Correct Answer:

Your data is the only thing that's completely irreplaceable! Always back it up.

Incorrect Answers:

Partitioning and/or formatting the drive would destroy your data.

Back up your current OS doesn't make sense, if you're performing an upgrade, there is a chance you have an older version on a disc somewhere anyway.

Correct Answer:

The key fact here is that the application worked in the past but doesn't work now. Given the choices you have, it's safe to assume that John possibly installed another program that created a problem with PowerPoint and that his best fix to this problem would be to restore the system to a time that PowerPoint was working.

Incorrect Answers:

Last Known Good is a fine answer, but not the best. Last Known Good is used when you have a driver or registry problem that prevents Windows from starting up.

Safe mode and Safe mode with networking are good answers as well, but with no drivers loaded in safe mode, it may be hard to troubleshoot this application-based problem.

Correct Answer:

Ask the customer open-ended questions to get closer to the underlying issue behind the PC that won’t boot. The script isn't working, so be creative. Open-ended questions give the customer space to speak and perhaps give the tech a clue about what might have happened to cause the current problem.

Incorrect Answers:

Tell the customer that she has a few more steps to try first, then follow the script as written for the troubleshooting steps. This option will most likely infuriate the customer!

Question the user more aggressively, because his frustration points to something he did that caused the problem. Don't get aggressive or confrontational with a customer.

Bump the customer up to Tier 3 tech support; that is, escalate the problem. Dana might have to do this later, but it's not the best next step.

Correct Answer:

A Zero-day virus is a virus that is so new and unheard of that no virus scanner has the definitions to be able to protect against it. The best thing to do when you have a computer that you suspect has a 0-day virus is unplugging it from the wall and wait for your favorite antivirus company to come up with a fix.

Incorrect Answers:

Running the antivirus update and then doing a full scan sounds like a great idea, but since this is a Zero-day virus, your virus scanner won't have any clue what to look for. Even the most recent virus definitions will be useless.

Turning off the computer using the power switch isn't bad, but it can be harmful to the computer if you abruptly turn it off. Besides, our main goal right now is to quarantine this thing.

Documenting the symptoms of the virus would be a great last step after you have cleaned it, of course.

Correct Answer:

EFS or Encrypted File System enables you to encrypt an image.

Incorrect Answers:

FAT, FAT32, and OSR are older file systems that do not include this function.

Correct Answer:

The "-t" switch tells the PING command to ping continuously.

Incorrect Answers:

The PING -n <number of times> switch tells the ping command to ping a certain number of times.

Time-to-live is a value that is reduced by 1 for every router hop. PING -I <TTL> display this information.

PING already pings 4 times; you don't need a switch for that.

Correct Answer:

To ensure that the computer boots to the installation media, the technician should check that the optical drive is at the top of the boot sequence.

Incorrect Answers:

A BIOS password is not a requirement for installing an operating system.

You don't need to upgrade your BIOS firmware to install Windows.

Configuring clock speeds won't help.

Correct Answers:

Windows Firewall does a good job automatically allowing known programs access to the network, but will stop programs it doesn’t know. Jim simply needs to create an exception for this program.

Incorrect Answers:

Turning off the firewall is both unsafe and unnecessary.

Deleting and reinstalling the application is not needed, and an application patch won't change Windows Firewall.

Correct Answer:

The first step in troubleshooting a Blue Screen of (technically known as a Windows Stop error) is to write down the entire error.

Incorrect Answer:

Once you've written down the entire error, then go through these other options as needed.

Correct Answer:

Bizarre, meaningless errors like this one are common in this business. Check the vendor documentation to see if there's a good answer to this problem.

Incorrect Answers:

Uninstalling/reinstalling the program or rebooting the PC might make the error go away, but it doesn't solve the problem.

Calling the help desk is time-consuming and should be considered a last resort.