220-1201 — Frequently Asked Questions

Community-vetted answers to 79 common questions about this exam.

Questions from real practice questions

Each Q&A comes from a specific community question — follow the link for its full analysis.

Why Do Copies and Scans Show a Vertical Line but Prints Do Not?

The drum is part of the print engine, so any defect on it marks every page the printer outputs — including normal print jobs and incoming faxes, which the scenario says are clean.

Dust, toner, or a scratch on the narrow ADF scan strip (or debris on the feed path) images as a repeating vertical streak on every page pulled through the feeder.

Why Does a Lightning Cable Only Charge When Flipped?

Because the cable works with other devices; flipping changes which port contacts engage, pointing to debris or a bent pin inside this device's port.

Yes. Debris or corrosion on one side can block contact in one orientation, so inspecting and cleaning the port often restores charging.

Which cable type is required above a drop ceiling in a plenum space?

STP reduces electromagnetic interference but its jacket is not necessarily rated for plenum air spaces; fire codes require low-smoke, flame-retardant CMP cable there.

Yes, the plenum requirement applies to the cable construction in that air-handling space, so fiber or coax must also carry the appropriate plenum listing.

What Characterizes a Type 2 Hypervisor?

Bare-metal describes Type 1 hypervisors like ESXi or Hyper-V, which install directly on hardware. A Type 2 hypervisor installs on top of a running OS instead.

They still need adequate CPU, RAM, and often VT-x/AMD-V for good performance, but those are general needs, not the defining trait that separates Type 2 from Type 1.

Why Does an External Monitor Only Duplicate the Laptop Screen?

A dock only adds ports and charging; the monitor is already detected and displaying an image, so the duplicate output is a display-mode setting, not a connectivity limitation.

Duplicate mirrors the same image on both screens, while Extend creates a separate desktop area on the second monitor so windows can be moved between them.

What Is the Purpose of NFC?

NFC is strictly one-to-one and requires near-contact range, so it cannot link many devices simultaneously. Multi-device wireless scenarios belong to Wi-Fi or Bluetooth instead.

Tap-to-pay card and phone payments, Amiibo tags, transit and access badges, and tapping to pair Bluetooth accessories all rely on NFC's few-centimeter range.

Which Component Most Likely Causes a Desktop PC Not to Turn On?

A RAM fault can stop POST or cause beeps, but fans and power LEDs usually still run because the PSU is delivering power.

A GPU usually causes no display while fans and lights still operate; complete silence points first to PSU or power delivery.

Which Task Resolves Repeated Printer Paper Jams?

Toner and ink affect image quality and density, not the paper path; repeated jams are caused by worn feed rollers, separation pads, or fuser parts.

No. A printhead swap addresses missing lines or clogged nozzles on inkjet output, while jams point to mechanical paper-feed wear that a maintenance kit resolves.

Why do styluses charge intermittently on identical tablets?

Many styluses charge inductively and must align with a magnetic charging point; thick, misaligned, or metallic cases can block that connection.

Identical tablets share the same hardware baseline, while user-purchased cases vary; a defect would tend to affect the fleet, not only some accessory setups.

Why Does Laser Printer Toner Wipe Off the Page After Printing?

The drum only carries the electrostatic image to attract toner; a bad drum causes streaks, ghosting or blank spots, not toner that transfers but never bonds.

The cartridge supplies toner but cannot melt it; only the fuser's heat and pressure make toner permanent, so a fresh cartridge changes nothing when fusing fails.

Which Wireless Frequency Penetrates Walls Best?

Lower frequencies have longer wavelengths, so they are absorbed and reflected less by dense building materials, giving 2.4 GHz greater reach through interior walls than 5 GHz or 6 GHz.

NFC's range is only a few centimeters, so it cannot pass through a wall and still connect; it is a tap technology, not a through-obstacle networking band like 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi.

Bluetooth Is an Example of Which Network Type?

A LAN spans a building or campus using Ethernet or Wi-Fi infrastructure; Bluetooth's roughly 10-meter personal bubble is classified as a WPAN, not a LAN.

SAN means storage area network, a dedicated high-speed network for block storage; it is unrelated to Bluetooth's short-range peripheral links.

Why Does Adding a Cloned Workstation Break Both Hosts' Network Access?

Both hosts answer ARP for the same address, so switches and peers send traffic to whichever machine replied last, causing intermittent loss for each of them.

