A change plan requires a verified recoverable backup before an in-place Windows upgrade. Which action must the technician complete before starting Setup?

Take a complete backup of user data and validate the backup is restorable.

Defragment the system drive to reclaim space and reduce upgrade time.

Disable Windows Defender to prevent the upgrade installer from being blocked.

Uninstall every third-party application from the workstation before starting the upgrade.

A legacy Windows application is documented to use the user's WinINet proxy settings. Which Internet Options configuration can direct that application's HTTP and HTTPS requests through the company proxy?

Configure the proxy in Internet Options under Connections and LAN settings for that user's WinINet context.

Edit C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts to add an entry mapping proxy.example.local to its IP.

Set HTTP_PROXY and HTTPS_PROXY environment variables in the user's PowerShell profile.

Restart the laptop so Windows detects and applies the corporate proxy automatically.

Which restricted Linux account file normally stores password hashes and password-aging fields?

/etc/passwd stores account fields; the access-restricted /etc/shadow normally stores password hashes and aging fields.

Both files store identical data and the split is purely historical with no security purpose.

/etc/shadow holds the usernames and /etc/passwd holds the password hashes, which is inverted.

/etc/passwd and /etc/shadow exist only on Windows, which actually uses the SAM registry hive instead.

A Microsoft Entra tenant uses passwords plus SMS codes. The firm wants to reduce PSTN risks and give its administrator and finance accounts phishing-resistant authentication. Which migration meets both goals?

Migrate general users from SMS to an authenticator app, and enroll administrator and finance accounts with FIDO2 or WebAuthn authenticators.

Remove MFA entirely and rely on strong passwords.

Switch to security questions as the second factor.

Switch from SMS to voice-call delivery of the same one-time code.

A technician at a regional architectural firm is hardening the management plane of a SOHO router. Which configuration set best protects the administrative web interface from external compromise?

Disable Internet-side remote management, restrict admin to the LAN only, enable HTTPS, and set a strong unique administrator password.

Enable Internet-side remote management on HTTP port 80 with the vendor's default credentials so the MSP can reach the device without a VPN.

Enable HTTPS for the admin interface but keep Internet-side remote management on with the default vendor administrator credentials for convenience.

Disable HTTPS on the admin interface and require all administrators to use HTTP only because HTTPS adds latency to administrative tasks at small offices.

Which built-in Windows feature provides full-volume encryption that protects data at rest if a laptop drive is removed and connected to another computer?

BitLocker drive encryption tied to the platform TPM and a recovery key escrowed in the directory.

EFS file system encryption applied selectively to documents inside a user profile folder.

Windows Defender Firewall with the domain profile enforced through Group Policy on the workstation.

User Account Control configured at the always-notify level for the local user profile.

A Windows 11 workstation became sluggish when its first large OneDrive sync began. Which reversible test best checks whether sync activity is creating the resource bottleneck?

Pause OneDrive sync briefly, compare Resource Monitor activity, then resume sync and address the measured bottleneck.

Disable Microsoft Defender Antivirus entirely so it stops competing with OneDrive sync for the disk.

Stop syncing OneDrive permanently and tell the user to use SharePoint web browser access instead.

Reformat the workstation and reinstall Windows from scratch without further investigation of the cause.

A technician sees several tickets with the same symptom and a reusable resolution. What is the best documentation response?

Create an internal KB article and consider problem management if recurrence warrants root-cause investigation.

Keep solving each new ticket from scratch without writing any documentation down for the team.

Tell users to stop using Outlook so the recurring password prompt issue eventually goes away.

Mark all future similar tickets as won't-fix since the same issue keeps repeating across users.

A team uses a pre-approved, repeatable procedure for a low-risk quarterly endpoint configuration deployment. Which change type fits best?

Execute as standard change referencing the pre-approved catalog entry and procedure.

Submit a full normal-change request to CAB for review and approval every quarter.

Skip the change record because the procedure is routine and well-known to the team.

Treat as emergency change to ensure signatures deploy to all endpoints the same day.

