D316 - IT Foundations Exam Study
questions and Verified Answers
universal serial bus (USB)
the standard means of connecting most types of peripheral devices to a computer.
half-duplex
each device can send or receive, but not at the same time.
full-duplex
each device can send and receive simultaneously.
connector
the part of a peripheral cable that can be inserted into a port with the same shape or
form factor.
form factor
meaning the shape of any particular device or a part of a device.
ex; the connectors on a cable. the shape of a port. the size and shape of a motherboard.
high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI)
both digital audio and video interface. developed for use on both consumer electronics
and computer equipment.
displayport
daisy-chaining. similar features to HDMI: 4K, audio, content protection.
m; royalty-free standard by the video electronics standards association (VESA).
thunderbolt
,daisy-chaining. can be used as a display interface and as a general peripheral interface.
m; distinguished with an icon. current version 3 uses the same port, connector, and cabling
as USB-C.
lightning
a proprietary port and connector for apple's iphones/ipads that are only found on their mobile
devices.
m; requires a suitable adapter to connect to other devices.
serial advanced technology attachment (SATA)
the standard means of connecting internal storage drives within a desktop pc.
m; 7-pin connector for data. 15-pin connector to the power supply.
original standard supported speeds up to 150 MBps, revision 2 supported speeds up to
300 MBps, and revision 3 supported speeds up to 600 MBps
M.2
an interface often used for SSDs to be provisioned in an adapter card form factor.
m; this port is oriented horizontally.
molex power connectors
used to connect legacy components to the power supply unit (PSU).
m; usually white or clear plastic and has 4 pins.
wiring colors
,yellow = 12v
red = 5v
orange = 3.3v
black = ground
external SATA (eSATA)
variant of SATA cabling designed for external connectivity.
usb 2.0
type a, type b, type b mini, type b micro
usb 3.0 and 3.1
type a, type b, type b micro, type c
usb 3.2 gen 1 superspeed
speed: 5 Gbps
connectors: USB-A, USB-C, USB Micro
usb 3.2 gen 2x1 superspeed
speed: 10 Gbps
connectors: USB-A, USB-C, USB Micro
usb 3.2 gen 2x2 superspeed
speed: 20 Gbps
connectors: USB-C
random-access memory (RAM)
, physical memory. volatile.
a type of memory technology that program code is loaded into so that it can be accessed
and executed by the processor.
m; packaged as a DIMM fitted to a motherboard slot.
dual inline memory module (DIMM)
a type of motherboard socket where system memory is installed.
fixed disk
any storage device installed internally that provides persistent storage.
m; uses either solid state drive (SSD) or hard disk drive (HDD) technology.
peripheral component interconnect express (PCIe)
modern internal expansion bus. uses serial point-to-point communications between devices.
m; each link can comprise one or more lanes (x1, x2, x4, x8, x12, x16, or x32). each
lane supports a full-duplex transfer rate of 250 MB/s (v1.0) up to about 4 GB/s (v5.0).
up-plugging
PCIe adapter cards supports a specific number of lanes; however, they will fit into any port
with an equal or greater number of lanes.
peripheral component interconnect (PCI)
legacy. an internal expansion bus that has been replaced by the express version: PCIe.
m; supported 32-bit parallel transfers working at 33 MHz.
advanced technology extended (ATX) specification
questions and Verified Answers
universal serial bus (USB)
the standard means of connecting most types of peripheral devices to a computer.
half-duplex
each device can send or receive, but not at the same time.
full-duplex
each device can send and receive simultaneously.
connector
the part of a peripheral cable that can be inserted into a port with the same shape or
form factor.
form factor
meaning the shape of any particular device or a part of a device.
ex; the connectors on a cable. the shape of a port. the size and shape of a motherboard.
high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI)
both digital audio and video interface. developed for use on both consumer electronics
and computer equipment.
displayport
daisy-chaining. similar features to HDMI: 4K, audio, content protection.
m; royalty-free standard by the video electronics standards association (VESA).
thunderbolt
,daisy-chaining. can be used as a display interface and as a general peripheral interface.
m; distinguished with an icon. current version 3 uses the same port, connector, and cabling
as USB-C.
lightning
a proprietary port and connector for apple's iphones/ipads that are only found on their mobile
devices.
m; requires a suitable adapter to connect to other devices.
serial advanced technology attachment (SATA)
the standard means of connecting internal storage drives within a desktop pc.
m; 7-pin connector for data. 15-pin connector to the power supply.
original standard supported speeds up to 150 MBps, revision 2 supported speeds up to
300 MBps, and revision 3 supported speeds up to 600 MBps
M.2
an interface often used for SSDs to be provisioned in an adapter card form factor.
m; this port is oriented horizontally.
molex power connectors
used to connect legacy components to the power supply unit (PSU).
m; usually white or clear plastic and has 4 pins.
wiring colors
,yellow = 12v
red = 5v
orange = 3.3v
black = ground
external SATA (eSATA)
variant of SATA cabling designed for external connectivity.
usb 2.0
type a, type b, type b mini, type b micro
usb 3.0 and 3.1
type a, type b, type b micro, type c
usb 3.2 gen 1 superspeed
speed: 5 Gbps
connectors: USB-A, USB-C, USB Micro
usb 3.2 gen 2x1 superspeed
speed: 10 Gbps
connectors: USB-A, USB-C, USB Micro
usb 3.2 gen 2x2 superspeed
speed: 20 Gbps
connectors: USB-C
random-access memory (RAM)
, physical memory. volatile.
a type of memory technology that program code is loaded into so that it can be accessed
and executed by the processor.
m; packaged as a DIMM fitted to a motherboard slot.
dual inline memory module (DIMM)
a type of motherboard socket where system memory is installed.
fixed disk
any storage device installed internally that provides persistent storage.
m; uses either solid state drive (SSD) or hard disk drive (HDD) technology.
peripheral component interconnect express (PCIe)
modern internal expansion bus. uses serial point-to-point communications between devices.
m; each link can comprise one or more lanes (x1, x2, x4, x8, x12, x16, or x32). each
lane supports a full-duplex transfer rate of 250 MB/s (v1.0) up to about 4 GB/s (v5.0).
up-plugging
PCIe adapter cards supports a specific number of lanes; however, they will fit into any port
with an equal or greater number of lanes.
peripheral component interconnect (PCI)
legacy. an internal expansion bus that has been replaced by the express version: PCIe.
m; supported 32-bit parallel transfers working at 33 MHz.
advanced technology extended (ATX) specification