A cabling fault affects only the host on that cable, whereas this failure appears only when the second workstation is powered on — the signature of an address conflict.

What Prevents a VM from Communicating with Network Endpoints?

No. A Type 1 hypervisor hosts VMs and provides virtual NICs and virtual switches, which normally enable connectivity rather than block it. Isolation must come from a sandbox or network configuration.

VDI delivers remote desktops over a network and depends on connectivity to a broker and backend systems, so it does not inherently isolate a VM from endpoints.

Which Cloud Model Exclusively Uses a Local Data Center?

Hybrid still uses public cloud resources alongside local ones, so it does not exclusively utilize a local data center as the question requires.

A community cloud is shared by multiple organizations with a common interest and is usually hosted by a third party, not exclusively in one organization's local data center.

Firewall Update Breaks Internet Access: Which Setting Is at Fault?

Printer and share traffic stays inside the local subnet, so it is delivered by MAC address via switching and never touches the gateway.

No. An incorrect mask usually breaks local delivery as well, because hosts misjudge whether a destination is on-link or must be sent to the gateway.

Single Dead Laptop Key: What Should the Technician Replace Next?

Laptop keys use a scissor mechanism over a rubber dome bonded to a membrane sheet, so there is no socketed switch. Swapping one means desoldering the membrane, which costs more than a new keyboard module.

Only when the cap itself is missing, cracked, or misaligned but the key still registers when pressed. Here the key has stopped working entirely, so the cap is not the fault.

How Do You Reset an Expired Domain Password While Working Remotely?

An admin reset does not give the remote laptop a route to a domain controller, so the user still cannot sign in; the missing piece is the VPN tunnel.

Wi-Fi only provides internet access. The laptop still needs an encrypted tunnel into the corporate network before it can contact a domain controller.

What to Do When a Laptop Smells Like Burning?

A return request is an administrative follow-up, not a diagnostic action; the technician must first eliminate the burning hazard and inspect for a cause such as liquid or internal damage.

Swapping adapters while the smell persists can continue feeding power to a shorted component; disconnect all power and inspect the laptop before testing any replacement adapter.

Which Update Fixes a Multifunction Printer's Scan-to-Email Issue?

The driver runs on the PC and mainly affects print communication; scan-to-email is executed by the MFP's embedded firmware, so a driver update does not repair the device-side feature.

No. An OS update changes the computer's operating system, not the printer's embedded firmware that handles scanning and email transmission.

PoE and Injectors for Data and Power

An AP is a device that connects wirelessly; it is an endpoint that often receives power via PoE, but it is not the mechanism that defines carrying power and data.

PoE is the IEEE standard/technology for transmitting power over Ethernet. An Injector is a physical device that implements this technology by combining power and data signals.

Replacement Storage Priority: Form Factor

NVMe is an interface/protocol. You must first verify the physical slot (form factor) exists and matches before checking if the drive uses NVMe.

No, spindle speeds (RPM) only apply to mechanical HDDs. SSDs have no moving parts, making form factor the universal first check.

Identifying Cable Location in Network Closet

A network tap monitors data traffic passing through a cable; it does not help you physically locate which cable corresponds to which port in a bundle.

A loopback plug is used to test if a network port is functioning correctly by looping signals back to themselves, not for identifying cable paths.

Troubleshooting Motherboard Replacement Failure

Beep codes are generated by the motherboard's BIOS/UEFI during POST. If the CPU lacks power, the motherboard cannot initialize the POST process to generate any signals.

Yes, if the PSU fails to deliver stable voltage on the +12V rail dedicated to the CPU, even while powering lower-load components like case fans.

PoE Switch for VoIP Phones

No, a standard switch only transmits data. Only a PoE-enabled switch can deliver the necessary electrical power over the Ethernet cable.

An injector adds PoE capability to a single port on a non-PoE switch, whereas a PoE switch has multiple ports that natively support power delivery.

Troubleshooting Workstation Shutdowns Under Load

RAM issues typically cause Blue Screens of Death (BSOD) or application crashes, whereas sudden power cuts are characteristic of thermal or power supply protection.

While possible, the prompt specifies 'CPU cooling' as an option. Thermal issues are more directly linked to 'running multiple applications' increasing CPU heat output than PSU failure alone.

Which storage interface offers the best read/write speeds?

SAS often uses controllers and protocols that introduce latency. NVMe connects directly to PCIe lanes, minimizing bottlenecks and maximizing speed.

