Comptia A+
Comptia A+
Study Notes
CompTIA A+
● A+
▪ CompTIA A+ certified professionals are proven problem solvers. They
support today’s core technologies from security to networking to
virtualization and more. CompTIA A+ is the industry standard for
launching IT careers into today’s digital world. (CompTIA.org)
● Exam Description
CompTIA A+ 220-1102 covers operating systems, security, software and
operational procedures.
● Four Domains
o 31% Operating Systems
o 25% Security
o 22% Software Troubleshooting
o 22% Operational Procedures
● Exam Details
o Up to 90 questions in 90 minutes
▪ Multiple-choice
▪ Drag and drops
▪ Performance-based/Simulations
● Requires a 700 out of 900
● Recommended Experience:
● 9 to 12 months hands-on experience in the lab or field
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● Windows
o Windows
▪ A graphical operating system developed and published by Microsoft
▪ One of the most popular operating systems in the world
● windows 1.01
o The very first version
▪ Windows 1.01
▪ Windows 2.01
▪ Windows 3.01
▪ Windows 95
▪ Windows 98
▪ Windows 2000
▪ Windows Me
▪ Windows XP
▪ Windows Vista
▪ Windows 7
▪ Windows 8
▪ Windows 8.1
▪ Windows 10
▪ Windows 11
▪ The oldest one that we're going to support is known as windows 8.1
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▪ Windows server 2019 will be supported all the way up through January
of 2029
▪ Windows server 2022 will be supported all the way up until October of
2031
o Windows used to have a 90% market share when it came to home computer
operating systems
● Linux
o Linux
▪ Made by lots and lots of different companies, organizations, and
individual people
▪ Known as an open-source operating system
▪ You have access to all the underlying code and you can make any changes
you want
● Unix
o A different type of operating system
▪ Some distributions use a subscription based model with they only give
you access to their code
● Ubuntu
o A free software you can install on your desktop or your
server
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● macOS
o macOS
▪ Operating system used on Mac computers, built by Apple
● iMac
● Mac desktop
● MacBook
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● Filesystem Types
o Organize data and information on a hard drive, solid state drive, or other storage
device
o File systems have to be created before you can install an operating system or
storage device like a hard disk drive
o Windows operating systems use NTFS, FAT32, or exFAT
o Linux will use ext3, ext4, or exFAT for your filesystem
o macOS uses the Apple file system known as APFS
o Linux and macOS cannot read NTFS by default, you would have to use third party
utilities to read and write NTFS
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o NTFS is considered a 64-bit filesystem that allows for large volumes and very
large file sizes
o NTFS has a lot of key features such as journaling, snapshots, security, POSIX
compliance, indexing, and dynamic discsJournaling allows forfaster recovery
from power outages and crashes
o Snapshots allow you to make a read-only copy of a file, even if it is already
locked
o NTFS has a higher security level and allows you access to audit trails, quota
management, and an encrypting filesystem
o Each file can be protected against unauthorized access
o POSIX supports Unix and Linux compatibility between NTFS and a Unix or Linux
filesystem
o Windows and NTFS are not case sensitive
o JASON and jason would be the same file to NTFS
o Windows doesn't rely on case sensitivity when reading NTFS but Linux and Unix
will
o Indexing is a catalog of file and folder locations to help speed up searches
o Dynamic discs can combine physical discs into one larger disc that is understood
by the operating system
o You can only have a total drive size of up to 2 TB and the maximum file size is 4
GB
o FAT is limited due to it being a 32-bit allocation table, where the maximum file
size is around 4.2 billion bytes or 4 GB
o FAT is supported by Windows, Unix, Linux, and macOS
o FAT32 is usually used on removable drives like external hard drives or USB flash
drives
o These are supported by Linux and Unix systems, but not by Windows or macOS
by default
o ext3 has a maximum volume size of 32 TB and maximum file size of 2 TB
o ext4 has a maximum volume size of 1 EB and maximum file size of 16 TB
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o APFS has been the default file system of macOS since 2018
o APFS is considered a journaled filesystem, and provides same journaling benefits
as in NTFS
o APFS has a higher level of performance when dealing with SSD than a traditional
HDD
▪ Windows
● NTFS
▪ Linux
● ext4
▪ macOS
● APFS
● Compatibility Concerns
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Windows Version
Objective 1.1 and 1.7
● Windows Versions
● Windows 11
o 64-bit version
● Windows 10
o 32-bit or 64-bit version
● 32-bit Version
o 32-bit programs
● 64-bit Version
o 32-bit or 64-bit programs
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o Windows Home
▪ Windows Home
● Basic edition of the Windows operating system
● Not designed to be used in a business environment
● Upgrade to Windows Pro or Windows Enterprise for additional
business features
● Storage device encryption
● Support for WIP
● Business management features
● Windows 11 Home edition is only in 64-bit version
● Windows Home edition support multi-core processors
● A multi-core processor has 2, 4, 6, 8, or even up to 64 cores
● It does support hyper-threading
● 64-bit can support large amounts of memory
o OEM
▪ The OEM license is used by the original
manufacturers
o Retail
o Windows Pro
▪ Windows Pro
● Windows operating system that focuses on business use
● Windows Pro can be used in a domain environment
▪ BitLocker
● Full disk drive encryption schema that is provided inside of
Windows Pro and Windows Enterprise editions
▪ Group Policy Editor
● Creates and applies operating system and software application
settings across all the users
● The group policy editor is not available within the Home edition
▪ Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP)
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o Upgrading Windows
▪ In-place upgrade means the setup program for the new version will be
launched within the current operating system
▪ Verify the system meets the minimum requirements for the new
operating system
▪ Download the Windows 11 installation media and place it on a USB drive
▪ Launch the setup program from that USB within Windows 10 and then
perform a full upgrade
▪ Data-only upgrade keeps all personal files, but not any applications or
settings
▪ Clean install will delete all personal settings, files, and folders
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Windows Installation
Objective 1.9
● Windows Installation
o Installation Types
▪ Clean installation
● When an operating system is installed onto a new computer
● In this type of installation, all data, user settings, and programs
will be deleted
▪ In-place upgrade
● Changes the current version of the operating system into a newer
version
● Clean installation does not bring over any of your data,
applications, or user settings
▪ Attended installation
● Requires a system administrator to sit in front of the computer
during the installation process
▪ Unattended installation
● Used by the system administrator when multiple machines needs
the installation
▪ Image deployment
● Copies an image file of a hard drive onto the new system
● This image can be stored on a DVD or USB media
▪ Remote network installation
● The image to be used will be sent over the network
o Upgrade Considerations
▪ Look at the system requirements
● Hardware compatibility
● Application support
● Backup files and user preferences
● Third-party drivers
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▪ Make sure the processor, chipset, and memory can support the new OS
● In Windows 11, 64-bit edition, the hardware requirements are
doubled from Windows 10
● x86 or x64
▪ Verify the new operating system has support for the peripherals that you
need
▪ Run the PC Health Check app before performing an in-place upgrade
o Product Lifecycle
▪ Mainstream support is for every version of the operating system for a
minimum of five years
▪ Extended support is the additional period for some of the products that
can extend another three to five years
▪ End of life means that product is no longer supported
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o Boot Methods
▪ Optical media
▪ USB drives
▪ SSDs
▪ Flash drives
▪ External/Hot swappable
▪ Network boot
▪ Internet boot
▪ Internal partitions
▪ Optical Media is any type of disk that uses laser or light to read and
write data
● Many newer computers don't have optical drives, so using optical
media is less common
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▪ Both HDDs and SSDs require partitioning and formatting before using
them to store an operating system
▪ By default, at least one partition on a fixed disk is needed before you can
perform a high-level disk format for your file system
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▪ With a full recovery, all files will be lost, unless you have them saved on a
backup drive to bring back into the system
▪ The factory recovery only works if you have the original hard drive in the
system
● A disadvantage of a full recovery is you lose everything on the
system
● This can be an advantage when you're going to sell the machine
