not increase the speed of the computer.

Answer: B. A 64-bit processor can theoretically see as many as 18 exa-bytes because it has a 64-bit address bus. A 32-bit processor (Answer A) with a 32-bit address but can only see as many as 4 GB of RAM and a 32-bit processor with a 36-bit address bus can see up to 64 GB. A motherboard with an updated BIOS (done by flashing the motherboard -Answer D) and a motherboard with a North Bridge or South Bridge (Answer C) will not physically increase the amount of memory that the system can see.

Answer: D. A voltage regulator is required on some motherboards to make sure that the motherboard is electrically balanced if the only one of the two processor sockets is used. While the VRM might include resistors (Answer A), and inverters (Answer C), they are not connected directly into the processor sockets. Answer D is incorrect because the termination pack is usually a resistor pack. Note that some dual-processor motherboards do not require a VRM. The only way to know is to read the manual that comes with the motherboard.

Answer: A. Processor clock speed is express in hertz. Because processors run much faster these days, they are express in Gigahertz (GHz). Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: A. Today's 64-bit processors sold by Intel and AMD use the x86 (also known as x86-64 and AMD 64) instruction set architecture. The IA-64 (Answer B) is used by Intel's Itanium processors. Unfortunately, the IA-64 architecture will only run 64-bit applications that were written for the IA-64 architecture and will not run x86 programs. MMX (Answer C) and SSE2 (Answer D) are added instructions that allow the processor to manipulate values using a single transaction.

Answer: A. The Athlon 64 processor uses the x64 (also known as x86-64) architecture. The IA-64 architecture (Answer B) is used by the Itanium processor. The x86 (Answer C) is the older 32-bit architecture used in the Pentium, Pentium Pro, Pentium II, Pentium III, and Pentium 4 processors. PowerNow (Answer D) is a technology used by AMD to conserve power.

Answer: A, B, C, and D. Today, virtually all computers require a processor heat sink and fan to keep the processor cool. In addition, to prevent the case from overheating, the power supply fan and sometimes other case fans will push air through the system. Some chipsets and memory chipsets might also have heat sinks or other additional cooling components.

Answer: B, C, and D. To keep a processor cool you must use a heat sink and fan or some other cooling system. The thermal compound will increase the thermal conductivity between the processor and heat sink so that it can dissipate heat more efficiently. When you replace a processor, you should replace the thermal compound. Cooling liquid (Answer A) would be incorrect because any type of liquid is a bad idea inside an electronic device unless it is sealed.

Answer: A and C. To work effectively, liquid cooling kits require a large amount of space within the computer case. In addition, liquid cooling is a relatively new technology that usually requires a higher level of technical knowledge to install. Condensation (Answer B) is not inherent problem with liquid cooling and does not require a special torque wrench (Answer D).

Answer: B. A heat pipe is a hollow tube containing a heat transfer liquid. As the liquid evaporates, it carries heat to the cool end, where it condenses and then returns to the hot end. Heat pipes are used when space is tight (as in small form-factor PCs) or absolute quiet is needed. The disadvantage of using a heat pipe is cost. Heat sinks (Answer A) provide a larger surface area to dissipate heat faster. A liquid nitrogen system (Answer C) can dissipate large amounts of energy but requires special installation to prevent insulation and it must be refilled often. Answer D is incorrect because spinkler cooling is bad for any electrical system.

Answer: D. The Peltier Effect takes place when an electrical current is sent through two dissimilar materials that have been connected to one another at two junctions. One junction between the two materials becomes warm while the other becomes cool in what amounts to an electrically driven transfer of heat from one side of the device to the other. A mister would mean liquid on electronic components, which would be bad for any electronic component.

Answer: B. Of the components listed, RAM has the fastest throughput. The slowest devices are the hard disk drive (Answer C) and CD-ROM (Answer D) because they are mechanical devices. Of course, the CD-ROM drive is much slower than a hard drive. A flash drive is an electronic device that is still slower than RAM.

