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CompTIA Server+ (SK0-005) practice questions

213 free questions with answers and explanations.

Practice test
  1. 51.A server administrator is conducting a routine audit of server licenses. The audit reveals that a particular operating system is installed on 15 virtual machines, but the organization only possesses 10 licenses for that OS. The licensing agreement states that each VM instance requires a separate license. What is the immediate action the administrator must take to ensure compliance?Server Administration
  2. 52.A server administrator is designing a new server infrastructure for a high-traffic e-commerce application. To ensure continuous availability and resilience against single points of failure, the administrator plans to deploy multiple application servers and database servers. Which server administration concept is primarily being addressed by this design?Server Administration
  3. 53.A server administrator is tasked with decommissioning an old server that contains sensitive customer data, including credit card numbers and personal identifiable information (PII). The company policy dictates that all data must be irretrievably erased before the server leaves the premises. Which of the following methods BEST ensures data sanitization in compliance with this policy?Server Administration
  4. 54.A technician is installing several new 2.5-inch solid-state drives (SSDs) into a server. The server's motherboard supports both SATA and SAS connections. The SSDs are intended for a high-performance database cluster. Which cable type should the technician use to connect these SSDs to the server's HBA for optimal performance and enterprise-grade reliability?Server Hardware Installation and Management
  5. 55.A server administrator receives an alert that a server's disk I/O utilization is consistently at 100%, causing applications to be extremely slow and unresponsive. Further investigation reveals that a single logical drive, part of a RAID 5 array, is showing high read/write latency. All other drives in the array appear healthy according to the RAID controller's utility. What is the MOST likely cause of this issue?Troubleshooting
  6. 56.A server administrator is trying to establish a remote desktop connection to a Windows server, but the connection repeatedly fails with an error indicating that the remote desktop service is unavailable. The server is powered on and accessible via ping. Which of the following is the MOST probable cause?Troubleshooting
  7. 57.A server administrator is investigating a critical application on a Windows Server that is intermittently failing to connect to its SQL database server. The application logs show 'Connection Timeout' errors. The SQL server is on a different subnet, but other applications on the same server can connect to other resources on the SQL server's subnet without issues. Basic `ping` and `telnet` to the SQL server's IP and port (1433) from the affected application server are successful. What is the MOST likely cause of the intermittent 'Connection Timeout' errors?Troubleshooting
  8. 58.A server administrator is trying to diagnose why a newly deployed virtualization host running ESXi is experiencing frequent, unexplainable crashes (Purple Screen of Death - PSOD). The server hardware was recently upgraded with new RAM modules from a different vendor than the original. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?Troubleshooting
  9. 59.A system administrator is setting up a highly available database cluster. The requirement is for the database to remain continuously accessible even if one of the database servers fails, with no data loss and minimal impact on application performance. Which type of database replication would best meet these demanding requirements?Security and Disaster Recovery
  10. 60.A server administrator needs to ensure that a newly deployed application server can only communicate with the database server on port 3306 and the web server on port 80 and 443. All other outbound and inbound traffic should be blocked by default. Which of the following network configuration practices should the administrator implement?Server Administration
  11. 61.A server administrator is trying to install a new operating system on a server, but the installation repeatedly fails during the disk partitioning phase. The server's BIOS/UEFI recognizes the hard drives, and the drives pass individual SMART tests. The server is configured with a hardware RAID controller, but the administrator suspects an issue with the RAID configuration itself, as no logical drives are presented to the OS installer. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?Troubleshooting
  12. 62.A server administrator is responsible for maintaining several Windows Server instances. To proactively identify potential issues, monitor system health, and review security-related events, which built-in Windows tool should the administrator primarily use?Server Administration
  13. 63.A server administrator is configuring network settings on a new Linux server. The server needs to act as a gateway for a private subnet, connect to the internet, and have its network configuration persist after reboots. Which file is typically modified to set a static IP address, subnet mask, gateway, and DNS servers on a Debian-based Linux distribution?Server Administration
  14. 64.A system administrator is tasked with implementing a highly available solution for a critical database server. The requirement is to have a geographically separate site that can take over operations with minimal data loss (RPO close to zero) and very fast recovery time (RTO in minutes) in case of a disaster at the primary site. Which disaster recovery site type would best meet these stringent requirements?Security and Disaster Recovery
  15. 65.A server administrator receives an alert that a critical Windows Server is experiencing extremely high disk I/O wait times, consistently above 90%, despite the CPU and memory utilization being well within normal limits. The server hosts several high-transaction databases. What is the MOST likely cause of this issue?Troubleshooting
  16. 66.A server administrator needs to install a new operating system on 20 identical physical servers located in a remote data center. Manual installation on each server would be time-consuming and prone to inconsistencies. Which of the following methods would be most efficient for deploying the OS while ensuring uniformity?Server Administration
