220-1102 Question 54
Single answerHomeA technician is helping a remote employee who uses a Windows 11 Home laptop on a home network. The employee wants to access a shared folder on their desktop PC from the laptop while both devices are connected to the same home Wi-Fi. The technician confirms both systems can browse the internet, but the laptop cannot discover or open the desktop's shared folder. Which action should the technician take FIRST to enable basic home file sharing?
- A
Change the network profile on the desktop PC from Public to Private
- B
Join both systems to an Active Directory domain
- C
Configure Remote Desktop on the desktop PC
- D
Replace the home router with a business-class firewall appliance
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
In a home environment, Windows file sharing typically depends on the network being treated as trusted. Microsoft best practices for Windows networking indicate that the Private profile is intended for trusted networks such as home or workplace environments, while the Public profile applies stricter discovery and sharing restrictions. When a device cannot discover shared resources on a home network, the first step is to verify the network profile is set to Private, then confirm Network Discovery and File and Printer Sharing are enabled and that the appropriate firewall rules permit SMB traffic. Active Directory and enterprise-grade hardware are not required for simple home peer-to-peer sharing.
- A. Correct.
Correct. On Windows 10/11, home file sharing and device discovery work best when the network profile is set to Private rather than Public. The Public profile is more restrictive and commonly disables or limits network discovery and file/printer sharing behavior for security reasons. In a trusted home network scenario, changing the profile to Private is the first practical troubleshooting step before checking specific share and firewall settings.
- B. Incorrect.
Incorrect. Windows Home editions cannot join an Active Directory domain in the way Windows Pro, Enterprise, or Education editions can. More importantly, domain membership is not required for basic peer-to-peer file sharing on a home network. This option reflects a common misconception that all network sharing requires centralized domain management.
- C. Incorrect.
Incorrect. Remote Desktop allows remote control of a system, not access to shared folders for standard home file sharing. Also, Windows Home can act as a Remote Desktop client but not as a host in the same way as Windows Pro. A candidate might choose this because it sounds like a way to 'access another computer,' but it does not address the file-sharing problem described.
- D. Incorrect.
Incorrect. Replacing the router is unnecessary and not the first step. Since both devices already have internet connectivity on the same Wi-Fi, the issue is more likely related to local Windows network settings, such as network profile, discovery, sharing, or firewall configuration. This distractor represents overcomplicating a common home networking issue.