A customer asks for the 32-bit version of Windows 11. What is the answer?Microsoft Support, 32-bit and 64-bit Windows: Frequently asked questions, How can I tell if my Windows device is running a 32-bit or a 64-bit version of Windows?
Can a 64-bit x86-64 processor run 32-bit applications?Wikipedia, x86-64, lead section
How much physical memory can a 32-bit (x86) edition of Windows 10 use at most?Microsoft Learn, Memory Limits for Windows and Windows Server Releases, Physical Memory Limits: Windows 10
How much physical memory can the 64-bit edition of Windows 10 Home use at most?Microsoft Learn, Memory Limits for Windows and Windows Server Releases, Physical Memory Limits: Windows 10
What does 64-bit mode give an x86-64 processor over its 32-bit predecessors?Wikipedia, x86-64, lead section
What does a PC need before a 64-bit version of Windows can be installed?Microsoft Support, 32-bit and 64-bit Windows: Frequently asked questions, Which version of Windows should I install: the 32-bit version or the 64-bit version?
What does moving a PC from 32-bit Windows to 64-bit Windows require?Microsoft Support, 32-bit and 64-bit Windows: Frequently asked questions, How do I upgrade from the 32-bit to the 64-bit version of Windows?
Show all 58 questions (51 more)
CPU architecture: x86, x64 and ARM, continued
What is x86-64, also called x64?Wikipedia, x86-64, lead section
What kind of instruction set architecture is ARM?Wikipedia, ARM architecture family, lead section
When are the benefits of a 64-bit operating system most apparent?Microsoft Support, 32-bit and 64-bit Windows: Frequently asked questions, Which version of Windows should I install: the 32-bit version or the 64-bit version?
Which apps can Windows 11 on Arm run through emulation?Microsoft Learn, How emulation works on Arm, introduction
Which company's processors were the first to ship with x86-64?Wikipedia, x86-64, lead section
Which processor does Windows 11 require at minimum?Microsoft Learn, Windows 11 requirements, Hardware requirements
Who builds the physical chips that use the ARM instruction set?Wikipedia, ARM architecture family, lead section
Why are ARM processors common in phones, tablets and other battery-powered devices?Wikipedia, ARM architecture family, lead section
Core configurations 9
A processor has 8 physical cores and Hyper-Threading is on. How many logical processors does the operating system see?Wikipedia, Hyper-threading, lead section
How many logical processors does Hyper-Threading provide per physical core?Wikipedia, Hyper-threading, Overview
What does a big.LITTLE core configuration combine?Wikipedia, ARM big.LITTLE, lead section
What does each core of a multi-core processor do?Wikipedia, Multi-core processor, lead section
What does simultaneous multithreading (SMT) let a processor do?Wikipedia, Simultaneous multithreading, lead section
What is a multi-core processor?Wikipedia, Multi-core processor, lead section
What is a processor with both fast cores and battery-saving cores meant to achieve?Wikipedia, ARM big.LITTLE, lead section
What is Hyper-Threading?Wikipedia, Hyper-threading, lead section
Which programs gain the most from extra CPU cores?Wikipedia, Multi-core processor, lead section
Socket types: PGA, LGA and ZIF 8
An older LGA 115x cooler is fitted to an LGA 1700 motherboard. What is the likely result?Wikipedia, LGA 1700, Heatsink design
On a land grid array (LGA) processor, where are the pins?Wikipedia, Land grid array, lead section
On a pin grid array (PGA) processor, where are the pins?Wikipedia, Pin grid array, lead section
What is a zero insertion force (ZIF) socket?Wikipedia, Zero insertion force, lead section
What is done to a ZIF socket before the processor is put in?Wikipedia, Zero insertion force, lead section
Which handling risk does an LGA processor remove, compared with a PGA one?Wikipedia, Land grid array, Use in microprocessors
Which sockets are preferred for chips with many pins?Wikipedia, CPU socket, lead section
With LGA, the fragile pins sit on the motherboard. Why does that soften the cost of installation damage?Wikipedia, Land grid array, Use in microprocessors
Virtualization support 7
A virtual machine will not use VT-x on a PC whose processor supports it. What must be done on some motherboards?Wikipedia, X86 virtualization, Intel virtualization (VT-x)
What does second-level address translation (SLAT) spare a hypervisor?Wikipedia, Second Level Address Translation, lead section
What is AMD's hardware virtualization extension called?Wikipedia, X86 virtualization, lead section
What is AMD's implementation of second-level address translation called?Wikipedia, Second Level Address Translation, lead section
What is Intel's hardware virtualization extension for x86 called?Wikipedia, X86 virtualization, Hardware-assisted virtualization
What is Intel's implementation of second-level address translation called?Wikipedia, Second Level Address Translation, lead section
Which processors offer the hardware-assisted virtualization that Hyper-V asks for?Microsoft Learn, System requirements for Hyper-V on Windows and Windows Server, General requirements
Cooling: fans, heat sinks, thermal paste and liquid 12
Does thermal paste hold a heat sink in place?Wikipedia, Thermal paste, lead section
