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| If a computer powers down after it has been operating for a few minutes or a few hours, the problem might be caused by ____________________. |
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A system might have up to ____ types of ribbon cables.
Answer
Selected Answer: |
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| Three, but a system that uses SCSI may have more. |
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| ____________________ are generally used for Web browsing, e-mail, and word processing by users on the go |
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| The ____ interface between the subsystems in user mode and the HAL. |
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| A ____ is a single task, such as the task of printing a file, that the process requests from the kernel. |
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| A(n) ____ is the portion of an OS that relates to the user and to applications. |
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| A(n) ____ boot involves turning on the power with the on/off switch. |
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| The most reliable way to restore settings is to keep a written record of all the changes you make to ____. |
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| Has 1366 pins that touch pads on the processor |
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| Has 771 pins that touch pads on the processor |
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| Uses a dense micro PGA (mPGA) |
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| Key(s) to press during the boot process to access the AMI BIOS |
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| Key(s) to press during the boot process to access the Newer Phoenix BIOS |
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| Key(s) to press during the boot process to access the Dell computers using Phoenix BIOS |
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| The order in which the system tries to boot from certain devices |
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| Beginning with the Intel i800 series of chipsets, a(n) ____________________ is used to connect buses |
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| If the startup password has been enabled and set in BIOS setup, the startup BIOS asks for the password during the ____________________ just before the BIOS begins searching for an OS. |
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| At the beginning of the boot drive (usually drive C) is the OS ____ record. |
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| Motherboard settings are stored in a small amount of RAM located on the firmware chip and are called ____. |
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| Using only a tool built in to Windows, how can you find the amount of video RAM available to your video adapter card? Name the tool you would use, how to access the tool, and exactly how to use the tool to find that specific information. |
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| The tools name is System information utility. To access the sytem information utility, enter Msinfo32.exe in the Start box and press Enter. In windows xp use Start>Run then enter Msinfo32.exe. Under the System Summary select Components, then Display |
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| When the BIOS setup program is used to make changes to the default system configuration, where are those changes stored? Why? |
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| The changes are saved to CMOS RAM which is more easily writable than ROM BIOS. CMOS RAM is powered by a small battery, so that it retains its contents when the power to the system is off. |
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| The textbook calls the motherboard the "most important component" inside the case. Explain in your words why the motherboard is so important. |
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| The motherboard provides connections and communication pathways for the other components. |
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| Where does a computer system store the instructions required to communicate with the basic hardware during the early boot process? Why? |
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| Instructions for communicating with basic hardware are stored on the ROM BIOS chip so that they can be easily accessed during the boot process, long before the OS is loaded and drivers are launched. |
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| What is an operating system shell (in your words)? How is a shell different from a GUI? |
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| A shell is the part of the operating system that provides access to the OS and the hardware for users and applications. A GUI is one type of user interface that a shell may or may not provide. |
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| The motherboard, like all other components inside the computer case, should be ____ the chassis. |
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| Motherboards that support PCI Express and have the 24-pin P1 connector are sometimes called ____ boards. |
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| The ____ form factor is a major variation of ATX and addresses some technologies that have emerged since the original development of ATX. |
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| The ____ form factor was designed by Intel in 2003 for flexibility and can be used by everything from large tower systems to those ultrasmall-systems that sit under a monitor. |
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| Can have up to seven expansion slots |
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| Has up to four expansion slots |
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| None or one expansion slot |
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| Used in low-end systems with a riser card |
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| A MicroATX motherboard will fit into a case that follows the ATX ____________________ or higher standard. |
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| The size and shape of an expansion slot depend on the kind of ____________________ it uses. |
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| The OS ____ is responsible for interacting with hardware. |
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| When you turn on the power to a computer, the processor initializes itself and then searches for its first external instruction. Where is that instruction stored, and how does the processor find it? |
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| The processor turns to memory address FFF0h, which is the memory address always assigned to the first instruction in the ROM BIOS startup program. |
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| What determines the maximum amount of memory that a processor can theoretically address on a computer system? |
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| The width of the front side bus. |
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What is the full PC Rating of a DDR3 DIMM with a frequency of 2500 MHz?
