5.1.3 Practice Questions Storage Devices

Which of the following is not an advantage of SSDs over HDDs?

Inexpensive Explanation Solid State Drives (SDDs) are generally more expensive than hard disk drives (HDDs). Some advantages of SSDs over HDDs include the following: They are faster They have no moving parts so they last longer. They have lower power consumption. They are less susceptible to physical damage (from dropping) and immune from magnetic fields. They are smaller and lighter.

A flash device and storage capacity similar to a small hard drive.

Solid state drive (SSD)

Faster than other devices. No moving parts. Last longer than other storage devices.

Solid state drive (SSD)

Which of the following are magnetic storage devices?

Tape drive Hard disk Explanation The following are magnetic storage devices: A hard disk is a thick magnetic disk encases in a thicker protective shell. A tape drive (also called a digital linear tape or DLT drive) stores data on magnetic tapes similar to audio cassette tapes. Optical discs such as CDs and DVDs use lasers for both reading and writing information. Flash devices store information using programmable, non-volatile flash memory. Solid state drives are flash devices with a storage capacity similar to a small hard drive.

Which of the following is typically used for large data backups of servers?

DLT tape Explanation DLT tape systems are used primarily for backups. The large storage capacity of these systems make them ideal for server backups. CD-R and DVD-R do not provide sufficient storage capacity for server backups. RAID is a data protection method that preserves data on hard disks if one disk in a set fails. It is not considered a back mechanism.

Which storage device uses magnetic film or aluminum platters for storing data?

Hard disk Explanation Hard disks use magnetic disks and platters. Optical drives such as DVD or CD-ROM drives, use a reflective surface that is read by an optical reader. Flash devices such as SD cards store information using programmable, non-volatile flash memory. DLT drives use magnetic tape.

You need a storage device that has very large storage capacity, is fast and is relatively inexpensive. Which storage device will best suit your needs?

Hard disk Explanation A hard disk has a large memory capacity, is fast, and is relatively inexpensive. Optical disks are also inexpensive, but are not as fast and do not provide the storage capacity of hard disks. USB flash drives are not as inexpensive as hard disks with equal storage capacity and are not available with the capacity as the larger hard disks. Solid State Drives (SSD) have a large memory capacity and are fast, but are much more expensive than comparable hard drives.

A thick magnetic disk made of aluminum platters. Uses read/write heads to access data stored on the platters.

Hard disk drive (HDD)

Up to several TB in storage capacity and cost per MB is cheap.

Hard disk drive (HDD)

Explanation

Hard disk drives (HDD) are thick magnetic disks made of aluminum platters, They use read/write heads to access data stored on the platters. They have up to several TB in storage capacity and their cost per MB is cheap. Solid state drive (SSD) is a flash device with storage capacity similar to a small hard drive. They are faster than other devices. They have no moving parts and last longer than other storage devices. Optical discs use lasers to read and write information that is stored in the form of pits in their reflective coating. They are ideal for storing and playing music and video. They are portable and cheap and have a long shelf life.

Which of the following are advantages of solid state storage compared to hard drives?

No moving parts. Lower power requirements Explanation Solid state drives have the following advantages when compare to hard disk drives: They have lower power consumption. They have no moving parts (and hence less prone to failure) They are faster They are less susceptible to physical damage (from dropping) They are smaller and lighter. They are smaller and lighter. They use standard SATA disk interfaces. The storage capacity for SSDs is small in comparison to HDDs. SSDs are several times more expensive than comparable HDDs.

What method does an eMMC card use for storing data?

Non-volatile memory chips. Explanation Flash devices store information using programmable, non-volatile flash memory. Common flash devices are eMMC, SD, SSD, MiniSD, MicroSD, memory sticks, and USB thumb drives. DLT drives use magnetic tape. Hard disks use magnetic disks and platters. Optical drives use a reflective surface and optical readers.

Ideal for music and video. Portable and cheap with a long shelf life.

Optical disc

Uses lasers to read and write information stored in the form of pits in their reflective coating.

Optical disc

What method does an SDHC card use for storing data?

Reprogammable memory Explanation Flash devices store information using programmable, non-volatile flash memory. Common flash devices are MMC, SD, SDHC, and XD memory cards as well as USB thumb drives. DLT drivers use magnetic tape. Hard disks and floppy disks use magnetic disks and platters. Optical drives use a reflective surface and optical readers.