though
o Example, if you bought a laptop with Windows 8.1, and
upgraded to Windows 10 before a full recovery, it will go
back to Windows 8.1
▪ Under refresh or repair mode, your machine will reset and try to repair
itself without doing a full recovery
▪ To repair instead of factory reset, you go to the same menu and just
choose the repair/reset options
▪ With Windows, most hardware will include a recovery partition that you
can boot up from
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Application Configuration
Objective 1.7
● OBJ 1.7: Given a scenario, apply application installation and configuration concepts
● Application Configuration
o Application Requirements
▪ Every application is going to have different processing requirements
● 32-bit or 64-bit processor
▪ Graphic requirements
● Dedicated graphics card or integrated graphics card
● VRAM available
o Distribution Methods
▪ Download from the app store
▪ Purchase on physical media
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▪ These app stores will handle all the installation process for you
▪ These app stores take precautions to ensure that the software is of good
quality
▪ Not all applications can be found inside the app store
▪ Physical copy of the software
▪ CD or DVD as a distribution method is known as Physical Media
▪ Physical media is not the most convenient way to install sotware
▪
ISO File
● Digital file format used to replicate a physical CD, DVD or Blu-ray
Disc
o Windows
▪ Right click and select "Mount"
o Mac
▪ Use the Disk Utility
o Business Impacts
▪ Licensing
▪ Support
▪ Training
▪ Single user license means you can install one copy of that application on
one system
● Some applications will support multiple copies being installed on
multiple systems for use by a single user
● Never install an application on a system without a valid license
● Understand the terms of a software license
▪ Provide support for that application
● Manufacturer's Support
o Extended support agreement between the company and
the manufacturer
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o Operational Impacts
▪ Single component
▪ Larger network
▪ Larger enterprise system
▪ The user doesn't have to be logged into the system and the administrator
doesn't have to go to that system
o Device Impacts
▪ Processing power
▪ Memory
▪ Storage
o Network Impacts
▪ Some applications will rely heavily on the network
▪ What network impacts would there be when installing certain tools
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Windows Networking
Objective 1.6
● Windows Networking
o Wired Connections
▪ Wired connections can come in the form of copper or fiber
▪ Fiber connects directly into a network interface card
▪ Copper connection uses a Cat 5, Cat 6, Cat 7, or Cat 8 connector using a
UTP or STP cable
o WWAN Connections
● Connects to a wide area network over a wireless connection, and
is most commonly seen with cellular modems or cellular hotspots
● Be aware of how much data your plan has as service providers can
have different limits
● Some are done on a monthly basis, some are unlimited, and some
are allocated over a given time period
● Additionally, some plans will cap your transferable data and cut
off your connection
● Overage Fees
o Some cellphone carriers charge $10 to $20 per GB beyond
the data cap
● Throttling
o With throttling, you will still be able to use data, but at a
much lower speed
● Unlimited
o Unlimited plans have no data cap, you can use as much as
you want and at the highest levels of speed
o VPN Connections
▪ Used to connect anyone or any resources from one private network to
another over a public network
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▪ VPNs will allow you to connect back to your office and access your data in
a secure manner
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● OBJ 1.4: Given a scenario, use the appropriate Microsoft Windows 10 Control Panel
utility
o Internet Options
▪ An older legacy applet that can be used to configure the old legacy web
browser Internet Explorer
▪ Most places don't use Internet Explorer anymore, and use things like
Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome, but some places still rely on Internet
Explorer
▪ When using the Internet Options, you are only configuring Internet
Explorer
● Public Networks
o Airports, hotels, etc.
● Private Networks
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o Business/home networks
o Mail
▪ Configures Microsoft Outlook, but not other mail apps like Thunderbird
or web-based mail like Gmail
▪ Mail only works with Microsoft Outlook and allows for the configuration
of email clients under different profiles
o Sound
▪ Used to select your input such as your microphone or your output
o System
▪ The exam objectives list the system as part of the control panel
o Device Manager
▪ Allows for the viewing and editing of properties of the different pieces of
hardware installed on a system
▪ Device Manager is a separate program that lets you view and edit the
properties of hardware
▪ installed on a given system
o Administrative Tools
▪ Different tools that can be used for more in depth configuration or
troubleshooting
o Indexing Options
▪ Configures how the search capability inside File Explorer is going to work
▪ Indexing options configure how things will be indexed to increase search
speeds
o Power Options
▪ Allows to control the power management on a Windows system
● Turn off or reduce the power
● Use less energy
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▪ S3
● Most of the devices are going to lose power
▪ S4
● Power will be maintained to the memory
▪ S5
● This applet conserves energy or maximizes performance by
choosing how the computer will manage power
o Ease of Access
▪ Gives access to all sorts of settings to configure the input and output
options
▪ Accessibility area
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Windows Settings
Objective 1.5
● Windows Settings
o Windows Settings
▪ Windows Setting
● Used to administer and configure the Windows 10 and 11
operating systems
● The Windows Setting application provides easy to use applets
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Windows Tools
Objective 1.3
● OBJ 1.3: Given a scenario, use features and tools of the Microsoft Windows 10 operating
system (OS)
● Windows tools
o Task Manager
▪ Monitors the computer's key resources, like processing, memory,
storage, and network capacity
▪ Task Manager is used to monitor the computer's key resources, things
like processing, memory, storage and network capacity
o Device Manager
▪ A tool used for investigating and troubleshooting system hardware,
components, and peripherals
▪ Device manager is used to investigate and troubleshoot all sorts of
system hardware, components, and peripherals
▪ Disk fragmentation only truly affects hard drives, and this is because of
the way data is written
▪ Capacity is the cap of data you are able to have on your disk
▪ Damage can happen when you cut off power to a disk being read or
written, or if you drop the device
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● Disk defragmenter
● Disk cleanup utility
o Task Scheduler
▪ Used to run commands and scripts automatically in the background at
any given interval
o Event Viewer
▪ Allows you to go through log files and see what has happened on a given
Windows system
● Information
● Warning
● Verbose
● Error
● Critical
o Performance Monitor
▪ Provide real-time information about system resources by keeping track of
what things are happening in the operating system
▪ Monitor performance over time and find the issue by looking at some key
counters
o Certificate Manager
▪ Looks at the different digital certificates installed on the system and
provides a way of requesting and importing new certificates
▪ Certificate manager provides the ability to manage all digital certificates
on the system
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o System Information
▪ Produces a comprehensive report on the different pieces of hardware
and software inside a Windows system
o Resource Monitor
▪ Gives a better version of the type of monitoring provided by the task
manager
▪ Resource Monitor is essentially an enhanced or better version of the
snapshot and overview monitoring inside the Task Manager
o System Configuration
▪ Used to modify various settings and files that affect the way a computer
boots up and loads Windows
o Registry Editor
▪ Windows Registry
● A database which has all the different settings and configurations
across the entire operating system
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Windows Command
Objective 1.2
● OBJ 1.2: Given a scenario, use the appropriate Microsoft command-line tool
● Windows Command
o Windows Command Line Tools
o
o Using the GUI
▪ Command Line
▪ Graphical User Interface
o Copying Commands
▪ Copying commands
▪ Movement commands
o Shutdown
▪ This command can run at various times when the user is not at the
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▪ Ping
● Ping verifies there is good connectivity between the client and the
remote destination
▪ Tracert
● Tracert shows each and every stop along the way by using
multiple pings all the way out and all the way back
▪ Path ping
● Path ping gives a more accurate round-trip time being calculated
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Windows Share
Objective 1.2, 1.6 and 2.5
● OBJ 1.2: Given a scenario, use the appropriate Microsoft command-line tool