How does a heat pipe move heat?Wikipedia, Computer cooling, Heat pipes and vapor chambers
What advantage does water have over air as a coolant?Wikipedia, Computer cooling, Liquid cooling
What does a processor's thermal design power (TDP) tell you when you choose a cooler?Wikipedia, Thermal design power, lead section
What is a computer fan used for?Wikipedia, Computer fan, lead section
What is a heat sink?Wikipedia, Heat sink, lead section
What is the main job of thermal paste between a CPU and its heat sink?Wikipedia, Thermal paste, lead section
What is the shape of a heat sink designed to maximize?Wikipedia, Heat sink, lead section
What is the usual heat transfer fluid in a desktop PC's liquid cooling loop?Wikipedia, Computer cooling, Liquid cooling
When are fans added to a computer's cooling?Wikipedia, Computer cooling, Fans
Which of these can fill the air gaps between a chip and its heat sink in place of thermal grease?Wikipedia, Computer cooling, Heat-sinks
Which pair of properties does thermal paste usually have?Wikipedia, Thermal paste, lead section
Overheating and other CPU symptoms 7
A demanding program pushes a CPU beyond its specified TDP. What does that do to the cooling system?Wikipedia, Thermal design power, Calculation
A laptop on battery feels sluggish because its CPU frequency is being lowered automatically. Which technique is at work?Wikipedia, Dynamic frequency scaling, lead section
A laptop powers itself off often, and its CPU heat sink is clogged with dust. What is happening?Wikipedia, Computer cooling, Generators of unwanted heat
A processor lowers its own clock speed because it has become too hot. What is that called?Wikipedia, Computer cooling, lead section
An inspection finds a case fan that is not spinning correctly. What does the fan most likely need?Wikipedia, Computer cooling, Damage prevention
How does dust harm cooling?Wikipedia, Computer cooling, Generators of unwanted heat
What is the best way to clean dust from case fans?Wikipedia, Computer cooling, Damage prevention
How this list was compiled: Own questions, written to the CPU items of objective 3.5 (CPU architecture, core configurations, socket types, virtualization support, cooling) and the overheating symptoms of objective 5.1 in CompTIA's A+ Core 1 (220-1201, V15) exam objectives, document version 4.0, linked from https://www.comptia.org/en-us/certifications/a/core-1-v15/ (read 2026-10-12). Facts were read on 2026-10-12 in Microsoft Learn and Microsoft Support pages (Windows memory limits, Windows 11 requirements, 32-bit and 64-bit Windows, emulation on Arm, Hyper-V requirements) and in Wikipedia's articles on x86-64, the ARM architecture family, multi-core processors, Hyper-Threading, big.LITTLE, land and pin grid arrays, zero insertion force sockets, x86 virtualization, second-level address translation, thermal paste, heat sinks, computer cooling and thermal design power. Each question names the text and section it was written from and links to it. Licence: Own work. Every question, wrong choice and explanation was written for this site from the public texts named in each question. Nothing is copied or reworded from a CompTIA exam, a released or sample question, or another practice product.
How it works
These 58 CPU questions are unofficial practice for CompTIA A+ Core 1. They were written for this site and are not taken from the exam, and the site has no tie to CompTIA.
Read the full guide
Where the CPU sits in the A+ objectives
Objective 3.5 of Core 1 (220-1201, V15; CompTIA's objectives read October 12, 2026) names CPU architecture: x86/x64, ARM and core configurations. The same objective lists AMD and Intel socket types, virtualization support, and cooling by fans, heat sinks, thermal paste or pads, and liquid.
What the questions rest on
Windows memory limits and 64-bit rules come from Microsoft's own pages; sockets, threads and cooling from the Wikipedia articles named under each answer. No question asks for a processor model number or a benchmark figure, because the objectives name none. Overheating, from objective 5.1, has seven questions.
A 32-bit edition of Windows 10 uses at most 4 GB of RAM, and Windows 11 has no 32-bit version.
With Hyper-Threading the operating system sees two logical processors for each physical core.
On an LGA processor the pins are in the socket. On a PGA processor they are on the chip, where they can bend.
Questions and answers
What is the difference between x86 and x64?
x64 (x86-64) extends the x86 instruction set to 64 bits. It supports far more memory, and its compatibility mode still runs 32-bit applications on a 64-bit operating system.
Does the A+ exam cover ARM processors?
Yes. Objective 3.5 lists ARM beside x86/x64. ARM is a family of RISC architectures whose low power draw and low heat suit phones, tablets and laptops.
Do I need to turn on virtualization in the BIOS?
On some motherboards, yes: Intel VT-x or AMD-V has to be enabled in the BIOS setup before a hypervisor can use it.
What is the passing score for CompTIA A+ Core 1?
675 on a scale of 100 to 900, by CompTIA's objectives for 220-1201. A scaled score is not a percent, and one objective is not the exam, so no result here says whether you would pass.