Chapter 1: Motherboards, Processors, and Memory

You are assembling a new computer and are looking at new cooling systems. Which of the following cooling systems requires the use of a pump? A. Liquid B. Thermal paste C. Heat sink D. Heat sink plus fan

A. Liquid cooling systems require a reservoir of liquid and a pump to circulate the liquid. It's possible that the system could malfunction, causing a mess inside the computer. Thermal paste is used to adhere a heat sink to a processor. Heat sinks and fans do not use pumps.

Your Core i5 fan has a four-pin connector, but your motherboard only has a single threepin header with the CPU_FAN label. Which of the following will be the easiest solution to get the necessary cooling for your CPU? A. Plug the four-pin connector into the three-pin header. B. Buy a four-pin to three-pin adapter. C. Leave the plug disconnected and use only the heat sink. D. Add an extra chassis fan.

A. The easiest solution that works to cool your CPU is to connect the four-pin connector into the three-pin header. The missing pin allows you to control the speed of the fan. Without it, the fan will run at top speed, which is fine, albeit a little noisier. There is no four-pin to three-pin power adapter. The heat sink alone should not be relied upon for proper cooling of modern CPUs, and an extra chassis fan isn't designed to specifically help cool the CPU.

1. Which computer component contains all the circuitry necessary for other components or devices to communicate with one another? A. Motherboard B. CPU C. RAM D. Expansion bus

A. The spine of the computer is the system board, otherwise known as the motherboard. All other computer components plug into the motherboard. On the motherboard, you will find the CPU, underlying circuitry, expansion slots, video components, RAM slots, and various other chips

Intel and AMD have integrated which of the following into their Atom and APU processor lines that had not been integrated before? A. GPU B. Math coprocessor C. FSB D. RAM controller

A. These CPUs integrate the graphics processing unit (GPU). The Core i7 before them integrated the memory controller, eliminating the FSB. Math coprocessors have been integrated since the 80486DX.

You are training new technicians to install RAM and pointing out differences between packages. Which of the following are the numbers of pins that can be found on DIMM modules used in desktop motherboards? (Choose two.) A. 180 B. 184 C. 200 D. 204 E. 232 F. 240

B, F. DIMMs used in desktop motherboard applications have one of four possible pin counts. SDR SDRAM is implemented on 168-pin modules. DDR SDRAM is implemented on 184-pin modules. DDR2 and DDR3 are implemented on 240-pin modules with different keying, and DDR4 DIMMs have 288 pins. Older dual-channel DIMM modules have 232 pins. Modules with 200 and 204 pins are used in the SODIMM line, and there are no modules with 180 pins

You have just found out that a new BIOS upgrade exists for your computer, and you obtain a copy to install it. Which of the following is most helpful when flashing the BIOS on a desktop computer system? A. DVD-ROM B. Uninterruptable power supply C. Internet connection D. Windows administrator password

B. None of the options are required, but a UPS is by far the most helpful among the answers in that loss of power during this procedure can range from annoying to devastating.

A technician asks you how to get a computer's processor to run faster than it currently does. What is he trying to achieve? A. Hyperthreading B. Overclocking C. Virtualization D. Multicore support

B. Overclocking is when someone sets the speed of the processor to run faster than it was rated for. While overclocking can make a computer faster, it can also cause the processor to overheat, and it voids the warranty. Hyperthreading allows for a processor core to handle multiple processes simultaneously. Virtualization is when you create multiple virtual machines on a computer. Multicore means that the processor has more than one core—it's not a configurable option.

You need to install a new video card into a desktop computer. What type of expansion slot is preferred today for high-performance graphics adapters? A. AGP B. PCIe C. PCI D. SATA

B. PCIe is the newest and fastest slot for video cards. AGP and PCI are legacy technologies. SATA is for hard drives.

You need to replace memory in a desktop PC and to go purchase RAM. When you are at the store, you need to find the appropriate type of memory. What memory chips would you find on a stick of PC3-16000? A. DDR-2000 B. DDR3-2000 C. DDR3-1600 D. PC3-2000

B. Remember the 8:1 rule. Modules greater than but not including SDR SDRAM are named with a number eight times larger than the number used to name the chips on the module. The initials PC are used to describe the module; the initials DDR are used for the chips; and a single-digit number after PC and DDR is used to represent the level of DDR. The lack of a single-digit number represents DDR as long as the number that is present is greater than 133 (such as PC1600). Otherwise, you're dealing with SDR (such as PC133). This means that PC3-16000 modules are DDR3 modules and are populated with chips named DDR3 and a number that is one-eighth of the module's numeric code: 2000.

You press the front power button on a computer and the system boots. Later, you press it briefly and the system hibernates. When you press it again, the system resumes. You press and hold the button and the system shuts down. What is this feature called? A. Programmable power B. Soft power C. Relay power D. Hot power

B. Soft power is the feature whereby the front power button acts as a relay to initiate various system power changes, depending on the duration that the button is held. Programmable power, relay power, and hot power are not valid power options.

You have just replaced a processor in a computer and now need to add a cooling mechanism. What should you use to attach the cooling system to the processor? A. Heat sink B. Thermal paste C. Fan D. Superglue

B. Thermal paste is used to attach heat sinks and fans to processors. A heat sink usually gets attached to the processor using thermal paste, and then the fan is attached to the heat sink. Superglue would make it adhere, but it does not transfer heat properly—it would likely melt and cause a mess.

