A+ 220-1002: Day 9: The Command Line & OS Troubleshooting

  1. A+ Certification Course Outline
  2. A+ Topic: Drivers
  3. A+ Certification
  4. A+ 220-1001: Day 1: Intro, Resources & the Test
  5. A+ 220-1001: Day 2: CPUs
  6. A+ 220-1001: Day 3: RAM
  7. A+ 220-1001: Day 4: Firmware, Motherboards & Power Supplies
  8. A+ 220-1001: Day 5: Disks & Mass Storage
  9. A+ 220-1001: Day 6: Peripherals & PC Builds
  10. A+ 220-1001: Day 7: OS Operations, User Management & OS Maintenance
  11. A+ 220-1001: Day 8: Users, Permissions and System Management
  12. A+ 220-1002: Day 9: The Command Line & OS Troubleshooting
  13. A+ 220-1002: Day 10: Displays & Networking Basics
  14. A+ 220-1002: Day 11: LANs: Ethernet & WiFi
  15. A+ 220-1002: Day 12: The Internet & Virtualization
  16. A+ 220-1002: Day 13: Portable & Mobile Computing
  17. A+ 220-1002: Day 14: Mobile Administration & Printing
  18. A+ 220-1002: Day 15: Security & Operations
  19. A+ 220-1002: Day 16: Review & Test Preparation
  20. A+ Certification

Command Line Interfaces

Current A+ objectives include at least some degree of familiarity with the Windows, Linux and Mac command line interfaces (CLIs). Fortunately, Linux and Mac use the same commands, for the  most part.

Our text covers specific commands in some detail. You need to know:

  • How to open a Windows Command Shell (cmd.exe) and Powershell (powershell.exe)
  • How to open a Linux terminal
  • How to open a Mac terminal
  • How to change directories, move files, rename files

MANDATORY CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT: NOT OPTIONAL

Windows
Create a page in your notes for Windows Commands.

 

Mac
Create a page in your notes for Mac Commands.

 

Linux
Create a page in your notes for Linux Commands.

 

Batch Files / Shell Scripts

It will be a real strong point on your resume if you can say you have some experience – any experience – writing command-line shell scripts. The process is very different between the Unixes and Windows.

So do a simple search. It’s good to get used to starting almost every process with a search:

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=simple+windows+batch+script&t=h_&ia=web

WikiHow, for instance, has a good starter tutorial, though its use of loops might put off beginners:

https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Batch-File

HowToGeek has a little more advanced demo, including a video:

https://www.howtogeek.com/263177/how-to-write-a-batch-script-on-windows/

And SpeedGuide has a good, technical tutorial that will give you a great backup script:

https://www.speedguide.net/articles/how-to-backup-using-batch-files-1547

Now, let me intoduce you to the excellent SpiceWorks community, and a Windows shell script to back up an entire Windows profile:

https://community.spiceworks.com/topic/2099691-windows-profile-back-up-script-batch-file

Another excellent source is StackOverflow. Notice how this script only backs up new or changed files:

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/11280077/batch-script-to-make-backup-folder-only-new-and-modified-files

It may be handy to turn this into a fun hacking exercise:

https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffab&q=write+a+simple+harmless+virus&ia=web

OS Troubleshooting

Be clear that OS Troubleshooting is a different topic than Troubleshooting Methodology, which we looked at back in 220-1001. Working from the command line is often a critical skill for this. Our book covers some good details, and here’s some discussion

http://www.techrepublic.com/article/10-mistakes-to-avoid-when-troubleshooting-it-problems/

Also see Professor Messer’s video for the current version of the A+:

WinPE

WinRE

-Refresh

-Reset

-Startup Repair

-System Restore

-System Image Recovery

-Memtest / Windows Memory Diagnostic

-bootrec

-bcdedit

 

Getting to Advanced Startup Options

Win 7/8 – f8 during boot

Win 10 – hard restart over and over (!)

Textbook Time

Chapters 15 and 16