CompTIA A+ Core 1 (220-1001) — Question 383

Whenever a user's machine is turned on, a black screen appears prompting the user for an administrative password. The technician has no such password on file for this machine.
Which of the following steps should the technician take to resolve this issue?

Answer options

• A. Press and hold the CPU power button for five seconds, and then power back on.
• B. Disconnect and reconnect the internal hard drive.
• C. Remove the CMOS battery and reinsert it after ten seconds.
• D. Remove the motherboard and place it back into the machine after ten minutes.

Correct answer: C

Explanation

Removing and reinserting the CMOS battery resets the BIOS settings, which can clear the password prompt that appears on startup. The other options do not address the password issue: holding the power button simply powers off the machine, disconnecting the hard drive does not affect BIOS settings, and removing the motherboard is unnecessary and could cause additional problems.