CompTIA A+ Core 1 (220-1201) PBQs

30 truly interactive simulations — clickable SVG motherboard, BIOS/UEFI tabs, RAID configurator, printer/cable hotspots, mobile/laptop hardware.

30 PBQs
10 GUI/Hotspot
4 Sim/Lab
4 Diag
12 DD/Form
Score: 0%
PBQ 1 Motherboard Build Lab — Install Components
20:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
SCENARIO
You are the bench tech at a custom-PC shop. A customer has dropped off the parts for a CAD workstation and asked you to do the full install on their new Z790 ATX motherboard. The kit on your bench:
  • 1 × Intel Core i9-13900K CPU
  • 2 × 16 GB DDR5-5200 DIMMs (must be in dual-channel — A2 + B2, or A1 + B1)
  • 1 × NVIDIA RTX 4080 GPU (double-slot, PCIe x16)
  • 1 × 2 TB Samsung 990 Pro NVMe SSD (M.2 2280)
  • 1 × 24-pin ATX main power harness
  • 1 × 8-pin EPS CPU power harness
  • 1 × CR2032 CMOS coin-cell battery

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Drag each part from the parts bin on the right into its correct slot on the motherboard. Slots glow yellow when you drag a part over them; correct placements snap green.
2. The DDR5 DIMMs must go in matching colored slots for dual-channel — if you populate adjacent slots (A1+A2 or B1+B2) the build will warn you.
3. When all 7 components are placed, click POST & Validate. The system will boot only if every required slot is filled correctly.
Z790 ATX MOTHERBOARD — SILK-SCREEN MARKINGS ONLY 1700-pin ZIF DIMM_A1 DIMM_A2 DIMM_B1 DIMM_B2 ATX_PWR1 ATX_12V PCIE1 PCIE2 (in use by chipset) M2_1 BAT1 PCH rear I/O shroud
Parts bin (slots labelled with silk-screen names only — identify by shape)
Core i9-13900K
16 GB module #1
16 GB module #2
RTX 4080
990 Pro 2 TB
24-pin harness
8-pin harness
CR2032 cell
Placed: 0 / 7
[bench] Drag each part from the bin onto its slot.
PBQ 2 AMI Aptio UEFI — live BIOS console
15:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
SCENARIO
A new Win 11 workstation has been built and is ready for OS install. The Win 11 ISO is on a UEFI-bootable USB stick. Before you can run setup the PC must pass Microsoft's hardware compatibility check (TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, UEFI), boot from the right device, and run VMs. The right-hand pane is a live Win 11 install readiness report — it re-evaluates after every BIOS field you touch. The boot order at the bottom shows the actual boot sequence the firmware will execute when you press F10 / Save & Exit.

INSTRUCTIONS: walk the Main / Advanced / Boot / Security tabs. Each setting flips a real flag on the right-hand readiness report. Boot Option #1 must point at the OS media you're using. Then press F10 — Save & Exit — the PC POSTs and either successfully launches Win 11 Setup, or you see the specific blocking message Microsoft would actually show.
AMI Aptio Setup — v 5.21 · Z790 boardF10 Save & Exit · ESC Discard
Main
Advanced
Boot
Security
05/10/2026
14:32:18
1.42.0
Intel Core i7-13700K @ 3.4 GHz
32768 MB DDR5-5200
Samsung 990 Pro 2 TB
Win 11 setup readiness
[   ] TPM 2.0 present & enabled
[   ] Secure Boot enabled
[   ] Boot Mode = UEFI (not Legacy/CSM)
[   ] CPU virtualization (VT-x) on
[   ] Boot order: USB media first
[   ] Admin password set
Boot sequence preview
1. (empty)
2. (empty)
PBQ 3 RAID Array Configurator
12:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Click disks to add them to the array. Pick a RAID level and stripe size. Goal: ~6 TB usable, can survive 1 disk failure, max read perf.
Available physical disks (click to select)
No array configured.
PBQ 4 Laser Printer — Diagnose & Repair
12:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
SCENARIO
An accounting firm has dispatched a service ticket on their HP LaserJet Pro M404dn. The user reports: "Every page comes out OK at first — then the toner rubs off when the page is handled, even hours later." The print is dark and sharp, paper feed is fine, no jams. You arrive on-site with a parts truck. Run the diagnostic workflow below: review symptoms, query the printer's status panel, run a calibration test, then choose the correct replacement part. Each step unlocks the next.