● OBJ 1.6: Given a scenario, configure Microsoft Windows networking features on a
client/desktop
● OBJ 2.5: Given a scenario, manage and configure basic security settings in the Microsoft
Windows OS
● Windows Shares
o Domain-Based
▪ Used for larger environments
o Workgroup-Based
▪ Used in a single computer environment
● Workgroup
o Decentralized model
● Domain
o Centralized architecture
▪ Workgroups are better used with smaller sized networks, all on the same
network of less than about 15 to 20 computers
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▪ Domains are used for large scale networks, one or more computers
acting as a server, which makes it easier to automatically connect to the
network from anywhere
● Printer Sharing
o Sharing a printer over a network is easier in a small office environment
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macOS
Objective 1.10
● macOS
o macOS generally has same features and functionality like Windows
▪ Time Machine
● A backup feature in macOS
▪ Finder
● macOS file management app (file explorer)
▪ Dock
● Used for managing applications from the desktop (taskbar)
▪ Spotlight
● Search function
▪ .pkg (Package)
● macOS installer that supports complex setup tasks using a setup
wizard
▪ .dmg (Disc Image)
● macOS installer for copying self-contained apps to an app folder
● Mission Control
o Enables the user to set up multiple virtual desktops with different sets of
applications and backgrounds
● File Vault
o Disk encryption tool that encrypts the data that's stored on the hard drive or
solid-state device
● Remote Disc
o Utility that allows to access an optical disc drive over the network
o Most Mac computers don't have an internal optical drive
o One requires CD or DVD drive installed on the network
● Keychain
o Application designed to help manage passwords for all the different accounts
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● System Preferences
o Provides a centralized and standard location for mail, contacts, calendar, photos,
notes, reminders, and more
o The free account gives 5GB worth of storage
▪ Apple ID
● Account with Apple used across the entire Apple ecosystem
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Linux
Objective 1.11
● OBJ 1.11: Identify common features and tools of the Linux client/desktop OS
● Linux
o ls
▪ Used for listing file system objects
o pwd
▪ Used to print the current directory
o cd
▪ Used to change the directories
o mv
▪ Used to move files from one location to another
o cp
▪ Used to copy files from one location to another
o rm
▪ Used to delete files
o The mv, cp, and rm commands are used in both files and directories in Linux
o df
▪ Used to display the amount of free disk space
o du
▪ Used to estimate the file space usage
o nano
▪ Easy to use command line text editor
o vi
▪ Old command that supports modal editing
o vim
▪ Supports normal, visual, insert, and command line mode
o pico
▪ Text editor that provides less features and less complexity
o cat
▪ Used to create, view, or concatenate files
o find
▪ Used to search the file system or directory
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o grep
▪ Used to search for characters within the specified file using regular
expressions
o su
▪ Used to switch users
o sudo
▪ Used to switch to the root user
o usermod
▪ Used to modify the user's account
o userdel
▪ Used to delete a user's account
o passwd
▪ Used to change or reset the password of the user's account
o groupadd
▪ Used to add a new group
o groupmod
▪ Used to modify a group
o groupdel
▪ Used to delete a group
o chmod
▪ Used to change the access permissions
o chown
▪ Used to change the owner
o apt-get
▪ Used to install and remove software on Debian
o yum
▪ Used to install and remove software on Red Hat
o dnf
▪ Updated version of yum command and used to install and remove
software on Red Hat
o rpm
▪ Low-level tool that is used to install and remove software on Red Hat
o ps
▪ Used to display a list of currently running processes
o top
▪ Task manager that is used to display information about CPU and memory
o ip
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V1.0
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Study Notes
● Linux Navigation
o When it comes to Linux terminal environment, can use the LS, PWD, and CD
commands
o Free space
o Filesystem
o Total size
o Space used
o % used
o Mount point
o The DU command shows the disk usage and how the device is used
● Text Manipulation
o Nano and Pico are both considered visual editors and are easy for anyone to use
o VI and VIM are more difficult to use, but they have a lot more capabilities if you
are able to use them
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V1.0
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Study Notes
o The cat command is used for concatenating or displaying the contents of a file to
the screen
● Search Commands
o Find
▪ Search for a file
o Grep
▪ Search for content within a file
o Debian
▪ apt-get
o Red Hat
▪ rpm, yum, dnf
o Clam AntiVirus
o Snort
o IDS/IPS
o tar
o gzip
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Study Notes
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V1.0
CompTIA A+
Study Notes
Malware
Objective 2.3
● OBJ 2.3: Given a scenario, detect, remove, and prevent malware using the appropriate
tools and methods
● Malware
o Software that is designed to infiltrate and damage a system
▪ Viruses, Worms, and Trojans
o Boot sector
▪ Viruses that are stored in the first sector of a hard drive and are loaded
into memory upon boot
o Macro
▪ Virus embedded into a document and is executed when the document is
opened by the user
o Program
▪ Program viruses seek out executables or application files to infect
o Multipartite
▪ Virus that combines boot and program viruses to first attach itself to the
boot sector and system files before attacking other files on the computer
o Encryption
▪ This virus is gonna use a cipher to encrypt the contents of itself to avoid
detection by any antivirus software
o Polymorphic
▪ Advanced version of an encrypted virus that change its code each time
it's executed by altering the decryption module in order for it to evade
detection
o Metamorphic
▪ Viruses that are able to rewrite themselves entirely before it attempts to
infect a file
o Stealth
▪ Stealth viruses are a category of a virus protecting itself
o Armored
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Study Notes
● Ransomware
o Malware that restricts access to a victim’s computer system until a ransom is
received
o Keep backups of all the systems and files
o Ransomware uses a vulnerability in your software to gain access and then
encrypts your files
● Spyware
o Malware that secretly gathers information about the user without their consent
▪ Adware
● Displays advertisements based upon its spying on you
▪ Grayware
● Software that isn’t benign nor malicious and tends to behave
improperly without serious consequences
● Rootkits
o Software designed to gain administrative level control over a system without
detection
● DLL Injection
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● Driver Manipulation
o An attack that relies on compromising the kernel-mode
device drivers that operate at a privileged or system level
● Shim
o A piece of software code that is placed between two
components to intercept calls and redirect them
o DDoS
▪ Occurs when many machines target a single victim and attack them at the
exact same time
● Symptoms of Infection
o Your computer might have been infected if it begins to act strangely
o Hard drives, files, or applications are not accessible anymore
▪ Strange noises
▪ Unusual error messages
▪ Display looks strange
▪ Jumbled printouts
o Double file extensions are being displayed, such as textfile.txt.exe
o New files and folders have been created or files and folders are
missing/corrupted
o System Restore will not function
● Removing Malware
o Scan the computer
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o If a boot sector virus is suspected, reboot the computer from an external device
and scan it
o Remove the hard drive from the victimized machine, connect it to a clean
workstation as a secondary drive, and then scan it
● Preventing Malware
o Continually doing your service packs and updates for your operating system
o Have a good host-based Firewall
o Worms, Trojans, and Ransomware are best detected with anti-malware solutions
o Root kits are a type of malware that installs itself and tries to bypass the
operating
o system functions
o Verify your email servers aren’t configured as open mail relays or SMTP open
relays
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V1.0
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Study Notes
Social Engineering
Objective 2.3 and 2.4
● OBJ 2.3: Given a scenario, detect, remove, and prevent malware using the appropriate
tools and methods
● OBJ 2.4: Explain common social-engineering attacks, threats, and vulnerabilities
● Social Engineering
o Broad range of malicious activities accomplished through human interactions
● Phishing Attacks
o Phising
o Spearphishing
o Whaling
o Smishing
o Vishing
o BEC
o Pharming
o Social Engineering
▪ Any attempt to manipulate users to reveal confidential information or
perform actions detrimental to a system's security
▪ End users and employees are the weakest link in an organization's
security
o Phishing
▪ A social engineering attack where the malicious actor communicates with
