3.1 Troubleshooting Windows

Question 1

Where is the MBR always located?

Answer 1

In the first sector of the disk

Question 2

What does the UEFI check when doing a power on self-check?

Answer 2

GUID partition table

Question 3

What is the point of a power on self-check?

Answer 3

To verify that all the system components are working properly

Question 4

When it executes, which steps does bootmgr.exe perform?

Answer 4

• Reading the BCD file
• Reading files referred to by the BCD (WIM image and ramdisk SDI path)

Question 5

Which system file loads essential device drivers?

Answer 5

winload.exe

Question 6

Why could the GUI fail to load or a black screen appear?

Answer 6

Because the boot order was set incorrectly

Question 7

Which error would you get if the selected boot drive has no OS installed?

Answer 7

“No OS found”

Question 8

List the order of the first five files/processes to run when a PC is booted up

Answer 8

• bootmgr.exe
• winload.exe
• Kernel
• Hardware abstraction layer
• Boot device drivers

Question 9

Which command would you use to remove nonstandard code/fix corruption in the MBR?

Answer 9

bootrec /fixmbr

Question 10

bootrec /fixboot does what?

Answer 10

Writes a new boot sector to the system partition

Question 11

What bootrec command would you use if the boot sector is damaged?

Answer 11

bootrec/ fixboot

Question 12

If you see the startup message “bootmgr is missing,” which command might you run to fix this?

Answer 12

bootrec /rebuildbcd

Question 13

What tool would you use to mark the system partition as active?

Answer 13

Diskpart command

Question 14

List 3 different boot recovery tools

Answer 14

• Advanced Boot Options
• Startup Repair
• WinRE

Question 15

What could you do if problems were caused by a system update?

Answer 15

Rollback the update

Question 16

What does system restore do?

Answer 16

Allows you to create multiple different points to restore data to on your system

Question 17

Contrast a system restore vs a system reinstall

Answer 17

A system restore only restores the configs and files of the OS itself. A system reinstall puts an entirely new version of Windows on the device and does not carry over files (you would need a backup)

Question 18

System image

Answer 18

A snapshot of how a system is at any given point in time, including all files, apps, and installations

Question 19

Give 3 common hardware issues that may occur

Answer 19

Overhearting, power, processor

Question 20

Malfunctioning RAM could cause what errors during boot?

Answer 20

Kernel errors

Question 21

How to access the Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool?

Answer 21

Control panel > Windows tools > Memory diagnostic tool

Question 22

Where do you get the latest chipset/system drivers from?

Answer 22

The vendor’s website

Question 23

When should USB selective suspend be disabled and why?

Answer 23

When USB-connected devices are not being frequently used; to save power and prolong battery life

Question 24

What is a simple fix for an application crash?

Answer 24

Uninstall, reboot the PC, reinstall

Question 25

How can you register the DLL (dynamic link library)?

Answer 25

By using the Registry Server (regsvr32)

Question 26

List 4 services where their status can be checked through the Windows Services tool

Answer 26

- Filtering Service - Network Agent - Policy Server - User Service

Question 27

The real-time clock (RTC) is powered by what?

Answer 27

A battery on the motherboard

Question 28

What would be an indicator that the CMOS battery on the motherboard has died?

Answer 28

If the device is experiencing time drift

Question 29

How does RTC function?

Answer 29

As a battery-powered automatic clock fitted in a microchip of the motherboard

Question 30

How are the CMOS and the RTC connected?

Answer 30

The CMOS chip stores information and instructions about the components and system settings, including storing values for the RTC. They are two separate motherboard chips though.