  17. 67.A server administrator is investigating why a Windows Server 2022 system is experiencing extremely slow boot times and applications are taking an unusually long time to launch. The server's event logs show numerous warnings related to 'paging activity' and 'low virtual memory'. The server has 32GB of RAM installed. What is the MOST likely cause of these symptoms?Troubleshooting
  18. 68.A server administrator is migrating an existing physical server to a virtual machine (VM) on a new hypervisor. The physical server has an operating system, applications, and data that must be preserved exactly as they are. Which of the following virtualization techniques is being used in this scenario?Server Administration
  19. 69.A technician is performing routine maintenance on a server that hosts several virtual machines. During the process, the technician notices that the server's hardware RAID controller's management interface reports a 'Predictive Failure' warning for one of the drives in a RAID 10 array. All virtual machines are currently operating without issue. What is the MOST appropriate NEXT step for the technician?Troubleshooting
  20. 70.A server administrator is configuring a new web server running Linux. The server needs to host multiple domains, each with its own dedicated IP address, and serve HTTP content. The administrator also wants to ensure that the server's network configuration is persistent across reboots. Which of the following configuration adjustments is most appropriate?Server Administration
  21. 71.A server administrator is reviewing the current patching strategy for the company's critical production servers. The strategy involves applying all security and critical updates immediately upon release. While this ensures the highest level of security, it has led to several instances of application downtime due to unexpected compatibility issues. Which adjustment to the patching strategy would best balance security with stability for critical production systems?Server Administration
  22. 72.A server has four 1.8 TB SAS drives. The administrator wants to configure a RAID array that provides both high performance and fault tolerance, capable of surviving the failure of two drives without data loss. What is the maximum usable storage capacity for this array?Server Hardware Installation and Management
  23. 73.An organization is implementing a security policy that requires all communication between internal servers and external cloud services to be encrypted and authenticated. Which of the following protocols is best suited for establishing a secure, encrypted tunnel for this purpose?Security and Disaster Recovery
  24. 74.A server administrator is configuring a new web server running Apache on a Linux distribution. After installing Apache and attempting to start the service, the administrator receives an error message indicating that the service failed to start because 'the document root /var/www/html does not exist or is not a directory'. Which of the following is the MOST appropriate first step to resolve this issue?Troubleshooting
  25. 75.A server administrator is deploying a new web server on a Linux distribution. The server needs to have a consistent IP address, gateway, and DNS server configuration that persists across reboots without using a DHCP server. Which file should the administrator modify to configure these static network settings?Server Administration
  26. 76.A server is configured with a hardware RAID controller and multiple SAS drives. The server administrator notices that the RAID controller's status LED is blinking amber, and the controller's management utility reports a 'predicted drive failure' for one of the drives. The array is still operating in a healthy, redundant state. What action should the administrator take FIRST?Troubleshooting
  27. 77.A server administrator needs to ensure that a new server complies with company policy regarding software licensing. The policy states that all commercial software must have valid, current licenses and that open-source software usage must be documented. Which of the following administrative tasks directly supports this requirement?Server Administration
  28. 78.A server administrator needs to install a new operating system on a server that will use a 4TB hard drive. The administrator wants to ensure the server can boot directly from this drive and utilize its full capacity. Which partitioning scheme and boot mode combination should be selected during installation?Server Hardware Installation and Management
  29. 79.A technician is troubleshooting a server that is experiencing intermittent network connectivity issues. The server is connected via two Ethernet cables to separate switch ports. Upon inspection, one of the cable's latching clips is broken, and the cable feels loose in its port. The network interface card (NIC) link lights are sometimes off for that port. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the intermittent connectivity?Troubleshooting
  30. 80.A system administrator is troubleshooting a server that is experiencing intermittent network connectivity issues. After checking the physical connections and confirming the NIC is recognized by the OS, they notice high error rates reported by the network interface statistics, specifically an increasing number of 'late collisions'. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of this issue?Troubleshooting
  31. 81.A server administrator is configuring network settings for a new Debian-based Linux server. The server needs a static IP address, subnet mask, default gateway, and DNS server addresses. Which file should the administrator modify to configure these settings permanently?Server Administration
  32. 82.A server administrator needs to replace a failed power supply unit (PSU) in a production server. The server is equipped with redundant, hot-swappable PSUs. Which of the following is the MOST important safety precaution to take before physically removing the failed PSU?Server Hardware Installation and Management
  33. 83.A server manufacturer states that to reach the maximum supported RAM capacity of 3TB across 24 DIMM slots, only a specific type of memory module can be installed. This module type uses a memory buffer chip to buffer not only the command and address lines but also the data lines, allowing significantly higher DIMM density than standard registered modules. Which memory type is being described?Server Hardware Installation and Management