While troubleshooting, a technician sees unrelated confidential files on the customer's desktop. What should the technician do?

Do not read or move the documents; complete the work and avoid drawing attention to the materials present.

Read the documents quickly to determine whether they reveal an unrelated security issue at the client site.

Photograph the documents for the MSP records so the technician can prove they were present during the visit.

Move the documents to a public reception area where any visitor or other employee can find them later.

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CompTIA A+
Core 2 practice test

Free practice test

Free CompTIA A+ Core 2 (220-1202) practice test

RTJ is an IT certification platform that starts with CompTIA A+, Network+ and Security+.

This free CompTIA A+ Core 2 (220-1202) practice test has 10 questions that cover all 4 Core 2 domains. Pick an answer to see whether it is right and why. No account, no timer.

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0 of 10 answered

Question 1 of 10 · Operating Systems
A change plan requires a verified recoverable backup before an in-place Windows upgrade. Which action must the technician complete before starting Setup?
A. Defragment the system drive to reclaim space and reduce upgrade time.B. Disable Windows Defender to prevent the upgrade installer from being blocked.C. Take a complete backup of user data and validate the backup is restorable.D. Uninstall every third-party application from the workstation before starting the upgrade.
Answer and explanation
Right answer: C. Take a complete backup of user data and validate the backup is restorable.
The scenario's approved change plan explicitly requires a verified recovery copy. That makes verifying the backup the required first action without presenting one backup rule as universal for every installation context.
Objective C2-1.2: OS Installations and Upgrades
Question 2 of 10 · Operating Systems
A legacy Windows application is documented to use the user's WinINet proxy settings. Which Internet Options configuration can direct that application's HTTP and HTTPS requests through the company proxy?
A. Edit C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts to add an entry mapping proxy.example.local to its IP.B. Set HTTP_PROXY and HTTPS_PROXY environment variables in the user's PowerShell profile.C. Restart the laptop so Windows detects and applies the corporate proxy automatically.D. Configure the proxy in Internet Options under Connections and LAN settings for that user's WinINet context.
Answer and explanation
Right answer: D. Configure the proxy in Internet Options under Connections and LAN settings for that user's WinINet context.
Internet Options configures WinINet proxy settings used by applications that opt into that stack. WinHTTP and applications with their own networking configuration can use different settings, so the application scope is stated explicitly.
Objective C2-1.6: Windows Settings
Question 3 of 10 · Operating Systems
Which restricted Linux account file normally stores password hashes and password-aging fields?
A. Both files store identical data and the split is purely historical with no security purpose.B. /etc/shadow holds the usernames and /etc/passwd holds the password hashes, which is inverted.C. /etc/passwd stores account fields; the access-restricted /etc/shadow normally stores password hashes and aging fields.D. /etc/passwd and /etc/shadow exist only on Windows, which actually uses the SAM registry hive instead.
Answer and explanation
Right answer: C. /etc/passwd stores account fields; the access-restricted /etc/shadow normally stores password hashes and aging fields.
Linux shadow-password documentation places password hashes and aging fields in /etc/shadow. Access is restricted according to the system's ownership and permissions; describing it as universally readable only by root is too absolute.
Objective C2-1.9: Linux
Question 4 of 10 · Security
A Microsoft Entra tenant uses passwords plus SMS codes. The firm wants to reduce PSTN risks and give its administrator and finance accounts phishing-resistant authentication. Which migration meets both goals?
A. Remove MFA entirely and rely on strong passwords.B. Switch to security questions as the second factor.C. Migrate general users from SMS to an authenticator app, and enroll administrator and finance accounts with FIDO2 or WebAuthn authenticators.D. Switch from SMS to voice-call delivery of the same one-time code.
Answer and explanation
Right answer: C. Migrate general users from SMS to an authenticator app, and enroll administrator and finance accounts with FIDO2 or WebAuthn authenticators.
NIST treats PSTN-based out-of-band authentication as restricted. App-based OTP avoids the PSTN delivery path, while correctly deployed FIDO2 or WebAuthn authenticators can provide phishing resistance for higher-impact accounts.
Objective C2-2.1: Security Measures
Question 5 of 10 · Security
A technician at a regional architectural firm is hardening the management plane of a SOHO router. Which configuration set best protects the administrative web interface from external compromise?
A. Disable Internet-side remote management, restrict admin to the LAN only, enable HTTPS, and set a strong unique administrator password.B. Enable Internet-side remote management on HTTP port 80 with the vendor's default credentials so the MSP can reach the device without a VPN.C. Enable HTTPS for the admin interface but keep Internet-side remote management on with the default vendor administrator credentials for convenience.D. Disable HTTPS on the admin interface and require all administrators to use HTTP only because HTTPS adds latency to administrative tasks at small offices.
Answer and explanation
Right answer: A. Disable Internet-side remote management, restrict admin to the LAN only, enable HTTPS, and set a strong unique administrator password.
