FINAL EXAM CHAPTERS 1-10 IT Essentials August 2008

1.3.2 What type of power connector is used to connect optical devices and hard

drives? Molex

What type of connector is used to connect floppy drives? Berg

1.4.1 In general, the Northbridge controls access to the RAM, video card, and the

speeds at which the CPU can communicate with them.

The Southbridge, in most cases, allows the CPU to communicate with the hard

drives, sound card, USB ports, and other I/O ports.

1.4.5 What hardware device will allow multiple hard drives to be connected with Fault

Tolerance? raid controller

1.4.6 Identify the following devices:

floppy disk hard drive CD-ROM flash drive

1.4.7 What type of power connector is used to connect optical devices and hard

drives? molex What type of connector is used to connect floppy drives? berg

1.5 Firewire and USB are two examples of devices that are hot-swappable, which
means they may be plugged in and out without turning off power.

1.5 What are the data transfer rates of both 1394a and 1394b?

1394a 400Mbps

1394b in excess of 800Mbps

1.5 DVI has a 24-pin female connector or a 29-pin female connector and provides a
compressed digital output to a monitor. DVI-I provides both analog and digital
signals. DVI-D provides digital signals only.

1.8 IRQs are used by computer components to request information from the CPU.

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2.1.2 Power conditions:
Spike - sudden increase in voltage that lasts for a very short period and exceeds
100% of the normal voltage on a line.

Power Surge- dramatic increase in voltage above the normal flow of electrical
current.
Brownout - reduced voltage level of AC power that lasts for a period of time;
occurs when the power line voltage drops below 80% of the normal voltage level.

Noise - interference from generators or electromagnetic influences resulting in

unclean power.

Blackout - complete loss of AC power.

2.2.2 The following are some software tools for use in maintaining disk drives:

Fdisk or Disk Management – these are used to create and delete partitions on a
hard drive.

Format – this is used to prepare a hard drive partition to store information.

System File Checker (SFC) – this is a command-line utility that scans the
operating system critical files and replaces any files that are corrupted.

Chkdsk or Scandisk – these are used to check the integrity of files and folders
on a hard drive by scanning the disk surface for physical errors.

Disk Cleanup – this is used to clear space on a hard drive by searching for files
that can be safely deleted.

Defrag – this is used to optimize space on a hard drive to allow faster access to
programs and data.

2.3.4 What is the proper cleaning material for each of the following?

Monitor Screen distilled water and a soft cloth

Monitor Case mild cleaning solution

LCD Screen no ammoniated glass cleaners or harsh chemicals

Computer Case mild cleaning solution

Component Contacts isopropyl alcohol

Keyboard compressed air

Mouse compressed air inside, glass cleaner outside

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3.7.2 Cables that connect hard, floppy and CD ROM drives are generically called

ribbon cables because they are long and flat. To identify which side of the cable

aligns with Pin 1 on a connector, a stripe is on the side of the cable designated

for Pin-1. What indication will you have if you install the floppy cable backwards?

The drive light stays on all the time.

3.8.2 Identify the two port types shown in this diagram:

USB Ethernet

3.9.1 When a computer is first turned on, it performs a process called POST, which

checks the hardware for functionality. If a faulty component is identified, the

computer indicates which device failed by displaying an error or beep code.

3.9.2 The computer executes a series of commands as it ‘wakes up’ that are stored in

a special chip called the CMOS. Through this same read-only chip, you may

make changes to the boot order, system time, hardware interfaces and several

other settings. The computer stores startup configuration in a special chip called

CMOS, sometimes kept ‘alive’ with a battery.

5.4.1 When creating partitions on a hard drive, you have the option of creating: 4

primary partitions, 1 extended partition, and 23 logical partitions. So . . . if

technician needs to configure the hard drive on a computer so that there appears

to be one drive for the operating system and four drives for data from different

applications. How can the hard drive be configured to provide this perception?

Create one primary partition and an extended partition with four logical

drives within it.