Answer: C. SRAM, short for static RAM, is faster than DRAM and doesn't require refreshing like DRAM does. Therefore, it is used for RAM cache. VRAM (Answer B) is short for video RAM and allows for simultaneous reading and writing. DRAM (Answer A) is used for memory chips and requires refreshing. SDRAM (Answer D), short for Synchronization Dynamic RAM, is an improved version of the original DRAM.

Answer: B. PC-100 Synchronization DRAM (SDRAM) requires 8 ns DRAM chips that can operate at 125 MHz. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer B. Synchronous DRAM (SDRAM) uses Dual-Inline Memory Modules (DIMMs) while Rambus DRAM uses the Rambus inline memory module (RIMM -Answer C). SIMM (Single In-Line Memory Module -Answer A) is used in older systems. SIPPs (Answer D) are obsolete packages that were used before SIMMs.

Answer: A. Double-data-rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDR SDRAM) is the most common form of memory used for RAM and video memory. DDR SDRAM comes in DDR (its original form), DDR2 and DDR3. The other answers are incorrect becasue SODIMM, SIMM, and DIMM are memory package types.

Answer: B. The PC3200 (3.2 GBps/400 MHz) Double Data Rate (DDR) module is designed for use with a double-pumped front-side bus that runs on a 400 MHz effective FSB. This means that the memory bus speed runs at 200 MHz and the memory transfer data on both the rising and falling edges of the memory bus's square wave clock signal. This means that these devices transfer data at a rate of twice the actual bus speed frequency. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: A. Using RAM slower than the FSB speed would create a signifant overclocking situation for the RAM modules and cause the system to fail. Using PC166 RAM (Answer B) would be wasteful because the system reduces its operation to 133 MHz. There are no DDR133 devices (Answer C); there are, however, PC-2100 modules that are constructed using DDR 266 chips that operate with a 133 MHz bus clock. PC133 devices are backward-compatible with PC100 (Answer D) devices, but the reverse is not so.

Answer: A and C. Parity and ECC (short for Error-Correcting Code) are both used to detect errors. Parity (Answer A) uses an extra bit for every byte that indicates if the bit within the byte is odd or even. From time to time, the bits within the byte are checked again to see if the parity bit still holds true. If it does not, one of the bits has changed. The ECC (Answer C) uses several bits to perform and store a mathematical calculation. At a later time, the same mathematical calculation is done again and checked with the ECC bits. If they are different, an error has occurred. Different from party, ECC can also correct single-bit errors. Static memory (Answer B) is incorrect because static memory is a type of memory, not an error-detecting technology. Recharging (Answer D) is incorrect because it is the technique through which dynamic RAM is regularly recharged so that the capacitors within a memory chip remember its values.

Answer: C. DDR-1 can provide up to 3.2 GBps while DDR-2 can provide up to 6.4 GBps. DDR-3 can theoretically go up to 12.8 GBps.

Answer: A and D. DDR-2 has a faster bandwidth. DDR-1 can run up to 3.2 GBps and DDR-2 can run up to 6.4 GBps. DDR-2 also consumes less power. DDR-2 is faster because of its faster bandwidth, not because of lower latency.

Answer: B. Double-sided RAM has its chips divided into two sides (called "banks"), only one of which can be seen at a time by the computer. To use the second half of the storage available, the computer must switch to the second bank and can no longer read or write to the first half until it switches back again. It accesses one bank while the other bank prepares to be accessed. DDR uses double-rated technology (Answer A) where it reacts with rise and fall of each clock cycle, which doubles its performance. Dynamic RAM uses capacitor technology to store a bit of data. Dynamic RAM constantly needs to be refreshed to remember its content (Answer D). There is no such thing as turbo cached (Answer C).

Answer: D. DDR3-1600 has a peak transfer rate of 12,800 Mbps (12.8 GBps), which gives the name PC3-12800. It also uses 200 MHz memory clock and 800 MHz I/O bus clock. Of course, the data rate is 1600 Mbps because it reacts on the rise and fall of the clock cycle, doubling its throughput.

