CompTIA Updated 220-1201 Exam Questions and Answers by roan

CompTIA A+ highlights that swollen or expanding batteries especially lithium-ion batteries can physically warp the laptop chassis, keyboard, or trackpad. This happens when internal chemical reactions cause the battery to swell. Distorted keyboards, bulging trackpads, and lifted chassis panels are classic symptoms of battery failure.

RAM and HDD issues do not cause physical deformation. A broken keyboard may malfunction electronically, but it will not bulge upward unless forced by something underneath typically an expanding battery.

The A+ safety domain also warns technicians not to puncture swollen batteries and to replace them immediately due to fire hazards.

Therefore, a failing (swollen) laptop battery is the most likely cause.

The best answer is E. Subnet mask. With the current subnet mask of 255.255.255.0, the user’s IP address 192.168.1.10 is on the 192.168.1.0/24 network, while the default gateway 192.168.2.1 is on the 192.168.2.0/24 network. A host normally needs its default gateway to be reachable on the same local network. The Mike Meyers material explains that the subnet mask identifies the network ID and host ID, and every computer on a single LAN must have the same network ID. With 255.255.255.0, the first three octets define the network, so 192.168.1.x and 192.168.2.x are different networks. The NOC verified that the gateway value itself is correct, so changing the gateway would conflict with the verified next hop. DNS settings would affect name resolution, not access to all local and remote resources. Lease time and firewall rules are not indicated by the IP information. The subnet mask must be changed so the client and gateway are in the same local IP network.

GigabitEthernet interfaces are capable of 1000 Mbps, but the actual link speed is determined by negotiation between the switch port and the connected device, along with the quality/type of cabling. In this configuration, Sales and CustomerService ports are manually set to speed 1000 and duplex full, which forces gigabit operation. However, the Marketing port is set to speed auto and duplex auto. If the connected endpoint, patch cable, wall jack, or intermediate wiring for Marketing cannot support gigabit (or has a termination problem), the link may auto-negotiate down to 100 Mbps or 10 Mbps. That creates a clear performance bottleneck for that department compared to the other two ports running at 1 Gbps.

The IP addresses shown are consistent within the same /24 network and do not indicate an obvious addressing problem, so “incorrect IP addresses” is unlikely. “Subnet error” is not supported by the given config, and Cat 5e is generally capable of gigabit at typical distances, so “outdated” cable is not the best explanation from these choices. The most likely cause is Marketing running at 10/100 due to negotiation.