the victim from a supposedly reputable source to lure the victim into
divulging sensitive information
▪ 60-70% response rate
o Spearphishing
▪ Uses the same technology and techniques but is a more targeted version
of phishing
o Whaling
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o Vishing
▪ Occurs when the message is being communicated to the target using the
voice functions of a telephone
o Pharming
▪ Tricks users into divulging private information by redirecting a victim to a
website controlled by the attacker or penetration tester
● Spam
o The abuse of electronic messaging systems, most commonly through email
o Spammers often exploit a company's open mail relays to send their messages
o CAN-SPAM Act of 2003
● Impersonation
o The act of pretending to be someone else in order to gain access or gather
information
o The goal is to use people's trust on a person in authority and people in uniform
▪ Elicitation
● The ability to draw, bring forth, evoke, or induce information from
the victim
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● Pretexting
o Train your employees not to fall for pretext and to not fill in the gaps for
people when they're calling you or even in person
o Social Engineering
▪ Any attempt to manipulate users into revealing confidential information
or performing other actions that are detrimental to that user or the
security of our systems
▪ The weakest link is our end users and employees
o Tailgating
▪ When an attacker attempts to enter a secure portion of a building by
following an authorized person into that area, without their knowledge
o Piggybacking
▪ Similar to tailgating, but happens with the knowledge or consent of the
employee
o Shoulder Surfing
▪ Using direct observation to obtain information from an employee
▪ Not as obvious as standing over your shoulder, but it can be a quick
glance at your screen
o Dumpster Diving
▪ Actually looking in garbage or recycling bins for personal or confidential
information
● Evil Twin
o A fraudulent Wi-Fi access point that appears to be legitimate but is set up to
eavesdrop on your wireless communication
▪ Karma Attack
● Exploits the behavior of Wi-Fi devices due to a lack of access point
authentication protocols being implemented
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Study Notes
Captive Portal ▪
● A web page that the user of a public-access network is obligated
to view and interact with before access is granted
● Software Firewalls
o Personal Firewall
▪ Software application that protects a single computer from unwanted
Internet traffic
▪ Host-Based Firewall
o Windows Firewall
o PF and IPFW
o iptables
● User Education
o I can install all the technology I want, but if I don't fix the user, it's all gonna be
for nothing
o Never share your authentication information
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V1.0
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Study Notes
● By end of day, employees clean their desks and leave nothing out
that may be taken as a password or a PIN
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V1.0
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Study Notes
Security Controls
Objective 2.3 and 2.4
● Security Controls
o Physical Controls
▪ Implemented to increase physical security posture
o Logical Controls
▪ Implemented through hardware or software to prevent or restrict access
● Auditing
o One-time
● Monitoring
o Ongoing
o Managerial Controls
▪ Implemented to manage the organization's personnel and assets
● Perimeter Defense
o Fences
▪ Designed in different formats, including see-through or not
▪ See-through fences allow outsiders to see what's inside
▪ Non-see-through fences prevent employees and guards from seeing
incoming threats
▪ Fences keep people away from areas that are under your control
o Bollards
▪ Type of barricade used to prevent terrorist attacks
▪ Think about the type of aesthetic fence and bollards to install
▪ Make sure that it is still friendly and inviting
o Lighting
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o Guards
▪ Protect the outside or inside of the building
● Surveillance
o Video Surveillance
▪ Used inside or outside of a building using cameras and CCTV
● Motion
● Sound
● Light
o Circuit-based System
▪ Alarm system that sounds anytime the circuit is open or closed
o Motion Sensors
▪ Allows to play motion sensor in different areas
● Proximity
o Alarm that turns off when there is a movement in one of
the tagged objects within the area
● Duress
o Alarm that can be triggered by someone when there is a
threat
o Magnetometer
▪ Type of metal detector that is deployed at airports and public buildings
▪ Walk-through magnetometer detects the presence of metal
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▪ Electronic Operated
● Requires a PIN entered on an electronic keypad to unlock
o Mechanical
o No power needed
o Electronic
o Needs power
▪ Badge Reader
● Uses a token to unlock the door
● Badge reader can be combined with two-factor authentication
o Retina Scanner
▪ Uses infrared light that is shown into an eye
o Equipment locks
▪ Prevents theft and unauthorized physical access to servers, network
appliances
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V1.0
CompTIA A+
Study Notes
● Kensington Lock
o A cable that uses a tie to secure smaller devices
o Badge readers
▪ Badge readers can be used as a way to log in to a computer
● Magnetic Strip
● Smart Card
● RFID
▪ Badge reader systems use contact-based badge reading
● Security Principles
o Least Privilege
▪ Uses the lowest level of permissions needed to complete a job function
o Role-based Access
▪ Discretionary Access Control (DAC)
● Access control method where access is determined by the owner
of the resource
1. Every object in a system has to have an owner
2. Each owner must determine the access rights and permissions for
each object
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o Power User
▪ User who is not a normal user and also not a normal administrator
o
o Zero-Trust
▪ Security framework that requires the users to be authenticated,
authorized, and validated
1. Reexamine all default access controls
2. Employ a variety of prevention techniques and defense in depth
3. Enable real-time monitoring and controls to identify and stop
malicious activity
4. Ensure the network's zero-trust architecture aligns with a broader
security strategy
● Multifactor Authentication
o Multifactor Authentication (MFA)
▪ Uses two or more factors to prove a user's identity
● Knowledge
o Something you know
● Ownership
o Something you have
● Characteristic
o Something you are
● Location
o Somewhere you are
● Action
o Something you do
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o In-Band Authentication
▪ Relies on an identity signal from the same system requesting the user
authentication
o Out-of-Band Authentication
▪ Uses a separate communication channel to send the OTP or PIN
o EMM
▪ Policies and tools
o MDM
▪ Technical controls
● Application Control
● Passwords and passcode functionality
● MFA Requirement
● Token-based Access
● Patch Management
● Remote Wipe
o Remote Wipe
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o Firmware Update
▪ Updates the baseband of the radio modem used for cellular, Wi-Fi,
Bluetooth, NFC, and GPS connectivity
o Security Group
▪ Allows to easily assign permissions to a set of users or worskstations
▪ Groups have different permissions applied using ACLs, group policies, and
login scripts
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o Group Policies
▪ Allows to configure computer settings and user profile settings for the set
of users
▪ Settings can be templated
o Home Folder
▪ Private drive that is mapped to a network share
o Folder Redirection
▪ Allows to change the target of a personal folder
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Study Notes
Wireless Security
Objective 2.3 and 2.4
● OBJ 2.3: Given a scenario, detect, remove, and prevent malware using the appropriate
tools and methods
● OBJ 2.4: Explain common social-engineering attacks, threats, and vulnerabilities
● Wireless Encryption
o Pre-Shared Key
▪ Same encryption key is used by the access point and the client
o Wired Equivalent Privacy
▪ Original 802.11 wireless security standard that claims to be as secure as a
wired network
▪ WEP’s weakness is its 24-bit IV (Initialization Vector)
o Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA)
▪ Replacement for WEP, which uses TKIP, Message Integrity Check (MIC),
and RC4 encryption
▪ WPA was flawed, so it was replaced by WPA2
o Wi-Fi Protected Access version 2 (WPA2)
▪ 802.11i standard to provide better wireless security featuring AES with a
128-bit key, CCMP, and integrity checking
▪ If we make operations easier, then security is reduced
o Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS)
▪ Automated encryption setup for wireless networks at a push of a button,
but is severely flawed and vulnerable
▪ Always disable WPS
▪ Encryption and VPNs are always a good idea
● WPA3
o Wi-Fi Protected Access 3 (WPA3)
▪ Latest and most secure version of wireless network encryption currently
available
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Study Notes
▪ 192-bit or 128-bit
● “Enhanced open”
o Opportunistic Wireless Encryption (OWE)
● Forward Secrecy
o Assures the session keys will not be compromised even if
the long-term secrets used in the session key exchange
have
● Wireless Authentication
o Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS)
