SK0-005 CompTIA Server+ Certification Exam Free Practice Exam Questions (2025 Updated)

A disaster recovery plan would be useful when trying to restore IT infrastructure operations after a non-planned interruption. A disaster recovery plan is a document that outlines the steps and procedures to recover from a major disruption of IT services caused by natural or man-made disasters, such as fire, flood, earthquake, cyberattack, etc. A disaster recovery plan typically includes:

A list of critical IT assets and resources that need to be protected and restored

A list of roles and responsibilities of IT staff and stakeholders involved in the recovery process

A list of backup and recovery strategies and tools for data, applications, servers, networks, etc.

A list of communication channels and methods for notifying users, customers, vendors, etc.

A list of testing and validation methods for ensuring the functionality and integrity of restored systems

A list of metrics and criteria for measuring the effectiveness and efficiency of the recovery process

A disaster recovery plan helps IT organizations to minimize downtime, data loss, and financial impact of a disaster, as well as to resume normal operations as quickly as possible.

The power supply and the hard drive are two components that can most likely be swapped out while the server is still running, if they support hot swapping or hot plugging. Hot swapping or hot plugging means that the device can be added or removed without shutting down the system. The operating system automatically recognizes the changes that have been made. This feature is useful for minimizing downtime and improving availability. The CPU, the GPU, the cache, and the RAM are not hot swappable and require the system to be powered off before replacing them. References: https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/what-is-hot-swapping/https://www.howtogeek.com/268249/what-is-hot-swapping-and-what-devices-support-it/

The best policy to deter a brute-force login attack is account lockout threshold. A brute-force login attack is a type of attack that tries to guess a user’s password by trying different combinations of characters until it finds the correct one. This attack can be performed manually or with automated tools that use dictionaries, wordlists, or algorithms. An account lockout threshold is a policy that specifies how many failed login attempts are allowed before an account is locked out temporarily or permanently. This policy prevents an attacker from trying unlimited password guesses and reduces the chances of finding the correct password.

A purple screen with white letters on an ESX server indicates a kernel panic, which is a fatal error thatcauses the system to crash and stop functioning3. The first troubleshooting step that an administrator should perform is to review the log files, which may contain information about the cause of the error, such as hardware failures, software bugs, or configuration issues4. Checking the power supplies (A) may not be relevant, as the system is still displaying a screen. Reinstalling the ESX server © or reseating the processors (D) are drastic measures that may result in data loss or further damage, and should only be attempted after ruling out other possible causes. References: 3 https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/1014508 4 https://www.altaro.com/vmware/vmware-esxi-purple-screen-death/

Memory and CPU are two metrics that can be used for monitoring system utilization. Memory refers to the amount of RAM that is available and used by the system and its processes. CPU refers to the percentage of processor time that is consumed by the system and its processes. Both memory and CPU can affect the performance and responsiveness of the system and its applications. Monitoring memory and CPU can help identify bottlenecks, resource contention, memory leaks, high load, etc.

 A snapshot is a feature that can be used in hypervisors to restore to a previous version. A snapshot is a point-in-time copy of a virtual machine (VM) that captures the state and data of the VM at a specific moment. A snapshot can be created instantly and with minimal overhead, as it only stores the changes made to the VM after the snapshot was taken. A snapshot can be used to restore the VM to its previous state in case of data loss or corruption.

The best strategy to ensure wayward vehicle traffic does not interfere with datacenter operations is to install bollards. Bollards are sturdy posts that are installed around a perimeter to prevent vehicles from entering or crashing into a protected area. Bollards can provide physical security and deterrence for datacenters that are located near busy roads or parking lots. Bollards can also prevent accidental damage or injury caused by vehicles that lose control or have faulty brakes.