INSTRUCTIONS: Work through each numbered step in order. Click the buttons inside each step (e.g. "Open status panel", "Run calibration"). Pick the right replacement part in step 4. Click Confirm fix to validate.
HP LaserJet Pro M404dn · SN: VND4G3C09 · Floor 2 receptionService tech: you
User report: Toner smudges when finished pages are handled. Print is sharp and dark. No paper jams.
1 Initial questions for the user (pick which TWO clarifying questions you'd ask first)
2 Query printer status panel — identify the abnormal reading
3 Run calibration test — interpret the result
4 Order the correct replacement part
5 Install & verify with a test print
Printer telemetry
Page count
187,422
Toner level
82%
Drum life
76%
Fuser temp now
142°C
Fuser target
180°C
Fuser cycles
198,400
Last service
14 mo ago
Fuser life remaining3%
Toner level82%
PBQ 5 Cable / Port Identification
10:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Match each connector image to its name.
Connector names
USB-C
HDMI
DisplayPort
RJ45
RJ11
3.5mm TRS
Reversible oval, 24-pin, supports power+video
Trapezoid, 19-pin, common TV connector
L-shaped, 20-pin, video, has latch
8P8C, common Ethernet
6P4C, telephone
Round audio jack
PBQ 6 Laptop Hardware Swap
10:00Domain 1.0 Mobile
TASK
User wants to upgrade an old ThinkPad: more RAM (max 64 GB), NVMe SSD, replacement battery. Pick the right components.
PBQ 7 Wi-Fi Standards Selector
8:00Domain 2.0 Networking
TASK
Pick the most appropriate Wi-Fi generation for each scenario.
PBQ 8 Power Supply Wattage Calculator
10:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Add up component power, then pick a PSU with enough headroom (target ~70% load at peak).
ComponentWattsQty
CPU TDP (Core i9 K)2501
GPU (RTX 4080)3201
NVMe SSD82
Case fans (140mm)45
RAM (DDR5)44
Motherboard / chipset401
PBQ 9 Mobile Device Sync Settings
8:00Domain 1.0 Mobile
TASK
User's iPhone won't sync mail/calendar/contacts to corporate Exchange. Configure the right settings.
iOS — Mail / Accounts
PBQ 10 Network Printer Setup Wizard
8:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Add a network printer to a Win 11 PC: TCP/IP port, RAW protocol, port 9100, install OEM driver, set as default.
Add Printer Wizard
PBQ 11 Memory Failure Diagnostic
10:00Domain 5.0 Troubleshooting
TASK
PC reboots randomly with BSOD 0x0000004e PFN_LIST_CORRUPT. Memtest86 shows errors in DIMM slot A2. Pick the right next steps.
PBQ 12 Storage Failure Diagnostic
10:00Domain 5.0 Troubleshooting
TASK
SMART health for an HDD shows: Reallocated Sector Count = 234, Current Pending Sector Count = 19, UDMA CRC Error = 0. Identify and fix.
PBQ 13 Display Issue Diagnostic
10:00Domain 5.0 Troubleshooting
TASK
External monitor connected via HDMI shows "No Signal". Laptop screen works fine. Diagnose.
PBQ 14 Network Connectivity Diagnostic
10:00Domain 2.0 Networking
TASK
Workstation has IP 169.254.x.x. Internet broken.
PBQ 15 CPU Sockets vs CPUs
8:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Drag each CPU into its socket.
CPUs
Intel Core i9-13900K
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X
Intel Xeon Scalable
Apple M2 (SoC)
LGA 1700 (consumer Intel 12-14 gen)
AM5 (consumer AMD Ryzen 7000+)
LGA 4189 (server)
Soldered SoC (no socket)
PBQ 16 RAM Types DDR3/4/5
8:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Match each RAM module to its standard.
Modules
DDR3 1.5V 240-pin
DDR4 1.2V 288-pin
DDR5 1.1V 288-pin (PMIC)
SO-DIMM 260-pin