▪ Cross-platform protocol that authenticates and authorizes users to
services, and accounts for their usage
● Supplicant
● Authenticator
● Authentication server
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o Diameter
▪ Peer-to-peer protocol created as a next-generation version of RADIUS
o Kerberos
▪ Uses symmetric encryption and the Key Distribution Center to conduct
authentication and authorization functions
o 802.1x
▪ Used for port-based authentication on both wired and wireless networks
▪ Utilize 802.1x as part of your defense
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● EAP-MD5
o Utilizes simple passwords and the challenge handshake
authentication process to provide remote access
authentication
● EAP-TLS
o Uses public key infrastructure with a digital certificate
being installed on both the client and the server
● EAP-TTLS
o Requires a digital certificate on the server and a password
on the client for its authentication
● EAP Flexible Authentication via Secure Tunneling (EAP-FAST)
o Uses a protected access credential to establish mutual
authentication between devices
● Protected EAP (PEAP)
o Uses server certificates and Microsoft’s Active Directory
databases to authenticate a client’s password
● Lightweight EAP (LEAP)
o A proprietary protocol that only works on Cisco-based
devices
▪ Disabling the broadcast SSID just makes it harder for your authorized
users to be able to connect to the network
▪ Enabling encryption can give you a lot of security
▪ Never use WPA or WEP
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V1.0
CompTIA A+
Study Notes
o Guest Access
▪ Allows someone who is visiting your area to connect to your wireless
access point and access the Internet
▪ Disable guest access
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● OBJ 2.7: Explain common methods for securing mobile and embedded devices
o Bluetooth
▪ Used by mobile devices to connect peripherals to the device
▪ Bluetooth requires two devices to make a connection or link
o Check specifications to see if the device uses at least AES encryption with a
strong key
o Software firewalls are common for larger devices, but not so much for mobile
devices
o The firewall must have root or administrative privileges on the mobile device in
order to successfully protect it
o A VPN connection between a mobile device and a centralized server is safer
o Remote backups automatically go to places like iCloud for Apple, Google Sync, or
OneDrive from Microsoft
o Always ensure you have secured the wireless connectivity first, then implement
a mobile firewall
o Swipe Gesture
▪ Someone can simply take the mobile device and swipe the screen open
to unlock it, without using anything to secure it
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CompTIA A+
Study Notes
o Pattern
▪ The screen shows you nine different dots for you to swipe and make a
pattern with
▪ Pressing and removing your finger off the touch scanner several times is
how you set up Touch ID
o Facial Recognition
▪ Touch ID has a fail rate of about1 in every 50,000 attempts
▪ Face ID has a fail rate of about 1 in every 1,000,000 attempts
▪ Both of these are much more secure than a PIN or password
▪ Smartphones like to use biometrics first and then PIN or passcode, if you
have all of that set up
▪ Face ID wasn't helpful in 2020 when everyone was wearing masks, so the
PIN or password fallback is very helpful
● Mobile Malware
o Ensure your mobile device is patched and updated
o Only install apps from the official App Store or Play Store
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o Remote Lock
▪ Requires a PIN or a password before someone can use the device
o Remote Wipe
▪ Allows to remotely erase the contents of the device to ensure that no
information can be recovered
o Geotagging
▪ Embedding of the geolocation coordinates into a piece of data, such as a
photo
▪ Geotagging should be considered when developing your organization's
security policies
● Deployment Options
o Corporate Owned/ Business Only (COBO)
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▪ Purchased by the company and only used by the employee for work-
related purposes
● Most secure
● Most restrictive
● Most expensive
o Storage Segmentation
▪ Creates a clear separation between work and personal data on a device
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V1.0
CompTIA A+
Study Notes
o Ensure your agency has a good security policy for mobile devices
● IoT Vulnerabilities
o S in IoT stands for security
o Most IoT devices uses an embedded version of Linux or Android as their OS
o Many Manufacturers uses outdated or insecure hardware components
▪ Insecure defaults
▪ Hard-coded configurations
▪ Cleartext communication
o Attackers also monitors Bluetooth frequencies being transmitted and conduct
eavesdropping
▪ Data modification
▪ Data exfiltration
o Be careful in which exploits you since you can inadvertently cause the device to
go offline, crash or malfunction
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V1.0
CompTIA A+
Study Notes
Windows Security
Objective 2.5
● OBJ 2.5: Given a scenario, manage and configure basic security settings in the Microsoft
Windows OS
● Login Options
o Local Sign-in
▪ Uses Local Security Authority (LSA) to compare the submitted credentials
▪ Local sign-in is also known as interactive login
o Network Sign-in
▪ Uses Kerberos to perform network authentication
o Remote Sign-in
▪ Allows users to access the local network by using a VPN or a web portal
(SSL/TLS)
o Windows Hello
▪ Allows the user to configure an alternate means of authentication
▪ Windows Hello PIN can be used to enter the system and authenticate
▪ Windows Hello subsystem is considered more secure
▪ Windows Hello Fingerprint uses biometric authentication
▪ Windows Hello Face uses facial recognition
o Single sign-on
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V1.0
CompTIA A+
Study Notes
o Local Account
▪ Account that exists on a single workstation or computer
● Security Account Manager (SAM)
o HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE registry hive
▪ Local account cannot be used to log into different computers
o Microsoft Account
▪ Created through an online cloud-based portal at account.microsoft.com
▪ Microsoft account can be synchronized between devices using the same
portal
▪ Domain-based users can also create an account as part of the domain
environment
o User
▪ Able to change their own settings
▪ When creating a new user on a system, it should be placed into the
standard user group
o Administrator
▪ Gives additional security permissions
▪ By default, the first user on a system is placed in the Administrator group
o Guest
▪ Account is disabled and gives a higher level of security
▪ Guest accounts are disabled on Windows 10 and 11
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CompTIA A+
Study Notes
o Power User
▪ Gives the user an intermediate permission level, but less than an
administrator
▪ Power user group has the same permission level as the standard user
group
▪ Administrator mode works at a higher level of permissions that can cause
a lot of system damage
● File Permissions
o New Technology File System (NTFS)
▪ Uses file permissions on all files and folders
▪ NTFS permissions can be assigned to a file or folder by using a user's
account or group
▪ Each object has an implicit deny to prevent using a permission
▪ Explicit permissions set an allow or deny action
▪ Permissions are cumulative
o Share Permissions
▪ Applies only to files that were shared using a network connection
▪ Share permissions that are used in NTFS permissions will be applied
locally and over the network
▪ Share permissions are set at the root of the share and its subdirectories
▪ The most restrictive will apply to files and folders that are accessed over
the network
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Study Notes
o Inheritance
o Happens with all of the sub folders and files underneath that folder
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Securing Workstations
Objective 2.6 and 2.8
● OBJ 2.6: Given a scenario, configure a workstation to meet best practices for security
● OBJ 2.8: Given a scenario, use common data destruction and disposal methods
● Account Management
o User permissions
o Admin user account
o Disable guest accounts
o Restrict login times
o Failed login attempts
o Concurrent logins
o Timeouts and screen locks
o File permission control allows to change whether the user can read, modify, or
delete data file or folder
o Set a good, long, and strong password for the administrator account
o Disable the default admin account and create a new user account for better
security
o Consider this based on your organization and the needs of your employees
▪ Account disabled
▪ 15-min cool off
o Account disabled means the user cannot login until they contact help desk
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Study Notes
o With the lockout timer, the user has to wait 15 minutes to be able to re-login
o Every Windows user can log into multiple systems using the same account in a
domain environment
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o Data in Transit/Motion
▪ Any data moving from one computer or system to another over the
network or within the same computer
● TLS or SSL
● IPSec or L2TP
● WPA2 with AES
o Data in Use/Processing
▪ Any data read into memory or is currently inside the processor and being
worked on or manipulated