SIEM is the tool that will analyze network logs in real time to report on suspicious log events. SIEM stands for Security Information and Event Management, which is a software solution that collects, analyzes, and correlates log data from various sources, such as servers, firewalls, routers, antivirus software, etc. SIEM can detect anomalies, patterns, trends, and threats in the log data and generate alerts or reports for security monitoring and incident response. SIEM can also provide historical analysis and compliance reporting for audit purposes.

Teaming is a technique that can be configured on a server for network redundancy. Teaming involves combining two or more network adapters into a single logical unit that acts as one network interface. This way, if one network adapter fails, another one can take over without disrupting network connectivity. Teaming can also improve network performance by load balancing traffic across multiple network adapters. Clustering is a technique that involves grouping two or more servers together to act as one system for high availability and fault tolerance. Virtualizing is a technique that involves creating multiple virtual machines on a single physical server to optimize resource utilization and flexibility. Cloning is a technique that involves creating an exact copy of a server’s configuration and data for backup or migration purposes. References: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/networking/technologies/nic-teaming/nic-teaming https://www.techopedia.com/definition/19588/clustering https://www.techopedia.com/definition/4790/virtualizationhttps://www.techopedia.com/definition/4776/cloning

RAID 1 (mirroring) is a RAID configuration that should be used to provide redundancy for the OS on a server that has two hard drives on which to install the OS. RAID 1 (mirroring) is a configuration that duplicates data across two or more drives. It provides fault tolerance and improves read performance, but reduces storage capacity by half. If one drive fails in RAID 1, the other drive can continue to operate without data loss or system downtime. RAID 0 (striping) is a configuration that splits data across two or more drives without parity or redundancy. It improves performance but offers no fault tolerance. If one drive fails in RAID 0, all data is lost and the system cannot boot. RAID 5 (striping with parity) is a configuration that stripes data across three or more drives with parity information. It provides fault tolerance and improves performance, but reduces storage capacity by one drive’s worth of space. RAID 5 can tolerate one drive failure without data loss, but not two ormore. RAID 6 (striping with double parity) is a configuration that stripes data across four or more drives with double parity information. It provides fault tolerance and improves performance, but reduces storage capacity by two drives’ worth of space. RAID 6 can tolerate two drive failures without data loss, but not three or more.References:https://www.howtogeek.com/199068/how-to-upgrade-your-existing-hard-drive-in-under-an-hour/

The reason why the Linux server is not communicating on a network is that it is configured to use DHCP on a network that does not have a DHCP server. DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) is a protocol that allows a client device to obtain an IP address and other network configuration parameters from a DHCP server automatically. However, if there is no DHCP server on the network, the client device will not be able to obtain a valid IP address and will assign itself a link-local address instead. A link-local address is an IP address that is only valid within a local network segment and cannot be used for communication outside of it. A link-local address has a prefix of 169.254/16 in IPv4 or fe80::/10 in IPv6. In this case, the Linux server has assigned itself a link-local address of 127.0.0.1, which is also known as the loopback address. The loopback address is used for testing and troubleshooting purposes and refers to the device itself. It cannot be used for communication with other devices on the network.

This is the best way to proceed with troubleshooting when the technician has several possible solutions to a reported server issue. Making one change at a time and testing allows the technician to isolate the cause and effect of each solution and determine which one works best. It also helps to avoid introducing new problems or complicating existing ones by making multiple changes at once. Determining whether there is a common element in the symptoms causing multiple problems is a good step to perform before identifying possible solutions, but not after. Performing a root cause analysis is a good step to perform after resolving the issue, but not during. Documenting the findings, actions, and outcomes throughout the process is a good practice to follow at every step of troubleshooting, but not a specific way to proceed with testing possible solutions. References: https://www.howtogeek.com/174288/how-to-tell-if-your-computer-is-overheating-and-what-to-do-about-it/https://www.howtogeek.com/428483/what-is-end-to-end-encryption-and-why-does-it-matter/

Cloning the original VM is the most efficient way to provide a VM with high availability. Cloning is the process of creating an exact copy of a VM, including itsconfiguration, operating system, applications, and data. A cloned VM can be used as a backup or a replica of the original VM, and can be powered on and run independently. Cloning can be done quickly and easily using vSphere tools or other third-party software. By cloning the original VM and placing it on a different host server or availability zone, the technician can ensure that if the original VM fails, the cloned VM can take over its role and provide uninterrupted service to the users and applications.