You are installing a new computer, and the user wants to use virtualization. Which two hardware components need to support virtual technology for this to work properly? (Choose two.) A. RAM B. Motherboard C. CPU D. BIOS

C, D. For virtualization to work, both the CPU and BIOS need to support it. The operating system does as well. Virtualization support may need to be manually enabled in the BIOS. RAM does not need to support virtualization, and neither does the motherboard (except for the BIOS).

You are told by a technician over the phone that you need to bring replacement DDR SDRAM memory. What type of packaging is used for DDR SDRAM memory? A. 168-pin DIMM B. 224-pin DIMM C. 184-pin DIMM D. 240-pin DIMM

C. DDR SDRAM is manufactured on a 184-pin DIMM. DIMMs with 168 pins were used for SDR SDRAM. 224-pin DIMMs do not exist. DIMMs with 240 pins are used for DDR2 and DDR3 SDRAM.

You have just purchased a motherboard that has an LGA 1156 socket for an Intel Pentium processor. What type of memory modules will you most likely need for this motherboard? A. DIP B. SIMM C. DIMM D. SODIMM

C. Pentium processors in a desktop always use DIMMs. DIPs and SIMMs are earlier forms of memory that have been obsolete for many years. SODIMMs are used in laptops

You are replacing a motherboard in a computer that uses an AMD Ryzen 3 processor. Which CPU socket type do you need to ensure that the motherboard has? A. AM2 B. AM3 C. AM4 D. LGA 1151

C. The AMD Ryzen 3, Ryzen 5, and Ryzen 7 CPUs use Socket AM4. AM2 and AM3 are used for older processors, such as the Phenom II, Athlon II, Sempron, and Opteron. Any socket that starts with LGA in its socket name is for Intel processors.

A motherboard failed on a desktop PC with an Intel Core i7-8700K processor. When looking for a replacement motherboard, which CPU socket does it need to have? A. LGA 1366 B. LGA 1150 C. LGA 1151 D. LGA 2066

C. The Core i7-8700K is a Coffee Lake-series processor, which uses the LGA 1151 socket. LGA 1150 sockets are for older i7s, and the LGA 1366 socket is for even older ones than that. The LGA 2066 socket is for processors with a capital X at the end of their model number.

You are installing a new video card into a PCIe slot. What is the combined total throughput of a PCIe 2.0 x16 slot? A. 500 MBps B. 1 GBps C. 16 GBps D. 32 GBps

C. The PCIe 1.1 specification provided 250 MBps of throughput per lane per direction. With the 2.x versions of PCIe, this rate was doubled to 500 MBps. As a result, each v2.0 lane is capable of a combined 1GBps. A x16 slot consists of 16 lanes, for a total bidirectional throughput of 16 GBps.

Which of the following allows you to perform the most complete restart of the computer without removing power? A. Start ➢ Restart B. Start ➢ Hibernate C. Reset button D. Power button

C. The reset button causes the computer to return to nearly the same point it is in when you power it on, but without the need for power cycling. Using Restart in the Start menu does not reboot as deeply as the reset button. Hibernation is a power state that completely removes power after saving the contents of RAM to the hard drive; pressing the power button is required to resume the session in the same manner as starting the computer after a complete shutdown. The power button cannot be used as a method of restarting the system.

You find out that a disgruntled ex-employee's computer has a boot password that must be entered before the operating system is ever loaded. There is also a password preventing your access to the BIOS utility. Which of the following motherboard components can most likely be used to return the computer to a state that will allow you to boot the system without knowing the password? A. Cable header B. Power reset connector C. Toggle switch D. Jumper

D. Most motherboards have a jumper or similar momentary closure mechanism that will allow you to clear the CMOS memory of any user settings and cause the BIOS to use factory defaults, including no user or supervisor passwords.

A client wants you to build a new PC for her, with a smaller case and lower power requirements. When selecting a motherboard, which form factor should you choose for a smaller size and lower power consumption? A. ATX B. AT C. Micro ATX D. ITX

D. The ITX motherboard family consists of smaller boards that fit in standard or miniature cases and use less power than their larger counterparts. ATX are "standard" sized motherboards in today's world. AT is a legacy form factor that was bigger than ATX. Micro ATX is smaller than ATX, but larger than ITX motherboards.

You will encounter performance-based questions on the A+ exams. The questions on the exam require you to perform a specific task, and you will be graded on whether or not you were able to complete the task. The following requires you to think creatively in order to measure how well you understand this chapter's topics. You may or may not see similar questions on the actual A+ exams. To see how your answer compares to the authors', refer to Appendix B. You have been asked to remove a dual in-line memory module and insert one with a larger capacity in its place. Describe the process for doing so.

Here is how to remove a DIMM and replace it with another one: 1. Pull the tabs on either end of the DIMM away from the DIMM. 2. Pull the loose DIMM straight out of the slot and away from the motherboard. 3. Ensure that the locking tabs are completely opened and out of the way of the slot. 4. Align the module's notch with the tab or tabs in the slot. 5. Insert the new DIMM straight down into the slot. 6. Apply firm and even pressure downward until the locking tabs automatically snap into place. 7. Nudge the tabs inward toward the module to make sure that they are tight.

Identify the component each arrow points to in the following image of an ATX motherboard.

The components are labeled in the following illustration