CompTIA A+ Core 2 (220-1202) Study Guide: Format, Domains, Cost, and How to Pass

CompTIA A+ Core 2 (220-1202) is the second of the two exams required to earn the CompTIA A+ certification, and it covers the software side of IT support: operating systems, security, software troubleshooting, and operational procedures. The exam gives you 90 minutes to answer a maximum of 90 questions — a mix of multiple-choice and performance-based questions (PBQs) — and you pass with a scaled score of 700 on a scale of 100–900. A voucher costs $274 (raised from $265 in May 2026), and you can sit the exam at a Pearson VUE test center or online from home. This guide walks through every domain, what to study for each, and a realistic six-week plan to get you to test day.

What the A+ certification is and where Core 2 fits

CompTIA A+ is the industry’s standard entry-level certification for IT support and help desk roles. It is vendor-neutral, meaning it tests concepts and skills that apply across Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS rather than one company’s product line. Employers use it as a baseline signal that a candidate can install, configure, secure, and troubleshoot the systems users actually touch.

Earning the A+ requires passing two separate exams:

• Core 1 (220-1201) — hardware, networking fundamentals, mobile devices, virtualization and cloud concepts, and hardware troubleshooting.
• Core 2 (220-1202) — operating systems, security, software troubleshooting, and operational procedures. That’s this exam.

You can take the two in either order, but most people take Core 1 first because the numbering suggests it. There’s a case for the reverse: if you’re already comfortable poking around Windows and phones but hazy on hardware, Core 2 may be the friendlier starting point. Either way, both must be passed within the same certification series to earn the credential, and your A+ is granted the day you pass the second exam.

Core 2 is best understood as the “software technician” exam. Where Core 1 asks what part to replace, Core 2 asks which menu to open, which setting to change, which security control fits, and — heavily — how to behave professionally while you do it.

Exam format at a glance

Detail	220-1202
Number of questions	Maximum of 90
Question types	Multiple-choice (single and multiple response), performance-based questions
Time limit	90 minutes
Passing score	700 (on a scale of 100–900)
Voucher price	$274 (USD)
Delivery	Pearson VUE test centers or OnVUE online proctoring
Recommended experience	About 12 months of hands-on IT support experience (not required)

Two format notes worth internalizing before test day. First, PBQs — interactive items that ask you to configure something, drag items into order, or work through a simulated interface — usually appear at the front of the exam and eat time disproportionately. A common tactic is to flag them, clear the multiple-choice questions, and return with the time you’ve banked. Second, the scaled 700/900 score does not translate to “78% correct”; questions are weighted, so ignore the arithmetic and aim to be solid everywhere rather than perfect somewhere.

The four domains, in depth

Core 2 splits its objectives across four domains with fixed weights: Operating Systems (28%), Security (28%), Software Troubleshooting (23%), and Operational Procedures (21%). The weights are close enough that nothing is safe to skip — even the “soft skills” domain is worth roughly a fifth of your score.

Domain 1: Operating Systems (28%)

This is the largest domain (tied with Security), and it is overwhelmingly a Windows domain with supporting coverage of macOS, Linux, ChromeOS, and mobile platforms. Start with the landscape itself — the common OS types, their purposes, and cross-platform file compatibility — because the exam expects you to know which system fits which job and why a Windows-only file won’t open on a bare Mac.

From there, Windows administration is the meat:

• Editions and installs. Know what separates Windows Home, Pro, and Enterprise — BitLocker, Remote Desktop hosting, and domain join are the classic differentiators — and the rules around 32-bit vs 64-bit Windows, in-place upgrades, and clean installs, including which paths preserve applications and data and which wipe the slate.
• Built-in tools. Task Manager’s tabs (Processes, Performance, Users, Details, Services) are tested by function — which tab shows you per-user resource consumption, which lets you set process priority. The same goes for msconfig, clean boot, and Safe Mode as a methodology for isolating software conflicts.
• Configuration surfaces. Windows still splits settings between the legacy Control Panel and the modern Settings app, and the exam tests both: the Control Panel applets a technician actually uses (Device Manager, Programs and Features, Ease of Access, Internet Options) and the Settings app’s Accessibility, Privacy, and Accounts pages. Add File Explorer options — showing hidden files and file extensions is a recurring setup step in troubleshooting scenarios — and power options, where the Sleep vs Hibernate distinction and Fast Startup’s quirks are reliable question fodder.
• Networking from the client side. Expect scenarios on Windows network profiles and client connections: why Public vs Private profile changes discovery and firewall behavior, how to set a static IP, and what an enterprise Wi-Fi connection needs that a home one doesn’t.
• Application-layer services. Two smaller but testable areas round out the domain: email protocols — IMAP vs POP3, their ports, and multi-device behavior — and cloud storage synchronization and collaboration, including selective sync, version history, and why a sync client is not a backup.