Answer: B. Screens are divided into two types, CRT and LCD. LCD screens are thin while CRT screens (Answer C) are large and bulky. LED (Answer D) is a technology used in LCD. A terminal (Answer A) is a generic term in video systems and does not indicate the technology used.

Answer: B. VGA is the basis for all modern video systems used in today's computers. While today's computer systems run at a much higher resolution that VGA, VGA mode can still be useful when troubleshooting certain problems. VGA uses a resolution of 640x480. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: D. The initial version of XGA expanded upon IBM's VGA, adding support for two resolutions: 800x600 pixels with high color (16 bits per pixel; that is, 65,536 colors) and 1024x768 pixels with a palette of 256 colors (8 bits per pixel). Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: D. UXGA has a standard monitor resolution of 1600x1200 pixels, which is quadruple the default resolution of SVGA (800x600). Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: C. WUXGA has a display resolution of 192x1200. Wide XGA has a resolution of 1366x768. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: C. The color depth expresses how many bits describe the colors of a single pixel. Because 8 bits can give you 256 different options, it can display 256 different colors. 16 bits can display 65,536 colors and 24 bits can display 16,777,216 colors. The resolution (Answer A) describes the number of pixels on the screen. The refresh rate (Answer B) describes how often a screen refreshes per second. The size of the pixel (Answer D) has no effect on how many colors it can display.

Answer: C. The contrast ratio is a measure of a display system, defined as the ratio of the luminance of the brightest color (white) to that of the darkest color (black) that the system is capable of producing. A high contrasts ratio is a desired aspect of any display since the whites look white and the blacks look black. The color depth (Answer D) expresses how many bits describe the colors of a single pixel. The resolution (Answer A) describes the number of pixels on the screen at one time. The refresh rate (Answer B) expresses how often the screen redraws itself each second.

Answer: D. The dot pitch, usually measured in millimeters, describes the distance between pixels. A smaller number means the pixels are closer together, which means a sharper image. The resolution (Answer A) describes the number of pixels on the screen at one time. The refresh rate expresses how often the screen redraws itself each second. The contrast ratio (Answer B) is a measure of a display system, defined at the ratio of the luminance of the brightest color (white) to that of the darkest color (black) that the system is capable of producing. The color depth (Answer C) expresses how many bits describe the colors of a single pixel.

Answer: B. HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) is a compact audio/video interface for transmitting uncompressed digital data. HDMI connects digital audio/video sources such as set-top boxes, Blue-ray disc players, personal computers (PCs), video game consoles (such as the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360), and AV receivers to compatible digital audio devices, computer monitors, and digital televisions. DVI (Answer A), short for Digital Visual Interface, is a video interface standard designed to maximize the visual quality of digital display devices such as LCD computer displays and digital projectors. VGA (Answer C), short for Video Graphics Array, is an older video interface for computer displays. Answer D, Super VGA (SVGA) is an improved version of VGA.

Answer: B. DVI and HDMI Video are compatible with each other provided both devices are HDCP compatible. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: A. DVI-I is short for DVI-Integrated, which supports both digital and analog dignals. DVI-D (Answer B) supports digital only and DVI-A (Answer C) supports analog only. There is no such thing as DVI-B (Answer D).

Answer: D. When you add a USB mouse or keyboard, drivers are automatically loaded. And because they are plug-and-play devices, you can plug them in while the computer is on. Because you don't have to do anything, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: D. Plug-and-play technology allows you to connect a device without configuring the device. Some common plug-and-play devices used today include USB devices, modern PCI expansion cards, PCI-X and PCI-E expansion cards, and PCMCIA/PC cards.

Answer: B. Plug-and-play technology allows you to connect a device without configuring the device. Some common plug-and-play devices used today include USB devices, modern PCI expansion cards, PCI-X and PCI-E expansion cards, and PCMCIA/PC cards.