● Data at rest
● Data in motion
● Data in processing
● Data Destruction
o Asset disposal occurs whenever a system is no longer needed
o Degaussing
▪ Exposes the hard drive to a powerful magnetic field which in turn causes
previously-written data to be wiped from the drive
o Purging (Sanitizing)
▪ Act of removing data in such a way that it cannot be reconstructed using
any known forensic techniques
o Clearing
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o Erasing or Wiping
▪ The process of destroying old data by writing over the location on the
hard drive or solid-state device with new data
o Forensic experts can recover some hidden data overwritten with a series of ones
and zeros
o Erasing and wiping don't work as well with solid state devices
o Use Format from the Windows command line to erase the contents of the hard
drive
o Using a standard formatting procedure, you will have better data destruction
than you have with a simple erasing or wiping
o Low-level Format
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▪ Procedure provided by the manufacturer which will reset the disk back to
its factory condition
● Secure erase
● Crypto erase
o If you don't let this procedure actually finish, you'll have a drive that is no
longer functional and no longer usable for anything
o Self-Encrypting Drive
▪ A particular type of hardware that will encrypt and decrypt the entire disk
▪ By erasing the key, you have now made all the data on it unusable and
unreadable
o Degaussing
▪ Exposing hard disk drives to powerful electromagnets that are going to
disrupt the magnetic patterns on those hard disks and cause them to lose
their state
▪ This does not work if you're using optical media or solid state drives
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● OBJ 2.10: Given a scenario, install and configure browsers and relevant security settings
o Plug-ins that work in the background to help you do things like video streaming
o Themes that change your browser's look
o You can change your default search engine
o Applications to keep things like document editing in your browser, even for
offline use
● Password Managers
o Password Manager
▪ Helps you secure different passwords and stores them so you can use
them easily
▪ Memorizing a master passcode while the rest are saved for you is a much
better method than using the same password everywhere
● Encrypted Browsing
o You need to ensure that the website is secure before you access it and enter any
kind of personal details
● Private Browsing
o Private Browsing
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▪ A special mode in web browsers that ensures the caching features are
not being used
▪ Even in private browsing, you are still being watched online
● Profile Synchronization
o Profile
▪ You make this for different setting preferences, but it doesn't work across
all Internet browsers
▪ A way to keep your personal and work life separate to avoid problems in
the future
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● OBJ 4.1: Given a scenario, implement best practices associated with documentation and
support systems information management
● OBJ 4.2: Explain basic change-management best practices
● Ticketing System
o Ticketing Systems
▪ Used to manage requests, incidents, and problems submitted by users
▪ Ticketing system shows user information
● Phone
● Email
● Chat
● Ticket
● Name
● Contact Details
● User information
● Device information
o Problem description
▪ Gather more details or information about the problem
o Ticket categories
▪ Three basic ticketing types
● Requests
● Incidents
● Problems
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o Problem
▪ A collection of incidents or recurrent issues
▪ Every organization configures different categories based on their own
business needs
o Severity
▪ Classifying tickets in a prioritized order
● Urgent
● High
● Medium
● Low
● Tier 3 (1-3%)
● Tier 2 (20-30%)
● Tier 1 (70-80%)
● Tier 0
o Shifting Left
▪ Gives us more freedom and more ability to solve problems at an earlier
level
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Study Notes
o The kind of information should you include depends on your industry and what
you're doing inside of your organization
● Asset Management
o Asset Management
▪ Systematic approach to the governance and realization of value of things
over their life cycle
● Tangible Assets
● Intangible Assets
● Development
● Operation
● Maintenance
● Upgrade
● Disposal
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Study Notes
o Procurement Lifecycle
▪ Birth to death of an asset
o Warranty
o Licensing
● Change Management
o Change Management
▪ Maximizes the number of successful IT changes
▪ The scope of change management is defined by each organization
o Change
▪ Addition, modification, or removal that may have a direct or indirect
effect on IT services
o Standard changes
▪ Preauthorized and can be implemented without any additional
authorization
o Normal changes
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o Pair Programming/Coding
▪ One person codes and the other person reads it and approves it
o Change Schedule
▪ Helps plan the changes and assists in communicating such changes to the
stakeholders to avoid conflicts
▪ The change schedule informs everybody what's happening
▪ Ensures we have the resources to implement the changes
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o End-user acceptance
▪ Make sure that people understand how to use that new system
● Documentation Types
o Acceptable use policies
▪ Employees' set of policies for a service or resource
▪ Each organization sets up rules based on workflow and company values
▪ Acceptable use policy is enforced by the organization to govern its
employees and users
▪ Regulatory Compliance Requirements
▪ A splash screen shows up when someone tries to log into a computer
o SOPs
▪ New user set-up checklist and procedures
▪ End-user termination checklist and procedures
▪ Software installation procedures
o Follow the SOP checklist for new users and end users
▪ Verify the system requirements
▪ Validate the download source
▪ Verify files
▪ Verify software license
▪ Ensure proper installation
▪ Provide training and support
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Study Notes
▪ Incident report is a writeup based on what happened, the cause, and how
to prevent it in the future
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Study Notes
● OBJ 4.3: Given a scenario, implement workstation backup and recovery methods
● OBJ 4.4: Given a scenario, use common safety procedures
● OBJ 4.5: Summarize environmental impacts and local environmental controls
o Incremental backups
▪ Will only back up things that have changed since the last backup
o Differential backups
▪ Backs up all the data that has been changed since the last full backup
o Synthetic backups
▪ An optional type of backup that can create full backups with lower data
transfer requirements
▪ You're not tying up the server by doing a lot of read/write operations,
and to copy everything off of the server
o Archive Attribute
▪ Archive attribute flags are set to on anytime you modify a file
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o It's going to get cleared when you do a full backup or an incremental backup
● Backup Schemes
o Frequency
▪ The period between backup jobs
▪ When it comes to determining this frequency, it is all going to depend on
how much work you can afford to lose
o On-site
▪ The backup storage mechanism is located in the same location as the
system they're backing up
o Off-site
▪ Backing up to some system not inside the same physical building where
your workstations are
o Grandfather-Father-Son (GFS)
▪ Tape media rotation scheme that allows some of your backup media to
be taken to an offsite storage
▪ The son tapes will store your most recent data and they have the
shortest retention period
▪ The father is considered the middle generation
▪ The grandfather tapes will have the longest retention period
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▪ GFS can be modified based on your own needs for retention, as well as
for frequency of backups
● Power Continuity
o A redundant power supply mitigates a single point of failure
o Surges
▪ An unexpected increase in the amount of voltage that's being provided
o Spikes
▪ A short, transient voltage that can be due to a short circuit, a trip circuit
breaker, a power outage, or even a lightning strike
o Sags
▪ An unexpected decrease in the amount of voltage provided
o Brownouts
▪ Occurs when the voltage drops low enough that it causes the lights to
dim and can cause a computer to shut off
o Blackouts
▪ Occurs when there is a total loss of power for a long period of time
▪ Proper backup power and line conditioning
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o Backup Generator
▪ An emergency power system used when there is an outage of the regular
electric grid power
● Portable gas engine
● Permanently installed
● Battery inverter
● Electrical Safety
o Equipment Grounding
▪ Ensures every electrical device has a path to the ground, which is a path
that provides the least amount of resistance for electrical current to flow
away harmlessly
▪ Make sure equipment is properly grounded when installing racks of
servers or equipment
▪ Never disconnect the ground wire
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Study Notes
● HVAC Systems
o Make sure HVAC systems are running to protect the servers, workstations, and
