Worth 23% of the CompTIA A+ (Core 1) (220-1201) exam. CertClue has 103 questions on this objective.
Core 1 keeps IPv6 fairly light: know the address length and notation, why it exists, and how to tell a link-local address from a global one. There is no broadcast in IPv6.
Exam tip. If you see fe80:: in an answer, treat it exactly as you would APIPA: the interface is up, but it has not received routable configuration.
Port numbers are among the most heavily tested facts on Core 1. You need the number, the protocol name, whether it is TCP or UDP, and crucially which secure port replaces which insecure one.
Exam tip. Learn the insecure-to-secure pairs as pairs. Many questions do not ask for a port directly - they describe clear-text credentials and ask what to use instead.
Know what each device does and, more importantly, at which OSI layer it operates. Most wrong answers on hardware questions are devices that work at the wrong layer for the described problem.
Exam tip. If a scenario mentions two different subnets that must talk, the answer involves a router regardless of how much switching hardware is described.
Wireless questions test the tradeoff between range and throughput, and the practical detail that only three 2.4 GHz channels do not overlap. Know the modern naming as well as the old 802.11 letters.
Exam tip. Channels 1, 6 and 11 appear constantly. If a question describes neighbouring access points interfering on 2.4 GHz, the fix is almost always to move them onto those three channels.
Address questions usually give you a symptom and an address, and expect you to read the address and diagnose the cause. Recognising an APIPA address on sight is the single most valuable skill here.
Exam tip. An address starting 169.254 is never a working configuration. It always means the client asked for DHCP and got no reply - check the cable, the switch port, then the DHCP server.
Network type questions are pure vocabulary and are easy marks. The differentiator is geographic scope, with SAN being the exception defined by purpose rather than size.
Exam tip. SAN is the odd one out. If a question describes servers accessing shared block-level storage, the answer is SAN even though the distance is small.
Objective 2.2 asks you to summarise services provided by networked hosts. Match the described function to the server role, and know which services are internal infrastructure versus internet-facing.
Exam tip. Read the failure symptom, not the technology list. Names failing while IPs work is always DNS; nothing working at all after a reboot with a 169.254 address is always DHCP.
Small office and home office setup covers the practical hardening steps every technician should take, plus the specific features that make services reachable from outside. Know the difference between port forwarding and a DMZ host.
Exam tip. DMZ host is almost always the wrong answer when port forwarding would do. Choose the option that opens the least.
Cabling questions test maximum lengths, which category supports which speed, and when fibre becomes necessary. The 100 metre limit for twisted pair is the most tested single number in this domain.
Exam tip. Any distance beyond 100 m rules out every copper option immediately, no matter which category is offered. Single-mode for long distance, multi-mode for in-building.
You may be shown a connector or given a description and asked to name it or match it to a medium. Group them by the medium they serve and the confusable pairs stop being confusing.
Exam tip. RJ11 versus RJ45 is a guaranteed easy mark: count the pins or note the width. If the question mentions a phone line or DSL, it is RJ11.
Free, with the answer and the reasoning. No account needed.
1. Which type of network typically covers a single home, office, or building, connecting local devices like computers and printers?
A LAN covers a limited local area such as a home, office, or single building. A WAN spans a much larger geographic area like connecting multiple cities, a PAN covers a very small personal space like Bluetooth devices around one person, and a MAN spans a metropolitan area like a city.
2. A technician needs to allow secure remote command-line access to a Linux server through the firewall. Which port should be opened?
Port 22 is used by SSH (Secure Shell), which provides encrypted remote command-line access. Port 23 is Telnet, which is unencrypted, and ports 80/443 are for HTTP/HTTPS web traffic, not remote shell access.
The full CompTIA A+ (Core 1) bank, the study notes behind these summaries, and a readiness score that tells you which objective to revise next. Free, no paid tier.
Take the free CompTIA A+ (Core 1) practice test