Domain 2: Security (28%)

Core 2’s Security domain is not the Security+ exam in miniature — it’s security at the help-desk and small-office level. The center of gravity is wireless and SOHO (small office/home office) configuration, because that’s what an A+ technician actually secures.

Wireless protocols come first. You need WPA2 vs WPA3 cold — AES (Advanced Encryption Standard), SAE (Simultaneous Authentication of Equals), and what each generation fixed — and the matching negative knowledge: why WEP, TKIP, and WPS are considered broken and must be disabled or avoided. The exam loves asking for the “most secure available option” in a router’s dropdown, which is really a ranking question across these protocols.

Router and network configuration questions follow the same practical bent:

• SOHO router hardening: changing default admin credentials, disabling UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) and remote management, and firmware updates.
• The honest limits of SSID hiding and MAC filtering — both appear constantly as tempting-but-wrong answers, and the exam wants you to know what they do and don’t protect against.
• Guest network setup and public hotspot risks, including client isolation and the evil twin attack pattern.

On the endpoint side, know software firewalls and workstation malware defense — what a host firewall filters, how anti-malware layers with it, and which control addresses which threat. Browser hygiene gets its own objective coverage too: when and why to clear cache, cookies, and site data, and what each of those actually stores.

Beyond these, the domain covers logical security concepts (authentication factors, least privilege), physical security (locks, badges, mantraps), Active Directory basics, and workstation hardening — areas where steady practice-question exposure closes the gaps quickly.

Domain 3: Software Troubleshooting (23%)

This domain hands you symptoms and asks for causes and next steps. It splits roughly into Windows problems and mobile problems.

On Windows, the flagship objective is the malware removal procedure — a fixed, ordered sequence the exam tests relentlessly. Learn the malware removal steps and where System Restore fits (disabling System Restore during remediation, re-enabling and creating a fresh point after) until you can reorder a scrambled list without hesitation. Pair it with troubleshooting Windows Update failures — stuck caches, stopped services, and repairing updates after a malware cleanup — since update failures are both a standalone symptom and a post-infection follow-up.

The mobile half is scenario city. Recognize the diagnostic patterns for:

• A phone battery draining fast — screen brightness, rogue apps, radios hunting for signal, battery health.
• iPhone app and OS update problems — force-closing frozen apps, OS-version compatibility floors, and failed update recovery.
• Data usage limits and overages — reading per-app cellular data, setting warnings and caps, and spotting the app responsible for an overage.
• Connectivity failures — Wi-Fi connected but no internet, no-SIM errors, airplane-mode mishaps, and the reset ladder from toggling radios to network-settings resets.
• Unexplained network traffic — deciding whether high background data is a legitimate update or a malware indicator, and what to check before you decide.

Troubleshooting questions reward method over memorization: identify the symptom’s layer, find the least-invasive check first, escalate destructiveness only as needed. If two answers both “would work,” the exam wants the one a competent tech would try first.

Domain 4: Operational Procedures (21%)

Candidates lose easy points here by dismissing it as common sense. It isn’t — it’s tested vocabulary and tested judgment, and at 21% it can decide a borderline attempt.

Remote work tooling is genuinely technical: know VNC (Virtual Network Computing), SSH tunneling, and ad hoc screen sharing — which tool fits which support scenario and what each exposes — plus RMM (remote monitoring and management) platforms and third-party remote access, where the exam cares about monitoring capabilities, security controls, and session auditing.

The rest is professional conduct, and the exam has a very specific model of the ideal technician:

• Customer communication: active listening, avoiding jargon with non-technical users, setting expectations about timelines, and following up.
• On-site professionalism: appearance, punctuality, avoiding distractions (the phone stays in the pocket), and respecting customer property and company policy.
• De-escalating difficult situations: don’t argue, don’t take it personally, don’t minimize the problem — clarify, empathize, and get to the fix.

New in the 1202 series, AI shows up as an operational topic: AI use cases, training data, bias, and limitations at the awareness level a technician needs — what AI tools are good for, why their outputs need verification, and what data you shouldn’t feed them. The domain also carries safety procedures, environmental controls, documentation and ticketing, change management basics, and backup concepts; these are quick wins once you’ve seen the standard question patterns.