The technician should use port 22 to configure a server that requires secure remote access. Port 22 is the default port for Secure Shell (SSH), which is a protocol that allows secure remote login and command execution over a network connection using a command-line interface (CLI). SSH encrypts both the authentication and data transmission between the client and the server, preventing eavesdropping, tampering, or spoofing. SSH can be used to perform various tasks on a server remotely, such as configuration, administration, maintenance, troubleshooting, etc.

Data at rest refers to data that is stored in a persistent state on any device or media, such as hard drives, tapes, or cloud storage. Data at rest does not move for long periods of time unless it is accessed or modified by authorized users or applications. A cold site (A) is a backup location that has minimal or no equipment and resources to resume business operations in case of a disaster. On-site retention © is a policy of keeping backup data on premises for a certain period of time before transferring it to an off-site location. Off-site storage (D) is a method of storing backup data in a remote location that is physically or logically separated from the primary site. References: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/security/fundamentals/encryption-atrest https://www.techopedia.com/definition/144/cold-site https://www.enterprisestorageforum.com/backup/onsite-offsite-backup.htmlhttps://www.techopedia.com/definition/24195/offsite-storage

The storage protocol that the administrator is most likely using to save data to the location \server1\ITDept\ is CIFS. CIFS (Common Internet File System) is a protocol that allows file sharing and remote access over a network. CIFS is based on SMB (Server Message Block), which is a protocol that enables communication between devices on a network. CIFS uses UNC (Universal Naming Convention) paths to identify network resources, such as files or folders. A UNC path has the format \servername\sharename\path\filename. In this case, server1 is the name of the server, ITDept is the name of the shared folder, and \ is the path within the shared folder.

The company should also implement MFA on all the servers with encrypted data as a data loss prevention method. MFA stands for multi-factor authentication, which is a method of verifying a user’s identity by requiring two or more pieces of evidence, such as something they know (e.g., a password), something they have (e.g., a token), or something they are (e.g., a fingerprint). MFA adds an extra layer of security to prevent unauthorized access to sensitive data, even if the user’s password is compromised or stolen. Encrypting the hard drives on the servers protects the data from being read or copied if the drives are physically removed or stolen, but it does not prevent unauthorized access to the data if the user’s credentials are valid.

The backplane is a circuit board that connects multiple hard drives to a RAID controller and provides power and data transfer between them. If the backplane has failed, it may cause all the hard drives to be offline and prevent the server from booting into the OS. The fact that replacing one of the drives with a known-good drive did not work, and that taking a drive out of the server and placing it in a spare server made it functional, suggests that the problem is not with the drives themselves but with the backplane. A corrupt kernel (A) would not affect the status of the hard drives, as it is a software component of the OS. Resource misallocation (B) would not cause all the hard drives to be offline, as it is a configuration issue that affects how resources are assigned to processes or applications. Reseating the drives (D) would not help, as it would not fix a faulty backplane.References:https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000130114/how-to-troubleshoot-a-faulty-backplane

The RAID level that provides the highest possible capacity for a storage array is RAID 0. RAID 0 is a type of RAID level that provides performance enhancement by using striping. Striping means dividing data into blocks and distributing them across multiple disks to increase speed and capacity. RAID 0 does not provide any fault tolerance or redundancy, as it does not use any parity or mirroring techniques. RAID 0 uses all of the available disk space for data storage, without losing any space for overhead. Therefore, RAID 0 provides the highest possible capacity for a storage array, but also has the highest risk of data loss.