No. SATA is limited by a maximum theoretical bandwidth of 6 Gbps, whereas NVMe can utilize multiple PCIe lanes offering tens of GB/s.

DHCP Reservation Using MAC Address

No. A static IP is configured manually on the device, while a reservation is configured on the DHCP server to always give that specific IP to the device's MAC.

An exclusion removes an IP address from the pool of available addresses so it cannot be assigned to any device, preventing conflicts.

Troubleshooting Cell Phone Internet Abroad

Wi-Fi is a local connection. The prompt specifies 'cell phone' connectivity abroad, implying a cellular data issue where roaming must be enabled.

Roaming settings primarily control data. Voice may work depending on carrier agreements, but data will definitely fail if roaming is off.

Diagnosing Intermittent Connectivity via Port Flapping

An offline server would prevent all users from connecting, not just those in one building. Since users in another building are fine, the server is online.

Port flapping is typically caused by faulty cables, damaged connectors, duplex mismatches, or unstable power to network equipment.

Which Is a Benefit of Application Virtualization?

Metered utilization refers to pay-as-you-go billing for consumed resources, which is a cloud computing characteristic (IaaS/PaaS/SaaS), not a functional outcome of virtualizing an application.

No. Latency depends on routing, distance, and bandwidth; isolating an application on the host has no effect on how fast packets travel across the network.

Which Technology Suffers Microwave Oven Interference?

Microwave ovens radiate near 2.45 GHz, while 6 GHz Wi-Fi lives much higher in the spectrum. There is no spectral overlap, so the oven's leakage cannot reach 6 GHz receivers.

NFC works at 13.56 MHz over a few centimeters and infrared uses light wavelengths, so neither shares any spectrum with a microwave oven's 2.45 GHz output.

Why Does a New Graphics Card Cause BSODs Only in Games?

Email barely loads the GPU, so a stressed or underpowered card stays within its power budget. Only 3D game rendering drives the card to its peak draw, exposing the power shortfall.

A thermal problem would show up after sustained CPU work or cause shutdowns/throttling. Here the crash is immediate and repeatable only when the GPU workload starts, which points to power delivery, not cooling.

Motherboard Selection for Intel Core i9 Video Editing and VR Builds

PCIe x1 slots are short, low-bandwidth connectors for cards like NICs or sound cards. Graphics cards for VR and video editing require full-length PCIe x16 slots with far greater bandwidth and physical clearance.

No. Core i9 platforms support DDR4 or DDR5 only. DDR3 has a different key notch and lower voltage/speed, so it is physically and electrically incompatible with i9 motherboards.

Containers as Disposable Platforms for Web Apps

IaaS provisions full virtual machines with an entire guest operating system that must be patched and maintained. That overhead exceeds a "bare minimum" deployment and slows the dispose-and-redeploy cycle compared to containers.

Desktop virtualization (VDI) delivers end-user desktop sessions to clients and focuses on security and manageability of workstations. It is not a mechanism for hosting and rapidly redeploying web application workloads.

Smartphone Dies Quickly Even When Plugged In

The phone does turn on and run briefly, so the cable is delivering power. A bad cable would block charging or cause intermittent cuts, not a steady few-minute run time before shutdown.

Malware can drain battery faster, but it would not typically shut a device down in minutes or prevent it from staying on while charging. That pattern points to a hardware battery fault.

Which Video Cable Carries an Analog Signal

Only DVI-I and DVI-A connectors can pass an analog signal as a compatibility feature. DVI is still classified as a digital interface, so VGA remains the correct analog answer.

HDMI uses digital TMDS signaling and USB-C carries video via digital DisplayPort Alt Mode or Thunderbolt, so neither transmits analog video.

Printer Alert Light and Pausing After Jobs

Driver problems cause garbled output or failed jobs, not a hardware alert light or repeated pauses. Other identical printers on the same network using the same drivers work fine, so the fault is device-local.

Use logs after physical checks pass and the device offers diagnostic data — for example, recurring error codes, intermittent connectivity drops, or memory/firmware faults. The question states the display provides no further information.

Blank Pages After Printer Firmware Update

The same users and documents print correctly on the older printer, proving the drivers are fine—the fault is isolated to the updated printer's firmware.

Which Connector Fits a Two-Pair Data Cable?

F-type is a coaxial connector with a single center conductor and shield, so it cannot terminate two twisted pairs of wires.

RJ11 seats four or six conductors, which covers the two-pair (four-wire) cabling described in the question.

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