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5.4.2 DOS and early Windows systems used 16 bit and 32 bit file-indexing systems

designated as FAT16 and FAT32. Starting with Windows ‘New Technology’, a

more secure file system was introduced, NTFS.

5.4.7 When a Windows XP computer has completed the POST for each adapter card

that has a BIOS, what is the next step during the boot sequence?

BIOS reads the Master Boot Record (MBR)

5.5.5 NTBackup should be run before upgrading the operating system.

5.6.2 A user can set a system restore point that may be used to return the computer to

that operational point in case of a later failure of a driver or program installation

such as a Windows update.

5.6.2 Windows 2000 offers the ability to create an Emergency Repair Disk (ERD) that

saves critical boot files and configuration information necessary to troubleshoot

problems in Windows. Windows XP offers the same features with the

Automated System Record (ASR) wizard.

5.7 The first step in trying to troubleshoot a computer hardware or software problem

is to gather data from the customer. Use that information to verify obvious

issues and implement quick fixes. If that is not successful, use the Device

Manager to verify that each hardware component is functioning properly.

6.2.1 Describe the following indicators on the outside of a laptop:

Bluetooth Battery Status Standy

6.2.1 One of the most commonly used battery technology for use in laptops is Lithium-

ion; it is also used because it gives long lasting performance, is cost effective

and has no ‘recharging memory’.

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6.2.2

battery status hard drive activity wireless activity

6.2.3 A laptop may be placed into a device called a docking station that will allow it to

utilize external monitors, keyboard, mouse, printers and networks without having

to make each connection individually.

6.3.2 What device was specifically designed for use in laptops to use less power and

generate less heat? CPU

6.3.3 The operating system can control power management through Advanced

Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI), a feature that must be enabled

within the system BIOS.

6.4.1 In Windows XP, there is a 3-step process to access the power settings section of

the O/S. The steps are Start > Control Panel > Power Options.

6.4.1 What power management control can be used to improve battery life?

Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI)

6.4.1 There are primarily two modes of minimizing power usage without shutting down

the computer completely. These two modes are:

Hibernate - The CPU and RAM are off. The contents have been saved to a

temporary file on the hard disk, and the applications the user was working on are

left open.

Standby – The CPU is off, and the RAM to a slow refresh rate.

6.4.2 Unless a device is designated as hot-swappable, before adding or removing it

you should unplug the power cord or remove the battery.

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6.4.2 Place the following steps in the correct order for removing a hot-swappable
device:

2 Left click the device to be removed.

4 Remove the device
3 A message tells you it is safe to remove the device.
1 Left click the ‘Safely Remove Hardware’ icon in the System Tray.

6.6.1 You suspect that excessive heat is causing intermittent failures of a laptop

computer system. What basic preventive maintenance process should you do to

help relieve this problem? clean the fan and ventilation ports

6.7.1 List some quick solutions to try when troubleshooting a laptop.

a) reboot the computer

b) disconnect peripherals
c) check BIOS settings
d) use the last known good configuration option

6.7.1 If you add a USB hard drive to an external USB hub with several other devices

and the hard drive does not appear to function properly, what is the first thing to

try to verify that they hard drive is not at fault? try the new hard drive alone

7.1.1 Before purchasing a printer, several things should be considered: initial purchase

price, cost of paper and ink, price per page, maintenance costs and warranty

costs. These items combined form the TCO or Total Cost of Ownership.