  34. 84.A server administrator is configuring a new web server and wants to implement a security measure that restricts the server's processes from accessing unauthorized parts of the file system or executing unauthorized system calls, even if the process is compromised. Which hardening technique is specifically designed to provide this granular control over process behavior?Security and Disaster Recovery
  35. 85.A company requires a disaster recovery solution that provides near-zero data loss and minimal downtime for its critical financial transaction system. The secondary site must be fully operational and mirror the primary site in real-time. Which type of DR site best meets these requirements?Security and Disaster Recovery
  36. 86.A server administrator is setting up a new Linux server that will host several critical applications. To ensure system stability and resource allocation, the administrator needs to define which services start automatically at boot and manage their run levels. Which configuration utility is primarily used for this purpose on modern Linux distributions?Server Administration
  37. 87.A server administrator is configuring a new web server that will host multiple client websites. Each website requires its own logging, separate configuration files, and should ideally run as a distinct user for security purposes. Which Apache server feature is designed to handle this scenario effectively?Server Administration
  38. 88.A server is experiencing extremely slow boot times and applications are taking an unusually long time to launch. The server administrator notices that the disk activity LED is constantly illuminated during these periods, even when no major data transfers are expected. Performance monitoring tools show very high disk I/O wait times. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause?Troubleshooting
  39. 89.A server administrator needs to remotely manage a Linux server over a secure, encrypted connection. The management tasks include executing commands, transferring files, and managing user accounts. Which protocol should the administrator use?Server Administration
  40. 90.A server rack is being deployed in a new data center. The rack will house several high-performance servers, each with redundant power supplies. The data center manager wants to ensure that a single point of failure in the electrical distribution system does not bring down the entire rack. Which of the following power distribution configurations should be implemented for the rack?Server Hardware Installation and Management
  41. 91.A server administrator is configuring a new backup strategy that involves storing backup tapes offsite. To minimize the risk of a single point of failure and optimize storage space, a specific rotation scheme is needed. The company wants to retain daily backups for a week, weekly backups for a month, and monthly backups for a year. Which backup rotation scheme is most appropriate?Security and Disaster Recovery
  42. 92.A server is configured with 128GB of RAM. The operating system reports only 120GB usable. After checking the BIOS, the administrator finds that 8GB is reserved for the integrated graphics controller (iGPU) and cannot be reallocated. Which of the following components is responsible for this memory allocation?Server Hardware Installation and Management
  43. 93.A company is migrating its on-premises applications to a cloud environment. The administrator needs to identify the current software versions, licensing details, and hardware specifications for all existing servers to ensure compatibility and proper license transfer. Which administrative practice is critical for gathering this information efficiently?Server Administration
  44. 94.A server administrator discovers that a critical application server has been compromised by an unknown vulnerability. To prevent further damage and analyze the attack, the administrator immediately isolates the server from the network. Which phase of the incident response process does this action primarily fall under?Security and Disaster Recovery
  45. 95.A server administrator is setting up a new server that will host several critical applications. The security team has mandated that all server builds must adhere to the principle of least privilege. Which of the following server administration practices BEST aligns with this mandate?Server Administration
  46. 96.A technician is performing a server OS installation for a new database server. The server has multiple disk drives, and the technician wants to ensure high availability and data redundancy in case of a single drive failure. Which RAID level would best meet these requirements while also providing good read performance?Server Administration
  47. 97.A server administrator is tasked with ensuring that all server operating systems are kept up-to-date with the latest security patches and bug fixes. The company operates a mix of Windows and Linux servers, and downtime must be minimized. Which strategy provides a structured approach to manage and deploy updates across this diverse environment?Server Administration
  48. 98.A server administrator is troubleshooting network connectivity issues on a newly deployed server. The server is configured with a static IP address, but it cannot reach other devices on the same subnet. Pinging the default gateway also fails. The administrator suspects a misconfigured subnet mask. The server's IP is 192.168.1.10/24, and the gateway is 192.168.1.1. If the subnet mask was accidentally set to 255.255.0.0 instead of 255.255.255.0, what would be the impact on communication within the 192.168.1.0/24 network?Server Administration
  49. 99.A web server application is occasionally returning '500 Internal Server Error' messages to clients. The server administrator checks the application's logs and finds entries indicating 'database connection timeout' errors. Other applications on the same server that do not use the database are functioning normally. Which of the following is the MOST likely cause of the '500 Internal Server Error' in this scenario?Troubleshooting
  50. 100.A technician is troubleshooting a newly installed Linux server that can resolve external domain names (e.g., google.com) but cannot access internal resources by their hostname (e.g., internalapp.local). Pinging internal IP addresses works correctly. Which of the following is the MOST likely misconfiguration?Troubleshooting