Try 7 Real Questions From CompTIA A+ Core 1 (220-1201) - 700 Questions & Answers with Full Rationale
These are unedited questions from the full 700-question set, pulled from across every exam domain. Click a question to reveal the answer and the full rationale for every option, exactly as it appears in the PDF.
A technician needs to upgrade storage in a laptop. Which interface provides the FASTEST data transfer speeds?
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A: M.2 SATA uses the NVMe form factor but is still limited to SATA III speeds (~550 MB/s).
B: SATA III tops out at ~550 MB/s — fast for SATA but far below NVMe speeds.
C: USB 3.0 maxes at 5 Gbps (~625 MB/s) and adds external latency, making it slower than internal NVMe.
D (Correct): M.2 NVMe PCIe Gen 4 delivers up to 7,000+ MB/s sequential read — the fastest commonly available laptop storage interface.
Which port does HTTP use by default?
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A (Correct): HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) uses port 80 for unencrypted web traffic.
B: Port 443 is HTTPS (encrypted web traffic).
C: Port 21 is FTP control.
D: Port 8080 is a common alternative HTTP port used by proxies and development servers — not the default.
What is the PRIMARY function of a motherboard?
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A (Correct): The motherboard is the main circuit board providing sockets, slots, and buses that interconnect the CPU, RAM, storage, expansion cards, and peripherals.
B: AC to DC conversion is the PSU's job.
C: The OS is stored on a storage drive — not the motherboard.
D: Network connectivity is provided by a NIC — not the motherboard directly.
What does the CPU socket type determine?
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A: Maximum RAM is determined by the CPU memory controller and motherboard — not socket type alone.
B (Correct): The CPU socket (e.g., Intel LGA1700, AMD AM5) defines pin layout and electrical signaling, determining which CPUs are physically compatible.
C: PCIe slots are determined by chipset and motherboard layout — not socket type.
D: Storage interfaces depend on chipset — not socket type.
What is virtualization?
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A: Running separate OSes on separate hardware is just multiple machines — not virtualization.
B (Correct): Virtualization abstracts physical hardware resources (CPU, RAM, storage, network) and presents them to virtual machines, allowing multiple isolated environments on one host.
C: Data compression is a storage optimization — not virtualization.
D: Encryption is a security function — not virtualization.
What is the FIRST step in any professional troubleshooting process?
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A: Restoring from backup is a recovery action, not the first troubleshooting step.
B: Replacing components without understanding the problem wastes time and money.
C: OS reinstallation is a last resort, not the first response.
D (Correct): Identifying the problem — gathering details from the user, observing symptoms, and duplicating the issue — is essential before any fix is attempted.
After identifying the problem, what is the NEXT step in the troubleshooting methodology?
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A: Replacing all RAM is a drastic hardware action — not a methodical step.
B: Documentation is the final step after the solution is verified.
C: Implementing a solution before theorizing the cause may fix the wrong thing.
D (Correct): After identifying the problem, the next step is forming a theory about the probable cause based on symptoms, to guide targeted testing.
CompTIA A+ Core 1 (220-1201) - 700 Questions & Answers with Full Rationale — $19.99, instant PDF download with full rationale on every answer.
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