need help with few A+ core questions

[projector1]

am trying to pass my mock hardware exam and am struggling on a few questions

 

1 customer wants to connect two computers using a single cable. He has the following cables to hand

serial

parrellel

10base2

10baseF

Hi has very limited funds.

which of the cables can you use to complete the connection select two

i say serial and parrellel (but i do not know if the serial is a null modem cable)

 

2 you install a nic into a win98 pc, windows fails to recognise the card, device manager reports no conflicts but the card does not show

 

which of the of the following factors should you examine

 

the os

the control panel

the bios

the nic

 

i would say bios is plug and play enable, supported?

the control panel so you can try to add it using the add new hardware wizard

 

which method can you use to disable bus mastering

 

1 create a virtual disk

2 modify a cmos setting

3 edit the autexec.bat file

4 enable the level 1 cache

 

i would say cmos as thats where the hardware settings can be accessed

 

the cmos was reporting mismatch errors, the startup password was also forgotten and the cmos had to be cleared. A new battery was installed but the mismatch was still being reported.

 

what should you investigate first

 

battery voltage

presence of new hardware

system board jumper settings

availability of bios flash for the cmos

 

 

i would say the battery voltage as the user may have bought the incorrect one

although they may have installed some new hardware (stuck on this one)

 

i would apprciate some help to see if i am on the right track with my answers or explainations answers

[localzuk]

Wow! I didn't realise the A+ exams were so out of date!

 

As none of the connection methods in the list are particularly expensive but 2 are the standard ones I would choose Serial (assuming it is a null modem cable) and 10Base2 - you can pick up a nic with the bits for this for £10 at most and you actually get a network rather than a poor impression of a connection to the internet from the 80's.

 

The second question leaves out about 90% of the information that could actually give you a clue as to the answer. Is it a PCI card? Is it an ISA card (as it is win98 it is possible)? Is it PnP?

Personally, I would say to check the card to see if it is a plug and play card, check the bios to see if pnp is enabled/run the hardware discovery wizard for non pnp cards (so, 'the control panel' - whatever that vague reference means).

 

The third question is a little odd. From windows 98 you simply tick and untick a box in the properties for that IDE device. So I am guessing that they mean to use the autoexec.bat file. It may also be a hardware setting in the CMOS though - not sure...

 

The final question, I would check to see if the person had left the clear cmos settings jumper set to on. This would wipe the settings over and over AKAIK. Although, it could simply be a broken bios. However, this is another question that doesn't provide much detail... With such little detail, you could choose any of the 4 and be correct.

 

I think what they are getting at, is to make your choices and properly explain why you'd start there. But as I haven't taken an A+ (and won't be doing if that is what it is like!) I can't say for sure.

[ITWombat]

I think what they are getting at, is to make your choices and properly explain why you'd start there. But as I haven't taken an A+ (and won't be doing if that is what it is like!) I can't say for sure.

 

I think A+ is multiple choice so there is no room to explain and show your thiught process even if your answer is 'wrong'.

[localzuk]

Oh, ok. That sucks then.

[projector1]

hay many thanks for the input i have to pass the A+ before i can take start my mcse and with 12 months left i am deperate.

i have not worked with 10base2 cards, could you connect two pcs directly or would you need a "cross over cable" type of cable.

I know i keep failing on these questions.

[localzuk]

10base2 uses a BNC style connector with a coax lead. Computers are connected in a bus style. The cables connect to each computer using a T junction and the 2 ends of the bus are terminated using a terminator (a connector containing a resister 50 Ohm resister IIRC). The data rate is 10Mbit per second and the cable length between machines can be a maximum of 185 metres...

 

Just thought you'd like to know a little about it.

 

For a bit more info on it, take a look at wikipedia.

[Dos_Box]

hay many thanks for the input i have to pass the A+ before i can take start my mcse and with 12 months left i am deperate.

i have not worked with 10base2 cards, could you connect two pcs directly or would you need a "cross over cable" type of cable.

I know i keep failing on these questions.

 

If anyone has been working with 10base2 cards in the past 5 years I would be surprised. Some legacy kit may be out there, but it's hardly preparing you for the future is it?

[localzuk]

If anyone has been working with 10base2 cards in the past 5 years I would be surprised. Some legacy kit may be out there, but it's hardly preparing you for the future is it?

 

That is kinda my reaction to these questions in general. They seem like they would be good for a test 8 years ago but not today...

[webman]

I think A+ is multiple choice

 

Multiple guess

[SimpleSi]

I think you've come against a bad multiple choice test - as we all know - nothings rarely certain in computer fault diagnosis

 

But for the 1st question - is there a typo somewhere - should it read 10Base2 and 10Base5 ?

 

If so then these are the two answers I'd go for because neither require x-over connection cables (and they didn;t specify them for the serial and parallell cables in the question.

