Test your basic knowledge |

Comptia A + Certification

Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Aka virtual file allocation table.






2. A socket for a PGA CPU that has a retention lever as well as contacts to match the number of pins on the CPU. The lever is used to attach the CPU to the socket in a manner that does not require force to insert or to remove the CPU.






3. On a motherboard - the type and location of components - as well as the size of the board itself.






4. Fiber-optic cable that allows only a single light wave to pass down the cable.






5. A local bus designed for video only - it provides a direct link between the processor and the video card - giving the video card direct access to main memory.






6. The successor to the Mini PCI. It has a 64-bit data bus and is half the size of a Mini PCI Card.






7. A special terminating stick that must be inserted into the open RIMM sockets.






8. Aka Scalable Link Interface.






9. A DVD of any type that can store data on both sides of the disc.






10. In a CPU - special memory that resides within the CPU's core and is used to temporarily store instructions and data in order to increase the processing speed. Also called L1 cache.






11. Unsolicited messages sent over an instant messaging service - such as Windows Messenger.






12. Aka Encrypting File System (EFS).






13. Audio connectors that use a 1/8" single pin plug.






14. A drive that can write once to a special CD-R disc.






15. In telecommunications - a technique that combines multiple messages or signals onto a single transmission channel.






16. A device that stores a large amount of information - even when it is powered off.






17. A power-usage level.






18. A process applied to digitally signed code to unencrypt the signature data and use the information to verify the program code was not modified since the signature was added.






19. In Windows - a security account that contains one or more local user accounts - and when a computer is a member of a Windows domain - may also contain domain user or group accounts.






20. A magnetic storage device that contains a thin internal plastic disk - capable of receiving magnetic charges contained in the thin magnetic coating on the disk.






21. Aka root key.






22. A wireless standard for using radio waves to communicate between devices. Class 3 Bluetooth devices (the most common) communicate at distances up to one meter.






23. Aka adapter card.






24. A network that covers a metropolitan area - usually using high-speed fiber-optic cable (operating in the gigabits-per-second range).






25. A disk type introduced with Windows 2000 that contains space allocated in volumes without the limits imposed on basic disks. On a dynamic disk - the number of volumes are unlimited - and a volume can extend to include available space on any hard disk






26. A type of solid-state storage that is commonly used in a variety of devices - such as digital cameras.






27. The term used for dynamic space allocation that can be formatted with a file system.






28. A parallel port mode in which the signals can be transmitted in both directions between the PC and parallel devices connected to the computer.






29. Aka internal cache memory.






30. The area at the beginning of a disk formatted with the FAT file system. This area contains the boot record - FAT table - and root directory.






31. In reference to IDE PATA drives - the slave drive on the first channel.






32. A small group of computers communicating wirelessly with one another without the use of a centralized wireless access point (WAP).






33. The location where a cable attaches to a computer. Alternatively - a connector on a motherboard for memory - CPUs - power - or other circuitry.






34. In the Windows registry - a folder that may contain one or more sets of settings as well as other keys.






35. A joke program that produces strange behavior - such as screen distortions - erratic cursor behavior - or strange icons to appear on the screen.






36. A device that converts DC current to AC. An inverter is required in a laptop to provide the AC current required by the display.






37. Electrically erasable programmable ROM. A ROM chip that is erasable using an electrical charge.






38. The "activity" status light on a NIC that indicates data is being transmitted.






39. A mark on a building created by a war driver to specify where a hotspot exists. People "in the know" look for these marks to identify hotspots for their use.






40. Aka System Information.






41. An external serial bus standardized by the IEEE. Apple first developed it as FireWire. Other manufacturers call it i.link or Lynx. It can support up to 63 daisy-chained devices. Since the introduction of the faster update - IEEE 1394b - the original






42. The practice of applying a digital signature to device driver code.






43. The type of battery used in the first portable PCs - which was heavy and inefficient.






44. In fiber-optics - a single light wave passing down a cable.






45. A set of skills - behaviors - and attitudes to use when listening to another person.






46. A memory error-checking method in which the parity bit is used to ensure that the total number of 1s in the data stream is odd.






47. A special substance - also called thermal paste or heat sink compound - that increases the heat conductivity between a fan or heat sink and a chip.






48. In Windows Vista and Windows 7 - an Advanced Options menu choice that starts Windows normally - except that the video mode is changed to the lowest resolution - using the currently installed video driver. This option does not switch to the basic Wind






49. A parallel port mode that has the same performance as ECP but is used with parallel devices other than printers and scanners.






50. Encrypted data placed in a file to guard against tampering.