Windows XP Pro Professional Standards & Competencies 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A technician needs to verify the integrity of Windows XP Pro system files after suspected tampering. Which built-in utility should be used?
- System File Checker (sfc /scannow) (Correct answer)
- Chkdsk /f
- Msconfig.exe
- Bootcfg /rebuild
Correct answer: System File Checker (sfc /scannow)
SFC /scannow scans all protected system files and replaces corrupted or modified versions with correct Microsoft copies.
Question 2: Under professional ethical standards, a technician discovers a colleague's password while fixing a machine. What is the correct action?
- Notify the colleague and recommend they change it, without using or recording the credential (Correct answer)
- Record it securely in case it is needed later
- Use it once to verify its access level then discard it
- Report it to management with the password details
Correct answer: Notify the colleague and recommend they change it, without using or recording the credential
Professional ethics require respecting privacy; discovered credentials must not be used or recorded, and the owner should be advised to change them.
Question 3: A Windows XP Pro workstation is joined to a domain but Group Policy is not applying. Which command helps diagnose Group Policy application failures?
- gpresult /v (Correct answer)
- gpupdate /target:computer
- secedit /analyze
- netdiag /test:dclist
Correct answer: gpresult /v
Gpresult /v displays the Resultant Set of Policy for the computer and user, showing which policies applied and which were filtered.
Question 4: A technician must configure Windows XP Pro so that users cannot install unapproved USB storage devices. What is the professional policy-based approach?
- Use Group Policy to disable removable storage via Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Removable Storage Access (Correct answer)
- Physically remove USB ports with a soldering iron
- Set BIOS to disable USB and share the BIOS password
- Create a registry value DisableUSBStorage manually on each machine
Correct answer: Use Group Policy to disable removable storage via Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Removable Storage Access
Group Policy provides a scalable, managed way to restrict removable storage access without hardware modifications.
Question 5: Which Windows XP Pro feature allows an administrator to define which applications a user can run based on file hash, path, or certificate rules?
- Software Restriction Policies (SRP) (Correct answer)
- Application Compatibility Toolkit
- Program Access and Defaults
- Windows File Protection
Correct answer: Software Restriction Policies (SRP)
SRP uses hash, certificate, path, and zone rules to control which programs are permitted to execute on a system.
Question 6: A Windows XP Pro technician must ensure all drives on a machine are using NTFS for security compliance. How is a FAT32 partition converted without data loss?
- Run 'convert X: /fs:ntfs' from the command prompt (Correct answer)
- Format the drive as NTFS using Disk Management
- Use Diskpart to reformat to NTFS
- Enable NTFS in Drive Properties and click Apply
Correct answer: Run 'convert X: /fs:ntfs' from the command prompt
The convert command upgrades a FAT or FAT32 volume to NTFS in place, preserving existing data.
Question 7: According to professional standards, how long should a Windows XP Pro technician retain system change logs for a regulated industry environment?
- Per the organization's data retention policy, commonly 1–7 years depending on regulation (Correct answer)
- 30 days minimum regardless of industry
- Until the machine is decommissioned
- No retention is required for change logs
Correct answer: Per the organization's data retention policy, commonly 1–7 years depending on regulation
Retention periods are dictated by applicable regulations (HIPAA, SOX, PCI-DSS) and organizational policy, often ranging from one to seven years.
Windows XP Pro Professional Standards & Competencies 5
A technician needs to verify the integrity of Windows XP Pro system files after suspected tampering.
Which built-in utility should be used?