Module 2 Help Desk

Ch. 13

Lab Manual for A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, 7th edition Solutions-1

Chapter 13 Solutions

Lab 13.1 1. Why should you run Disk Cleanup before running Disk Defragmenter? Answer: Disk Cleanup removes unnecessary files, freeing disk space. If you do this after defragmenting, you have added unnecessary time to the process. 2. How does defragmentation improve performance?

Answer: Files can be read sequentially without jumping around on the drive. 3. Why shouldn’t you attempt to use other programs while chkdsk is running? Answer: Chkdsk is only able to check sections of the drive that are not currectly being accessed by other programs. 4. What types of files removed by disk cleanup took up the most space? Do you think this will usually be the case? Answer: This answer is dependent on student’s research and experience.

Lab 13.2 1. Why are some tasks scheduled in the middle of the night? Answer: It’s less likely that the computer will be in use at this time so the scheduled task won’t interfere with normal operations. 2. Besides defragmentation, what are some other tasks you might choose to automate? Answer: Answer will vary but may include: • Virus scanning • Windows updates • Backups 3. Why are some tasks set to run whether the user is logged in or not? Answer: Some tasks don’t have little effect on performance and can be run at any time. 4. Why might you want to disable some of the automatic tasks set up in Vista? Answer: Answers will vary depending on student opinions and experiences. 5. Why do you think some tasks are set to only run if a network connection is available? Answer: Some tasks, like software updates, require a network connection.

Lab 13.3

Ch. 13

Lab Manual for A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, 7th edition Solutions-2

1. Is it more important to back up Windows system files or data files? Why? Answer: Data files are more important because they might be irreplaceable; whereas system files can be copied from the installation CD or the entire system can be rebuilt. Also, a system’s Registry files are important because rebuilding them exactly can be time consuming. 2. What is the Start menu path for launching Windows Backup and Restore Tools? Answer: Start, All Programs (or Programs), Accessories, System Tools, and Backup 3. What features of Windows Backup and Restore Tools help you if you are unfamiliar with the backup and restore process? Answer: Backup and Restore wizards can help you. 4. What does the Backup Job Information dialog box allow you to define? Why is this function useful? Answer: It allows you to define description of the backup and date and time of the backup. This information is useful to identify the backup later during a recovery process. 5. If you forgot the name of your backup file, how else might you identify it? Answer: You could also find the file by the time it was created.

Lab 13.4 1. Besides adding and deleting users, what other tasks can you perform with Computer Management in the Local Users and Groups category? Answer: Add and delete user groups. 2. List three of the differences between User and Administrator accounts. Answer: Administrators, who have access to all parts of the system, can install or uninstall devices and applications and perform all administrative tasks. Limited users (also known as Users) have read-write access only on their own folders, read-only access to most system folders, and no access to other users’ data. They cannot install applications or carry out any administrative responsibilities. 3. List the steps to change the group to which an account belongs. Answer: Go to Control Panel, User Accounts applet. Select the account and click Change an account. Select the account again, and click Change the account type. Select the new group and click Change account type. Click Back to return to the previous window. 4. Why do you think new users are not automatically members of the Administrators group? Answer: This would give too many rights to new users and compromise the security of the computer. 5. Why is it a good idea to have users change their passwords the first time they log on? Answer: It is important so their passwords are guaranteed to be more private.

Ch. 13

Lab Manual for A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, 7th edition Solutions-3

Lab 13.5 1. How would you set up disk quotas on a drive formatted with FAT32? Answer: You must have NTFS to be able to enforce disk quotas, so the drive must first be converted to NTFS. 2. Why might you want to impose disk quotas? Answer: You might want to impose disk quotas to keep users from consuming so much disk space that more storage must be purchased. 3. What option must be selected to specify a warning level? Answer: In the Quota tab of the disk’s Properties dialog box, click Enable quota management and Set warning level to. 4. What options must be selected to prevent users from exceeding their quotas? Answer: In the Quota tab of the disk’s Properties dialog box, click Enable quota management, Deny disk space to users exceeding their quota limit, and Set warning level to. 5. Explain how to monitor and change disk quotas. Answer: Right-click the drive in My Computer or Windows Explorer, click Properties in the shortcut menu, and click the Quota tab.

Lab 13.6 1. What is meant by the term “virtual memory”? Answer: It is a swap file on a hard drive used to simulate RAM. 2. What is the swap file called in Windows Vista/XP? Answer: It is called a paging file. 3. Why would you want to move the paging file off the boot partition? Answer: You would move it for better performance. 4. When could fragmentation of the paging file occur? Answer: It could occur when several applications are opened and closed. 5. What is the main reason for slight pauses in an application when retrieving information from the paging file? Answer: Accessing the hard drive is much slower than accessing RAM. 6. Bonus: Because Microsoft acknowledges a performance advantage in locating the paging file off the boot partition, what is the main reason the boot partition is its default location? Answer: The size is dynamic, growing only to the size needed.

Lab 13.7

Ch. 13

Lab Manual for A+ Guide to Managing and Maintaining Your PC, 7th edition Solutions-4

1. What command/switch do you use to view Help information for the DIR command? Answer: DIR/? 2. What do you add to the DIR command to list the contents of a directory that is not the current working directory? Answer: Include the directory in the DIR command line. For example, to view the contents of the C:\Tools directory, use the DIR C:\Tools command. 3. What command do you use to change directories? Answer: CD path 4. What command do you use to delete a file? Answer: DEL or ERASE 5. What command do you use to switch from drive A to drive C? Answer: C:

Lab 13.8 1. Can a single Copy command copy files from more than one directory? Answer: No 2. What switch do you use with Xcopy or Robocopy to copy subdirectories? Answer: /s or /e 3. Why might you want to schedule a Robocopy command to occur at a later time? Answer: To not interfere with day-to-day operations. 4. Which Xcopy switch suppresses overwrite confirmation? Answer: /y