(Note: DDR3 doesn't yet run at 2500 MHz. This question is hypothetical, designed to see if you understand how to do the PC rating calculation.) |
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| The PC rating is 8 bytes multiplied by the frequency, so 2500 MHz X 8 would be PC3-20000 |
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| With the i7 CPU, Intel moved the memory controller inside the CPU package. Explain why this location allows faster performance than the previous location of the memory controller. |
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| Previously, the memory controller was part of the North Bridge chipset. Data and instructions were transferred from DIMM's to the North Bridge and then to the processor. |
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| List the three different types of firmware programs found on the traditional ROM BIOS chip, and explain the purpose of each of them |
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Startup BIOS--instructions for the boot process
System BIOS--communicates with basic hardware before the OS and drivers are loaded
BIOS/CMOS setup program--provides an interface for changing configuration settings |
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| The two main components of the kernel are |
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HAL (Hardware Abstraction Layer), the layer closest to the hardware.
Executive Services interfaces between the subsystms in user mode and the HAL |
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| Executive services manage hardware by way of the ___ and ___ ___ |
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| A ___ is a program that is running along with the system resources assigned to it. |
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| 32 bit processors are known as |
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| Processors that use underlying 32 bit processing and64 bit instructions are called |
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x86-64.
AMD called the technology AMD64
Intel called it EM64T (Extended Memory 64 Technology. They can handle both 32 bit and 64 bit OS's |
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| What does Intel call their 64 bit processor technology? |
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| Provides detailed system information including details about hardware and software. |
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| System information utility. msinfo32.exe |
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| Variations of the ATX form factor include |
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Definition
Micro ATX, a smaller version of ATX.
Flex ATX, a smaller version of Micro ATX. |
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| This form factor has improvements over the ATX form factor and can have up to 7 expansion slots. |
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| Has up to 4 expansion slots |
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| One or no expansion slots |
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| Used in low-end systems with a riser card |
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| What 2 functions does a power supply perform. |
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Transformer, reduces the voltage of AC
Rectifier, converts AC to DC |
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| Materials used to make electrical components include |
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| conductors, insulators, and semiconductors |
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| A ___ is a gate or switch for an electrical signal |
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| A ___ holds an electrical charge. |
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| A ___ allows electricity to flow in one direction. |
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| A ___ limits electrical current. |
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| Important features of a power supply to consider include |
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Definition
form factor
number and type of connectors
voltage selector switch
fan size and position
on/off switch
wattage capacity
warranty |
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| Devices that control electricity to a computer include |
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Definition
| surge suppressors, line conditioners, and UPS's |
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| A faulty power supply can cause |
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Definition
| memory errors, data errors, system hangs, or reboots; it can damage the motherboard or other components. |
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| Startup BIOS controls the beginning of the boot by |
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Checking critical hardware components during POST
Looking at the boot priority order in CMOS RAM to find out which device will be used to load the OS |
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| The ___ is located ___ contains the partition table, which contains a map to partitions on the hard drive |
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| MBR (Master Boot Record) at the beginning of the hard drive |
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| The sector located after the MBR contains the |
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Definition
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| What is used to load the OS? |
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BootMgr (Vista)
Ntldr (XP) |
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| What might need to be updated to fix a problem with a motherboard component? |
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| Updating the ROM BIOS is called |
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| Programming code to manage POST, system BIOS, and to change BIOS settings. |
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| The BIOS setup program is used to change settings in |
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Definition
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| The three types of cache are |
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Definition
L1, located on the processor die.
L2, located off the die, but in the processor package.
L3, located farther from the core than L2. |
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| The memory controller can be located either in the ___ ___ or the ___ ___ ___ |
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Definition
processor package
north bridge chipset |
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| Intel calls technology that allows a processor to handle multiple threads in parallel ___. AMD calls this ___ |
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Hyper-threading
Hyper Transport |
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| On a 4 pin CPU cooler, what is the 4th pin used for |
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Definition
| speed control. It is called pulse width modulation. |
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