Disabling Internet-side remote management removes direct WAN exposure. Restricting administration to trusted internal access, using HTTPS, and replacing default credentials with a strong unique administrator password further harden the interface. If remote administration is required, use a protected path such as a VPN and restrict authorized sources. Change the administrator password if compromise is suspected or the credential is exposed; routine arbitrary rotation is not required.
Objective C2-2.10: SOHO Network Security
Question 6 of 10 · Security
Which built-in Windows feature provides full-volume encryption that protects data at rest if a laptop drive is removed and connected to another computer?
A. EFS file system encryption applied selectively to documents inside a user profile folder.B. Windows Defender Firewall with the domain profile enforced through Group Policy on the workstation.C. User Account Control configured at the always-notify level for the local user profile.D. BitLocker drive encryption tied to the platform TPM and a recovery key escrowed in the directory.
Answer and explanation
Right answer: D. BitLocker drive encryption tied to the platform TPM and a recovery key escrowed in the directory.
BitLocker encrypts entire Windows volumes and mitigates unauthorized access when a drive is transferred to another device. With a TPM protector, normal unlocking is tied to the original platform; authorized recovery can use an escrowed recovery key. EFS encrypts selected files, Windows Defender Firewall controls network traffic, and User Account Control governs elevation prompts.
Objective C2-2.7: Workstation Hardening
Question 7 of 10 · Software Troubleshooting
A Windows 11 workstation became sluggish when its first large OneDrive sync began. Which reversible test best checks whether sync activity is creating the resource bottleneck?
A. Pause OneDrive sync briefly, compare Resource Monitor activity, then resume sync and address the measured bottleneck.B. Disable Microsoft Defender Antivirus entirely so it stops competing with OneDrive sync for the disk.C. Stop syncing OneDrive permanently and tell the user to use SharePoint web browser access instead.D. Reformat the workstation and reinstall Windows from scratch without further investigation of the cause.
Answer and explanation
Right answer: A. Pause OneDrive sync briefly, compare Resource Monitor activity, then resume sync and address the measured bottleneck.
Pause and resume provides a reversible comparison, while Resource Monitor identifies the resource that changes with sync activity. The result supports a targeted next step such as allowing the initial sync to finish, reducing approved sync scope, checking network capacity, or following Microsoft's OneDrive reset guidance. Do not add a broad Defender exclusion merely to improve performance because an exclusion reduces scanning coverage.
Objective C2-3.1: Troubleshoot Windows OS
Question 8 of 10 · Operational Procedures
A technician sees several tickets with the same symptom and a reusable resolution. What is the best documentation response?
A. Create an internal KB article and consider problem management if recurrence warrants root-cause investigation.B. Keep solving each new ticket from scratch without writing any documentation down for the team.C. Tell users to stop using Outlook so the recurring password prompt issue eventually goes away.D. Mark all future similar tickets as won't-fix since the same issue keeps repeating across users.
Answer and explanation
Right answer: A. Create an internal KB article and consider problem management if recurrence warrants root-cause investigation.
Document the verified symptoms, resolution, and validation in an internal KB article so other technicians can reuse it. Link related tickets when useful. If evidence suggests a recurring underlying cause, follow the organization's problem-management process. Do not invent a cause from the symptom or turn a one-off fix into an SOP automatically.
Objective C2-4.1: Documentation
Question 9 of 10 · Operational Procedures
A team uses a pre-approved, repeatable procedure for a low-risk quarterly endpoint configuration deployment. Which change type fits best?
A. Submit a full normal-change request to CAB for review and approval every quarter.B. Execute as standard change referencing the pre-approved catalog entry and procedure.C. Skip the change record because the procedure is routine and well-known to the team.D. Treat as emergency change to ensure signatures deploy to all endpoints the same day.
Answer and explanation
Right answer: B. Execute as standard change referencing the pre-approved catalog entry and procedure.
A standard change is a low-risk, well-understood activity executed through a pre-authorized procedure. The frequency alone does not make it standard, and the procedure must stay within its approved scope.
Objective C2-4.2: Change Management
Question 10 of 10 · Operational Procedures
While troubleshooting, a technician sees unrelated confidential files on the customer's desktop. What should the technician do?
A. Do not read or move the documents; complete the work and avoid drawing attention to the materials present.B. Read the documents quickly to determine whether they reveal an unrelated security issue at the client site.C. Photograph the documents for the MSP records so the technician can prove they were present during the visit.D. Move the documents to a public reception area where any visitor or other employee can find them later.
Answer and explanation
Right answer: A. Do not read or move the documents; complete the work and avoid drawing attention to the materials present.
Use the minimum access needed for the support task, avoid browsing or sharing unrelated material, and preserve confidentiality. If something observed creates a required safety, security, legal, or policy response, stop and follow the approved escalation path rather than applying a blanket 'never mention it' rule.
Objective C2-4.7: Communication and Professionalism

