With the release of the new exam objectives for their hugely popular A+
certification, CompTIA substantially updated them for a more mobile and
security-conscious business environment. The new A+ objectives imply higher
expectations for the entry level IT-professional, reflecting the more
competitive atmosphere of a tight job market. Overall, the objectives are more
detailed and more rigorous, now expecting a full year of hands on experience, up
from a mere 500 hours, though there are no explicit prerequisites. Laptops and
mobile devices have their own categories now, the latter being a wholly new area
of support. Virtualization support is now also an emphasized skill, as is
configuring and troubleshooting network connections, and greater security. The
exams have been reorganized as well. 220-801, the successor to 220-701:
Essentials, now focuses on hardware and networking, while 802 focuses on OS
support, troubleshooting, and security. Let's take a look at a
domain-by-domain breakdown:
CompTIA A+ 220-801
220-801 Hardware consolidates both the Hardware section from 801 and 802 and
comprises 40% of the exam. In 701, the emphasis was on identification and
comparison of parts, where here the focus is on configuration and installation,
with a larger emphasis on BIOS configuration. The types of hardware the exam
taker is expected to be familiar with has expanded as well. Partly is the
obvious inclusion of new technologies - ITX and PCI-X motherboards, micro- and
mini-SDs, and new displays – LED, OLED, and projectors. But also included is
gaming equipment, including GPUs, joysticks, and gamepads. Furthermore, the
examinee will be expected to evaluate hardware for customer needs, including
gaming arrays, graphic workstations, home theater PCs, standard thick and thin
clients, and virtualization workstations. 220-801 Network again consolidates the
Networking categories of 701 and 702. The number of protocols, network types,
and topologies covered has increased. Now included are LDAP, SNMP, SMB, SSH,
SFTP protocols; UDP; PAN and MAN networks; and mesh, ring, bus, star, and hybrid
topologies. Router installation is now an explicit domain task. 220-801 Laptops
reads a lot like the hardware categories, with the examinee needing to identify,
compare, install, and configure components. But this time, they are all specific
to laptop setups, with an emphasis on displays and expansion media. 220-801
Printers consolidates the Printers subsections from the 701 and 702 Hardware
domains. 220-801 Operational Procedures consolidates the section of the same
name from 701 along with miscellaneous operational and safety procedures found
throughout 701 and 702. A greater emphasis is placed on environmental impact and
controls, and maintaining a safe operating environment.
CompTIA A+ 220-802
220-802 Operating Systems again consolidates from both 701 and 702. Windows 2000 is no longer explicitly supported, with XP, Vista, and 7 being the primary focus, including 7 Enterprise for the first time.. It is unclear when Windows 8, due to be released in October will be included in CompTIA exams. Several more command line tools are added, including ROBOCOPY, TASKKILL, NBTSTAT, BOOTREC, SHUTDOWN, TASKLIST, DEL, FDISK, DISKPART, Fixboot, and Fixmbr. The examinee should expect to be thoroughly familiar with all OS features, tools, and control panel options, including those unique to the three explicitly supported OSes. A greater emphasis is placed on security configuration, and virtualization is a new topic to this section as well. 220-802 Security is more comprehensive than the sections found in 701 and 702. It emphasizes physical security of devices, as well as proper disposal of sensitive hardware. The examinee will be familiar with common security threats, as well as be able to educate the user on best practices. Given a scenario, the examinee will be able to secure a small office/home office network. 220-802 Mobile Devices contains completely new material, though it only represents 9% of the exam contents. This domain covers both the iOS and Android operating system, and the examinee is expected to identify and explain device features, compare and contrast security features and hardware, and configure basic connectivity setup, including establishing a network connection, e-mail, and data synchronization. The hardware lists explicitly include iPad and Android tablets as training devices. 220-802 Troubleshooting both consolidates from 701 and 702 and expands upon them. Scenario-based questions are the core here, along with some theory of troubleshooting. New topics include network issues, both hardware and software, security issues such as viruses and malware and system recovery, and laptop issues, including disassembly for repair. Hardware issues, including RAID arrays, operating system issues, video/display issues, and printer issues make up the remainder. Besides the standard multiple choice questions, CompTIA is planning on including scenario simulation questions, performing tasks using a command line shell or other simulated software. If you've been studying for 701 and 702, don't worry – those tests will still be offered until August 2013.
The Biggest Differences Between 701/702 and 801/802:
To summarize, the CompTIA A+ 220-801 and 220-802 exams:
The Differences Between CompTIA A+ 220-701 and 220-801
The CompTIA 220-801 exam:
Hardware now focuses more on configuration than identification, so it contains material that was once in 702. Additionally, this exam covers:
New Terms: ITX and PCI-X motherboards, north bridge/south bridge chipsets; BD-R/BD-RE, micro-SD, mini-SD, xD, and DL DVD storage media, GPU, Bluetooth, plasma, LED, projector, and OLED monitors; joysticks and gamepads
Networking is now more of a mini Network+ and consolidates content from 702. It covers:
New Terms: LDAP, SNMP, SMB, SSH, SFTP protocols; UDP; PAN and MAN networks;
mesh, ring, bus, star, hybrid topologies
Printers is now similar to the printer content in the 701 Hardware section.
Additionally, this section tests:
The Differences Between CompTIA A+ 220-702 and 220-802
The CompTIA 220-802 exam:
Additionally, the section covers:
Security now covers:
Mobile Devices is a completely new category covering:
Troubleshooting is also a new category, covering lots of stuff from 701, but with more "theory" and scenario-based questions. It covers:
New Terms: ACL, A/V, CAPTCHA, CCFL, CNR, CRIMM, HAV, HTTPC, MIMO, PII, PoS,
SFF, TKIP, VM
- See more at:
http://www.practicequiz.com/resources/differences-between-comptia-220-701-220-702-and-220-801-220-802