 

If it isn't a typo then I've no idea because I don't know if 10BaseF can be used point to point or not - it wasn't designed for it and I've never used it myself.

 

regards

 

Simon

[localzuk]

If it were 10base5 and not 10baseF I would still not choose it because the equipment, compared with serial and 10base2, is expensive. You need cards with the correct ports, the correct cable and transcievers. It is a fairly large amount of effort for networking to machines together...

[SimpleSi]

I was just trying to answer the stupid question - not give a recommendation

 

regards

 

Simon

[ChrisH]

Ive got a Cisco router with serial connections if you want it

[mattx]

I think you've come against a bad multiple choice test - as we all know - nothings rarely certain in computer fault diagnosis

 

Well said, after reading those questions I just shook my head and my only thought was about the stupid person who set them !!

General problem solving in IT is something you gain knowledge from through years of experience and working in the real world & getting your hands dirty. Not through some stupid multiple choice questions.

[projector1]

hay many thanks for the input i will donate £25 once i pass my exam as a way of saying thanks!

 

 

just another one i would like some views on,

 

you assemble a chain of scsi devices, you attempt to save a file to a scsi hard drive an it fails unexpectly, a user trys to save to a scsi hard drive but is unable to

 

i cannot work out if it is due to duplicate scsi id or termination, surely with termination none of the scsi devices would work (what is if there is only one..the scsi hdd)

[NetworkGeezer]

were those the only options?

[projector1]

the were a couple more, will post then when i get home

[localzuk]

I was just trying to answer the stupid question - not give a recommendation

 

Ah, but the question mentioned that they don't have much money... :-P

[bishopsgarthstockton]

A+ may seem out of date but it teaches you what our ancestors used and how it has changed over the last 25+ years. with knowing the foundation of how the old stuff works it helps you to understand how the new technology works today.

 

also as we all know everything old is new again...

 

cant see how the floppy disk will make a come back

[projector1]

were those the only options?

 

 

the options for the scsi question are

 

a resource conflict involving two or more scsi devices

b duplicate scsi di's

c incompatibility between the isa host adaptor and the pci slot

d an improper termination

[SimpleSi]

h, but the question mentioned that they don't have much money...

 

I missed that bit :oops:

 

I've got it - it must be the serial and parallel leads - you cut the cable with a pair of scissors and remake the cables in x-over config (just need some cellotape to insulate the wires )

 

Then use DCC in Win3.1 to network them

 

Zero cost option

 

regards

 

Simon

[projector1]

found it! the scsi issue is to do with termination.

http://searchwincomputing.techtarget.com/tip/0,289483,sid68_gci1152257,00.html

[RobC]

Hey guys - I'll post some proper feedback into this thread tomorrow (hopefully), but suffice to say that the A+ exam has been updated as of September 2006 so the newer exams get rid of all the legacy stuff and introduce things like SATA and PCI-E.

 

My current job actually involves teaching the A+ course, so if anyone has any questions regarding it, pm me and I'll see what I can do to help.

 

Cheers,

 

Rob Cowan.

[RobC]

Right, time to help as best I can:

 

1. Serial. You are correct in thinking that a serial cable for connecting two PCs is a Null Modem cable. Parallel is possible, but not generally the correct answer.

 

2. This could be one of two things, although given that the device is not showing in device manager, I would say Control Panel, which would take you to the Add New Hardware wizard. This is because if it was a PnP device, even if the BIOS wasn't set 100% correctly, it should still show up in device manager, just as an unknown device.

 

3. Modify CMOS setting. Bus mastering is the process which allows all of your PCI slots to share one IRQ, and is purely dealt with within the BIOS.

 

4. I would say System Board Jumper Settings. Most motherboards now (and for several years previous) have included a jumper which, when set correctly, will clear the CMOS. If this is left in the "Clear" position, no matter how many times you re-enter the settings, you will always find that they are ditched when you reboot. It could possibly be batter voltage, but you would take New Battery to mean that they have got the correct voltage. Also, hardware changes generally (although admittedly not always the case) don't give this sort of message.

 

Overall, these aren't the best A+ practise questions I have ever seen. Can I ask where you found them? As a personal recommendation, I would use the ProProfs website (http://www.proprofs.com) for your revision as they have a very good selection of practise questions, study guides, etc.

 

If anyone has any questions regarding any of the CompTIA or Microsoft exams/certs, feel free to PM me and I'll see what I can do to help.

 

Regards,

 

Rob Cowan.

[projector1]

RobC

i bow to you

1 serial and parrellel (cheapest option)

2 was as it is a pnp card make sure that the os and bios are pnp

3 cmos

4 system board as the users was messing with the mobo he may have left the cmos jumper in clear position

 

thanks

 

passed the mock 92% thanks