7.1.3 Place the following laser printing steps in the proper order and identify a keyword
that describes each step in the process:

1 Cleaning Remove excess toner from the drum

2 Conditioning Negatively charge the drum to -600V to
remove latent images
3 Writing Use a laser to create an invisible image on
the drum
4 Developing Apply toner to the drum
5 Transferring Move the toner from the drum to the positively
charged paper
6 Fusing ‘Fix’ the image permanently onto the paper

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7.1.3 - Associate these characteristics with their printer types: Ink Jet, Laser, Solid Ink,
7.1.7 Impact or Thermal:

Vibrant color quality Solid Ink

Low initial cost Ink Jet
Uses continuous forms Impact
Expensive, sensitive paper Thermal
Wet after printing Ink Jet
High resolution B&W Laser
Uses inexpensive ink Ink Jet
Can print through carbons Impact
Few moving parts Thermal
High quality color Ink Jet
Uses toner Laser
Prone to clogging Ink Jet
Uses ink ‘sticks’ Solid Ink
Poor quality images Impact

7.3.1 A term that relates to the resolution capability of both printers and scanners is

DPI. What does DPI stand for? dots per inch

7.3.2 What three common office machines are combined in an all-in-one device?

printer, scanner and fax

7.3.3 To scan a book requires a flatbed scanner.

7.3.5 A very high-quality commercial scanner, typically used for photographs, is a

drum scanner

7.4.2 The best source for a new printer driver is the manufacturer.

7.6.1 Which things should be investigated first when troubleshooting a printer?

Equipment power
Low ink warning
Out of paper warning
Loose cable connections
Paper jams
Errors on equipment display
Errors on computer screen

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8.1.2 List some benefits of networking:

Fewer peripherals needed

Increased communication capabilities
Avoiding File Duplication and Corruption
Lower Cost Licensing
Centralized Administration
Conserving Resources

8.3.2 Describe the five classes of IP addresses:

Class A Large networks, implemented by large companies and some

countries
Class B Medium-sized networks, implemented by universities
Class C Small networks, implemented by ISP for customer
subscriptions
Class D Special use for multicasting
Class E Used for experimental testing

8.3.2 What are the default subnet masks for the following addresses?

Class A 255.0.0.0
Class B 255.255.0.0
Class C 255.255.255.0

8.3.3 Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is a software utility used to

dynamically assign IP addresses to network devices.

8.3.4 What protocol is used to connect securely to a remote computer? SSH

What protocol governs how files are exchanged on the WWW? HTTP
What protocol provides services for file transfer and manipulation? FTP
What protocol is used to download e-mail from a remote mail server? POP
What protocol is used to send e-mail to a remote e-mail server? SMTP

8.4.1 Which network device uses a MAC address table to segment the network?

switch

8.5.2 What is the logical topology used for the Ethernet architecture? bus

8.8.2 What are the seven layers of the OSI model, and what primarily occurs at each?

7 Application Network Services (Email, TFTP, DNS)

6 Presentation Compression, encryption, formatting
5 Session Establishes, Manages and Terminates
4 Transport Flow Control, Reliable Transport
3 Network IP addressing and path determination
2 Data Link Hardware addresses
1 Physical Media electrical/ physical specifications
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8.8.2 Logical addressing and routing function at which layer of the OSI model?

Network layer

8.8.3 Label the TCP/IP Layers as contrasted and compared to the OSI Model.

_____

8.9.2 A(n) default gateway is configured in a host on a network to indicate where

traffic for other networks should be sent. This information, along with the

computers IP address, can be found by using the ipconfig command. If you

can access devices on the same network but not on other networks, the wrong

default gateway is the most likely cause.

9.2.4 A DDos attack is conducted by many computers against one victim, and it is

often difficult to locate the sources.

9.2.4 A Ping of Death is a series of repeated, larger than normal pings that crash the

receiving computer. An E-mail Bomb is a large quantity of bulk e-mail that

overwhelms the e-mail server preventing users from accessing it.

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9.2.7 Spoofing is a process that involves impersonating another computer by
assuming their IP address, which makes data appear to come from a source
other than the actual source.

9.3.3 There are four major characteristics for secure passwords that should be
included in a security policy. They are:

1. should expire after a specific time period

2. uses upper and lower case, numbers, and punctuation or symbols
3. should not be written down
4. lockout rules should be defined

10.2 Know various ways to handle disgruntled (unhappy) customers.

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