other equipment
o Sensitive computer equipment, including servers, computers, and networking
gear, releases a lot of heat during their operations
o HVAC systems also helps with the humidity levels in server rooms and
communication closets
o Humidity level of around 40% to 60% using your HVAC systems
o Many organizations will connect their HVAC systems to their ICS or SCADA
networks
o Depending on your system's capabilities, you may have to make some choices as
to which servers can remain online
o Place systems and servers in the right location and provide adequate power and
cooling
o This ensures we keep our workplace hazard-free and everything is safe and
sound
▪ Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
o Building codes are something that are defined at the local, state, and national
level
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Study Notes
● Personal Safety
o One of the most common injuries is caused by lifting things improperly
o If you do happen to cause an electrical fire, immediately remove the power
o PC Vacuum Cleaner
▪ Specialized vacuum cleaner that doesn't create an electrostatic charge
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Study Notes
● OBJ 4.6: Explain the importance of prohibited content/activity and privacy, licensing,
and policy concepts
● Incident Response
o Incident Response
▪ A set of procedures an investigator follows when examining a computer
security incident
o Incident Management Program
▪ Consists of monitoring and detection of security events on a computer
network and the use of proper responses to those security events
● Preparation
o Ensure that it has a well-planned incident response
procedure
● Identification
o Process of recognizing if an event should be classified as an
incident
● Containment
o Focused on isolating the incident
● Eradication
o Remove the threat or attack
● Recovery
o Data restoration, system repair, and re-enabling any
servers or networks taken down during the incident
● Lessons Learned
o A process is used to document the instant response
process, any changes to the procedures and the processes
and make sure we do better next time
● Chain of Custody
o The record of evidence history from collection to court presentation and disposal
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o Faraday Bag
▪ Shields devices from outside signals to prevent data from being altered,
deleted, or added to a new device
▪ Criminal cases or internal security audits can take months or years to
resolve
o Legal Hold
▪ Preserves all relevant information when litigation is reasonably expected
to occur
▪ Have spare hardware and good backups of your systems
● Order of Volatility
o Data Acquisition
▪ Creates a forensically sound copy of the data from a source device
o Order of Volatility
▪ Collecting evidence that could be easily tampered or destroyed first
o Registers and cache can only be collected when the computer is powered on
o Contents of the RAM will be lost if the computer is turned off
o These temporary files are often overwritten during system operation
o Any data that's persisted on mass storage devices and disc
o Collect remote logging and monitoring data
o Data on physical configuration and network topologies helps provide context to
an investigation
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o Some key areas (like HKLM\Hardware) are only stored in the memory, so
analyze the registry using a memory dump
o Personal License
▪ Allows one individual user to use a piece of software on their given
machine
o Corporate License
▪ A license for each individual machine or person who is actively using that
license
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▪ Active users are people who are actually logged in at this moment using
that piece of software
▪ Licenses provide the legal access to use a software, and also the privilege
of getting all the updates and security patches
▪ Once you lose that valid license, you will no longer be able to get updates
to that software or its security patches
▪ Most software licenses are going to be issued out for a certain period of
time
▪ Use trusted software that comes with a valid license
● Data Classification
o Data classification is based on its value to the organization and the sensitivity of
the information if it were to be disclosed
▪ Public Data
● No impact to the company if released and is often on a company's
website
▪ Sensitive Data
● Minimal impact if released and includes things like a company's
finances
▪ Private Data
● Contains information like personnel records, salaries, and other
data only used in the organization
▪ Confidential Data
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▪ Unclassified
● Can be released to the public under the Freedom of Information
Act
▪ Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI)
● Includes unclassified information that should be protected from
public disclosure
▪ Confidential Data
● Includes data such as trade secrets that would hurt the
government if disclosed
▪ Secret Data
● Includes data such as military deployment plans and other things
that would damage national security if disclosed
▪ Top Secret Data
● Includes blueprints for weapons or other information that could
gravely damage national security if known by those unauthorized
to know
● Data Retention
o Data Retention
▪ Maintains and controls certain data to comply with business policies and
applicable laws and regulations
o Data Preservation
▪ Keeping information for a specific purpose outside of an organization's
data retention policy
o Short-Term Retention
▪ A term by how often the newest or youngest media sets are overwritten
o Long-Term Retention
▪ Any data moved to an archive to prevent being overwritten
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Study Notes
o Health Data
▪ Data related to health conditions, reproductive outcomes, causes of
death, or quality of life for individuals or the population
● HIPAA
o Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996
o Financial Data
▪ Consists of pieces or sets of information related to the financial health of
a business
● Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS)
o An agreement that any organization that collects, stores,
or processes credit card customer information must abide
by
o Intellectual Property
▪ A type of data that includes intangible creations of human intellect
● Copyright
● Patent
● Trademark
● Trade Secret
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Study Notes
o Data Format
▪ This is the organization of the information into preset structures or
specifications
o Structured Data
▪ Something like a comma separated value list
o Unstructured Data
▪ Things like PowerPoint slides, emails, text files, chat logs
o Three main types of data you should be aware of as an A+ technician are PII, PHI,
PCI DSS
● Security Policies
o Privacy policies govern the labeling and handling of data
o Change Management
▪ Defines the structured way of changing the state of a computer system,
network, or IT procedure
o Job Rotation
▪ Different users are trained to perform the tasks of the same position to
help prevent and identify fraud that could occur if there was only one
user with the job
o Mandatory vacations
▪ Require every employee take a vacation at some point during the year
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Study Notes
o Due Diligence
▪ Ensuring that IT infrastructure risks are known and managed properly
o Due Care
▪ Mitigation actions that an organization takes to defend against the risks
that have been uncovered during due diligence
o Due Process
▪ A legal term that refers to how an organization must respect and
safeguard personnel's rights
▪ Due Process protects citizens from their government and companies from
lawsuits
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Study Notes
Scripting
Objective 4.8
● Scripting
o .bat (Batch File)
▪ Used within Windows inside the command prompt environment
o .ps1 (PowerShell)
▪ Used within Windows inside the PowerShell environment
o .vbs (Visual Basic)
▪ Used within Windows inside Visual Basic
o .sh (Bash Script)
▪ Used within Linux
o .js (JavaScript)
▪ Used for automations in webpages and macOS systems
o .py (Python)
▪ Generic scripting language used in Windows, Linux, and Mac
o Pseudocode
▪ Generic language used to teach new learners how to program a
computer
o PowerShell (.ps1)
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o Python (.py)
▪ General-purpose scripting and programming language that is used to
develop automation scripts and full-fledged software applications
▪ Python runs on Windows, Linux, and Mac systems
▪ Python is considered an interpreted language because it is cross-platform
in nature
● Variables
o Used to store values and data for different data types
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o Boolean
▪ A form of data with only two possible values (True or False)
o Pseudocode
▪ A made-up language that isn't representative of any singular
programming language
o Integer
▪ A variable that stores an integer or a whole number that may be positive
or negative
o Float/Decimal/Real Number
▪ A variable that stores a decimal number
o Character
▪ A variable that can only store ASCII character
o String
▪ A variable that can store multiple characters
o Constant
▪ Like a variable, but cannot be changed within the program once defined
▪ How do we define the value of variables and constants?