What does the CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam cover?

Core 2 (220-1202) covers 4 domains, and this sample draws questions from each:

Domain C2-1.0: Operating Systems (3 questions)
Domain C2-2.0: Security (3 questions)
Domain C2-3.0: Software Troubleshooting (1 question)
Domain C2-4.0: Operational Procedures (3 questions)

CompTIA decides what is on the exam. Read the official 220-1202 objectives on CompTIA's A+ page, then use RTJ's objective-by-objective guides and practice to work through them.

How does the full practice exam work?

RTJ's full-length practice exam runs 90 questions in 90 minutes, with performance-based questions mixed in and a per-domain breakdown when you finish. A free account includes one full-length practice exam per certification track, and paid plans remove that cap. The format is RTJ's own interface, not CompTIA's or Pearson VUE's.

Where do these questions come from?

They are RTJ's own questions, written to the published A+ 220-1202 objectives. RTJ drafts questions with AI assistance, and the AI policy explains how. If you find a mistake, report it on the corrections page. The sample is a fixed pick, so the same 10 questions show every time you visit.

Questions

Is this the real CompTIA A+ Core 2 exam?+

No. It is a short practice sample written by RTJ to the published 220-1202 objectives. It is not CompTIA's exam, it does not use CompTIA's questions, and its result says nothing about how you would score on exam day.

Is the practice test really free?+

Yes. The 10 questions on this page need no account and nothing is saved or sent. A free account adds one full-length timed practice exam per certification track.

Does a high score on this sample mean I will pass?+

No. 10 questions cannot measure readiness for a full certification exam. RTJ's own Mastery Index is an internal, uncalibrated study signal built from many questions, and it is not a pass prediction either.

Where are the official CompTIA A+ Core 2 objectives?+

CompTIA publishes the 220-1202 exam objectives on its own site, which is the source to follow for what the exam covers. RTJ's study guides and questions are written against those objectives and carry the objective number.

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CompTIA A+ on RTJThe objective map, study guides, labs and the practice exam for both cores.
The full-length practice exam90 questions in 90 minutes, with performance-based questions and a per-domain breakdown.
How the Mastery Index worksAn uncalibrated study signal, shown with its evidence quality. Not a pass predictor.
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