220-1101 Question 45
Single answerCorporateA technician is preparing 25 new laptops for employees in a corporate office. The company requires each system to have the same approved applications, security settings, and operating system configuration. Management also wants the deployment completed as quickly as possible with minimal manual setup on each device. Which of the following is the BEST approach?
- A
Configure each laptop manually using the default operating system installation and install applications one at a time
- B
Create a standard system image from a properly configured reference laptop and deploy that image to the remaining laptops
- C
Ask each employee to complete the initial setup and download the required applications after receiving the laptop
- D
Use System Restore after setup on each laptop to return to a known-good corporate configuration if changes occur
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B
Explanation
In a corporate environment, technicians commonly use a standardized master image to deploy multiple systems quickly and consistently. This aligns with A+ Core 1 objectives related to workstation deployment methods and best practices in business settings. Imaging helps ensure uniform operating system configuration, approved application sets, and security baselines across all devices. Microsoft deployment best practices and common enterprise IT procedures support using reference images and deployment tools for efficient provisioning, rather than manual per-device setup or user-led configuration.
- A. Incorrect.
This is incorrect because manually configuring every laptop is time-consuming, inconsistent, and prone to human error. In a corporate environment, standardized builds are typically used to ensure all systems have the same approved software, settings, and patches. While manual setup may work for one or two devices, it is not the best solution for 25 systems when speed and consistency are required.
- B. Correct.
This is correct because creating and deploying a standard image is a common enterprise best practice for provisioning multiple identical systems efficiently. A reference laptop can be configured with the approved operating system, device drivers, applications, and baseline settings, and then that image can be deployed to the rest of the laptops. This reduces deployment time, improves consistency, and helps meet corporate standardization requirements.
- C. Incorrect.
This is incorrect because allowing end users to perform setup introduces inconsistency, increases support calls, and creates security and compliance risks. Employees may skip required settings, install the wrong applications, or fail to apply corporate standards properly. In a managed corporate environment, IT should perform or automate provisioning rather than rely on users.
- D. Incorrect.
This is incorrect because System Restore is designed to roll back certain system changes on an individual Windows installation, not to deploy a standardized corporate build across many new devices. It does not replace imaging or mass deployment methods. Someone might choose this option because it sounds like it provides a known-good state, but it is not intended for initial enterprise provisioning.