● Loops
o Loop
▪ A type of flow control that controls which order the code will be executed
in a given program
o For Loop
▪ Used when the number of times to repeat a block of code is known
o While Loop
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▪
Used when the number of times to repeat a block of codes is not known
and will only stop until something happens
o Do Loop
▪ Used when there’s an indefinite iteration that need to happen and will
only stop until some condition is met at the end of the loop
● Logic Control
o Used to provide conditions based on different logical tests
● Automation Scripting
o Basic Automations
▪ Simple or routine task
o Machine Restart
▪ Restart machines using scripts
o Application Installation
▪ Can use a batch file or PowerShell in Windows or a shell file in Linux
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Study Notes
▪ apt or yum
● BASH script
o Backup Automation
▪ copy; xcopy; Robocopy
● PowerShell or Batch Script
▪ copy (cp)
● BASH Script (Linux)
o Information Gathering
▪ Use scripts for is to be able to gather information or data from various
systems across your network
● Scripting Considerations
o Unintentionally introducing malware
o Inadvertently changing system settings
o Causing browser or system crashes due to mishandling resources
o Read the scripts and understand what they do before running them
o Inadvertently changing system settings disables system protection
o When running a script, use the least permissions needed
o Depleting hard drive storage space occurs because log files or temporary files are
created as part of the scripting process
o Faulty loops could lose network resources or memory resources
o Incorrect API calls can cause the web browser's file explorer or command
interpreter to crash
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Study Notes
▪ Telnet Port 23
● Sends text-based commands to remote devices and is a very old
networking protocol
● Telnet should never be used to connect to secure devices
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Study Notes
▪ In-Band Management
● Managing devices through the use of Telnet or SSH protocols over
the network
▪ Out-of-Band Management
● Connecting to and configuring different network devices using an
alternate path or management network
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▪ Authentication
● Confirms and validates a user’s identity
▪ Authorization
● Gives the user proper permissions to access a resource
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Troubleshooting Windows
Objective 3.1
● Boot Issues
o BIOS or UEFI will go through and do a power on self-check to verify that all
system components are working properly
▪ BIOS
● Master Boot Record
▪ UEFI
● GUID Partition Table
o The firmware will look through the storage device and identify where MBR is,
which is always going to be located in the first sector of that disk
o It will then be able to identify which operating system is supposed to be booted
from that master boot record and then turn over control to it
▪ bootmgr.exe
▪ winload.exe
▪ Kernel
▪ Hardware abstraction layer
▪ Boot device drivers
o UEFI boot uses GPT
▪ \EFI\Microsoft\ contains BCD and bootmgfw.efi files
● Kernel
● Hardware abstraction layer
● Boot device drivers
▪ Failure to boot
▪ No OS found
▪ GUI failing to load or a black screen
▪ This used to happen because the boot order inside the BIOS or UEFI was
set incorrectly
▪ Remove any external devices
▪ Set the boot order to always go to the internal storage drive first
▪ "No OS Found"
▪ That disk drive doesn't have an operating system installed
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▪ Use a startup repair tool to open up the recovery command prompt, and
then use bootrec in order to be able to repair the drive's boot
information
● bootrec /fixmbr
● bootrec /fixboot
● bootrec /rebuildbcd
o Diskpart Command
▪ A command line disk partitioning tool that can be used to mark the
system partition as active
▪ It usually indicates that there's some kind of an issue with the graphics
driver or the system has some kind of a misconfiguration or corruption
▪ Reboot the system into safe mode
▪ START+CTRL_SHIFT+B
● Check Disk command: chkdsk
● System file checker: sfc
o Failure to boot
o No OS found
o GUI failing to load or a black screen
● System Restore
o System restore allows you to create multiple different points to restore data on
your system
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● Performance Issues
o Your profiles are gonna contain all the information for a particular user on a
Windows system
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▪ Powered hub gets its power from the USB, as well as when plugged into a
wall outlet
● Memory
● System files
● USB devices
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● OBJ 3.2: Given a scenario, troubleshoot common personal computer (PC) security issues
● OBJ 3.3: Given a scenario, use best practice procedures for malware removal
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● Reboot in safe mode and run the scanning and removal tools
● Run task manager, regedit, and msconfig to turn off different
services and background tasks
● Boot the computer using a Windows recovery media disc or a
Windows installation disc
● Re-image or re-install the system from a good backup or
installation disc
o Schedule scans and run updates
▪ Schedule scans on a daily basis
▪ Configuring scanning on access allows to scan downloaded files
o Enable system restore and create a restore point in Windows
▪ Re-enable system restore and create a restore point
● Restore point after malware removal
● Restore point clean
▪ Turn on automated backups again and validate critical services
o Educate the end user
▪ How to set up and configure a password manager
▪ How to verify if a website is actually a website
▪ Proper use of social networking and how to tell if something is a scam or
trustworthy
▪ Educate on the proper use of VPNs
▪ Provide anti-phishing training
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● OS Update Failures
o Backup
o System File Checker
▪ Turn off the services and run the system file checker to fix it
▪ Go through the seven-step malware removal process to remove malware
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● OBJ 3.4: Given a scenario, troubleshoot common mobile OS and application issues
● Resetting or Rebooting
o Many issues can be solved by simply rebooting the device
▪ Reboot into safe mode on the Android device
o Reset
▪ Used to remove all of the user's data, applications, and settings
▪ After the factory reset is complete, the device will reboot and bring you
into a setup menu for you to be able to do an initial configuration
● Device reset
● Factory reset
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● OBJ 3.5: Given a scenario, troubleshoot common mobile OS and application security
issues
o Rooting
▪ Allows to get administrative rights on an Android device
● Sideloading Apps
o Android
▪ APK
o iPhone or iPad
▪ Jailbreaking, Developer tools
o APK Sideloading
▪ Installing an application outside of the official store
● Settings
o Allow third-party applications
o Application Spoofing
▪ Occurs when an application passes as a legitimate app
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o An on-path attack tries to collect information and see what you see
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Professionalism
Objective 4.7
● OBJ 4.7: Given a scenario, use proper communication techniques and professionalism
● Professionalism
o Learn the best practices for dealing with end-users
o Show up and dress up accordingly
o Avoid distractions
o Based on the rules of the organization
● Professional Appearance
o Formal
▪ Gray suit
▪ Black suit
▪ Navy Blue suit
o Business Casual
▪ Khaki pants
▪ Polo shirt
▪ Button-down shirt
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▪
Always keep your cellphone in your pocket and do not use it at work
unless necessary
4. Do not interrupt people
▪ When dealing with high-level leaders, work on their schedule
5. Set expectations and meet those expectations
▪ Set expectations upfront with the customer and give status updates
● Proper Communication
o Maintain positive attitude and project confidence
o Actively listen and take notes
o Use proper language
o Be culturally sensitive
o Communicate the status
o Maintain a positive attitude and make the customer see that you're there to help
them
o Active listening is a skill
▪ Open-ended Question
● Questions that need a valid response
o "Can you tell me what you saw on your screen before the
computer rebooted?"
● Close-ended Question
o Questions that are answered with a yes or no, or a simple
answer
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▪ Cost
● Repair is, what the likely
▪ Timeframe
● Repair that option and how long that repair would likely last
● Difficult Situations
o Do not personalize the support issues
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