Answer: C. Plug-and play technology allows you to connect a device without configuring the device. Some common plug-and-play devices used today include USB devices, modern PCI expansion cards, PCI-X and PCI-E expansion cards, and PCMCIA/PC cards. Typically after you connect a plug-and-play device, the only thing that you need to ensure is that a driver is loaded. Many drivers are included with Windows. If a driver is not included with Windows, you will have to load the driver manually. The other answers are incorrect because there is no type of device or technology that has these features.

Answer: B and C. To load drivers, you must have the device connected first. Then it is always recommended that you use signed drivers. Answer A is incorrect because the driver, not the application, should be digitally signed. Answer D is incorrect because the driver might not load if it does not detect that the device is actually connected.

Answer: C. When you have a touch screen, you must physically install the device, load the appropriate drivers, and load the appropriate software that come with the touch screen. You then need to calibrate it so that when you touch the touch screen, it will respond properly. If you installed the driver, you won't have to enable the driver (Answer A); it should be enabled by default. You do not need to link the touch screen (Answer B) to the printer or a pointing device (Answer D).

Answer: D. KVM is short for Keyboard, Video Mouse. It is a hardware device that enables a user to control multiple computers from a single keyboard, monitor, and mouse. Monitors do not support wireless cards (Answer A) and They do not support USB connections (Answer C). Although some monitors may actually support two video connections, which also will have controls on the monitor to change between the two systems, you cannot purchase a split video cable to connect two PCs to a single monitor.

Answer: D. PCI-E, short for PCI-Express, is a serial bus with a different physical interface that was designed to replace both PCI and PCI-X. PCI, PCI-X, and AGP are all based on parallel interface. Since the PCI, PCI-X, and AGP are based on parallel-signal technology, Answer A, B, C are incorrect.

Answer: B. PCI-X is a parallel interface that is directly backward-compatible with all but the oldest (5-volt) standard PCI devices. It is not compatible with 3.3 v standard PCI devices (Answer A), AGP devices (Answer C), and PCI-E devices (Answer D).

Answer: A, B, C, and D. PCI Express can support up to 32 lanes (1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 16, and 32). It does not support 18 lanes (Answer E).

Answer: B. The microphone (audio in) and speakers (audio out) are plugged into the appropriate 1/8" mini-jacks on the back of the sound card. The 25-pin D-Shells (Answer A) are used for parallel cables. The RJ-11 jacks and plugs (Answer C) are used for phone connections/modems. The 15-pin D-shells (Answer D) are used for game ports (two rows) or VGA (three rows).

Answer: D. The recommended maximum length of an RS-232 cable is 50 feet (15 meters). However, some references use 100 feet as the acceptable length of an RS-232C serial cable. Serial connections are tricky enough without problems generated by the cable being too long. Make the cable as short as possible.

Answer: C. The Universal Serial Bus (USB) provides a fast, flexible method of attaching up to 127 peripheral devices to the computer. The peripherals can be daisy chained, or networked together, using connection hubs that enable the bus to branch out through additional port connections.

Answer: D. Full-speed USB devices that operate under the USB 1.1 specification operates at 12 Mbps. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: B. Full-speed USB devices that operates under the USB 2.0 specification (also referred to as high-speed USB) support data rates up to 480 Mbps. USB 1.0 operates up to 12 Mbps. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: D. 1394, sometimes referred to as Firewire, can support up to 63 devices. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: D. The maximum distance for a single cable for USB 2.0 is 5 meters. Therefore, the other answers are incorrect.

Answer: B. RS-232, short for Recommended Standard 232, is a standard for serial binary data signals used in computer serial ports. Parallel ports (Answer A) use the IEEE 1284 standard. Firewire (Answer D) uses the IEEE 1394 interface. Answer C is incorrect because the USB uses its own standardization.

Answer: A. RJ-11 is a physical interface often used for terminating telephone wires. RJ-45 (Answer B) is a physical interface used for network cables such as Ethernet. RS-1284 (Answer C) and RS-90 (Answer D) do not exist.