Old workstation, max 1866 MT/s
Mainstream desktop 2015-2022, 3200 MT/s
Modern desktop 2022+, on-DIMM voltage regulator
Laptop slim form factor
PBQ 17 Storage Interface
8:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Match the drive form factor to its interface.
Drives
2.5" SSD
M.2 NVMe
U.2 enterprise SSD
3.5" HDD
SATA III 6 Gbps
PCIe 4.0 x4 (NVMe)
2.5" hot-swap SAS/PCIe
SATA III spinning rust
PBQ 18 Display Connectors
8:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Match each connector to its capabilities.
Connectors
HDMI 2.1
DisplayPort 1.4
USB-C / Thunderbolt 4
DVI-D
4K 120 Hz HDR over single cable to TV
8K 60 Hz with DSC, gaming monitor
Reversible, 40 Gbps data + DP video alt mode
Older single-link 1920x1200 digital
PBQ 19 Cooling Solutions
8:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Pick the right cooler for each scenario.
Coolers
Stock heatsink + fan
Tower air cooler
240mm AIO liquid
Custom water loop
Passive heatsink
Office PC, 65W Intel non-K
Mid-range gaming, 125W K-series
Quiet 250W flagship, no big air clearance
Overclocked HEDT, multi-GPU
Silent HTPC with low TDP CPU
PBQ 20 Cloud Service Models
8:00Domain 4.0 Cloud
TASK
Match each scenario to its cloud service model.
Models
IaaS
PaaS
SaaS
DaaS
EC2 VMs, you manage OS, patches, runtime
Heroku / App Engine — push code, platform manages runtime
Microsoft 365 / Salesforce — fully hosted app
AWS WorkSpaces / Azure Virtual Desktop
PBQ 21 Virtualization Concepts
8:00Domain 4.0 Cloud
TASK
Map each component to its virtualization role.
Components
Hypervisor (Type 1)
Hypervisor (Type 2)
Virtual machine
Container
Bare-metal: ESXi, Hyper-V Server, KVM
Hosted: VirtualBox, VMware Workstation
Full guest OS with virtual hardware
Lightweight, shares host kernel (Docker)
PBQ 22 Wireless Protocols
8:00Domain 1.0 Mobile
TASK
Match each protocol to its use.
Protocols
Bluetooth 5.x
NFC
LTE / 5G
GPS
Wireless headphones at 10m
Apple Pay tap, <4 cm
Cellular data, mobile broadband
Outdoor location/maps
PBQ 23 Mobile Connector Types
8:00Domain 1.0 Mobile
TASK
Match each phone connector to its device family.
Connectors
Lightning
USB-C
Micro USB-B
iPhone 5–14, AirPods Lightning
Modern Android, iPhone 15+, iPad Pro
Old Android phones / e-readers / cheap accessories
PBQ 24 Printer Types by Use Case
8:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Pick the right printer for each scenario.
Printers
Laser
Inkjet
Thermal
Impact (dot-matrix)
3D printer (FDM)
High-volume office docs, lowest cost per page
Color photo printing at home
Receipt printer at point of sale
Multi-part carbon copy invoices
Prototype plastic parts (PLA filament)
PBQ 25 Power Calculator
8:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Compute the answer for the build in PBQ 8 (sums you should have done).
PBQ 26 RAID Capacity Calculator
8:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Given 4 x 2 TB disks:
PBQ 27 SOHO Printer Sharing
8:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Share a USB printer attached to a Win 11 PC across the SOHO network.
PBQ 28 Cloud Sizing Scenario
8:00Domain 4.0 Cloud
TASK
Pick attributes for a hybrid e-commerce workload: bursty traffic, 50% off-peak, sensitive PII data on-prem only.
PBQ 29 Mobile MDM Enrollment
8:00Domain 1.0 Mobile
TASK
Enroll a corporate-issued iPhone into Microsoft Intune.
PBQ 30 Build-a-PC Checklist
12:00Domain 3.0 Hardware
TASK
Check every action that must happen during a desktop PC build.
PBQ 1/30
0% passed