Registering and scheduling the exam

The mechanics are simple:

1. Buy a voucher ($274) from the CompTIA store, or buy it bundled with training. Watch for student discounts through CompTIA’s academic store if you’re eligible.
2. Create a Pearson VUE account and schedule 220-1202. Pearson VUE is CompTIA’s exclusive delivery partner.
3. Choose your delivery mode. Test centers offer a controlled environment and no tech-setup risk. OnVUE online proctoring lets you test from home, but you’ll need a webcam, a reliable connection, a private room you can show on camera, and a cleared desk — run the system test on the exact machine and network you’ll use, days in advance.
4. Bring identification. You’ll need a valid government-issued photo ID whose name matches your registration.

You can reschedule through Pearson VUE up to 24 hours before your appointment without penalty; inside 24 hours you forfeit the voucher. If you don’t pass, CompTIA requires no waiting period before a second attempt, but a third or later attempt requires a 14-day wait.

A six-week study plan

This plan assumes roughly 8–10 hours per week and no urgent deadline. Compress or stretch to fit — the sequence matters more than the calendar.

Week	Focus	What “done” looks like
1	Operating Systems, part 1	OS types, Windows editions, install/upgrade paths; hands-on time in Task Manager, msconfig, Safe Mode
2	Operating Systems, part 2	Control Panel and Settings surfaces, network configuration, power options, email protocols, cloud sync; first domain-scoped practice quiz
3	Security	Wireless protocol ranking, SOHO router hardening, endpoint defenses; practice quiz on Security items
4	Software Troubleshooting	Malware removal order memorized; Windows Update and mobile scenario patterns; practice quiz on troubleshooting items
5	Operational Procedures + first full practice exam	Remote tools, conduct scenarios, AI basics; take a full timed 90-question practice exam and log every miss
6	Remediation and PBQ drills	Re-study every missed objective, retake full exams until you’re consistently comfortable above the passing threshold, drill PBQ-style tasks

Three habits multiply the value of those hours. First, do everything hands-on that can be done hands-on — open every Task Manager tab, actually toggle a network profile, walk a router’s admin interface. Core 2 rewards people who have touched the menus. Second, practice questions are diagnostic instruments, not just rehearsal: every wrong answer names an objective you owe another pass. Third, write your own quick-reference summaries — condensing a topic into six bullets is the fastest proof you actually understand it.

The recommended 12 months of experience is a guideline, not a gate. Plenty of candidates pass without professional experience by substituting deliberate lab time — a spare Windows machine or a free virtualization tool covers most of what the exam expects you to have touched.

If you’re taking both exams, plan the pair deliberately. Some candidates schedule Core 1 and Core 2 a few weeks apart to keep momentum; others book them the same day to get it over with. The same-day route works best when your practice-exam scores on both are already comfortable, because mental fatigue in the second sitting is real. Whatever you choose, put the appointment on the calendar early — a booked exam date is the single most effective procrastination killer in certification study.

Exam-day tips

• Triage the PBQs. Skim each one; if it isn’t obvious, flag it, finish the multiple choice, and come back. Ninety minutes is adequate but not generous.
• Read for the superlative. “MOST likely,” “BEST,” “FIRST,” and “NEXT” are doing heavy lifting. Several answers may be true; only one matches the qualifier.
• Answer everything. There is no penalty for guessing. An unanswered question is a guaranteed zero.
• Think like the ideal technician on conduct questions. The exam’s model tech never argues, never blames, documents everything, and follows policy even when a shortcut beckons.
• Use elimination on protocol and tool questions. Even partial knowledge usually kills two options; a coin flip between two beats one among four.
• Settle your logistics the day before. Test center: know the route and arrive early. OnVUE: rerun the system test, charge or plug in, and clear the room and desk.
• Don’t self-grade mid-exam. The scaled scoring makes running mental tallies meaningless. Bank the question, move on.

Quick reference

• 220-1202 is the software-side half of the CompTIA A+; both Core 1 and Core 2 are required for certification.
• Format: up to 90 questions, 90 minutes, multiple-choice plus performance-based questions.
• Passing score: 700 on a 100–900 scale. Voucher: $274.
• Domains and weights: Operating Systems 28%, Security 28%, Software Troubleshooting 23%, Operational Procedures 21%.
• Delivery: Pearson VUE test center or OnVUE online proctoring; government photo ID required.
• Highest-yield memorization: the malware removal order, wireless security protocol ranking, Windows edition feature splits, and Task Manager tab functions.
• Operational Procedures is 21% of the exam — study the conduct and remote-tooling objectives like any other domain.
• Six weeks at 8–10 hours per week is a realistic timeline; finish with full timed practice exams and remediate every miss.