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SK0-004 · Question #154

A technician is asked to install an additional NIC in a server. Which of the following hardware considerations would be BEST for the technician to make?

The correct answer is B. Bus type and speed. When installing a NIC, verifying bus type and speed compatibility with an available expansion slot is the critical hardware consideration to ensure physical and electrical compatibility.

Server hardware installation and management

Question

A technician is asked to install an additional NIC in a server. Which of the following hardware considerations would be BEST for the technician to make?

Options

  • APower consumption
  • BBus type and speed
  • CCPU stepping
  • DCAS latency

How the community answered

(40 responses)
  • A
    5% (2)
  • B
    93% (37)
  • D
    3% (1)

Why each option

When installing a NIC, verifying bus type and speed compatibility with an available expansion slot is the critical hardware consideration to ensure physical and electrical compatibility.

APower consumption

While power consumption is a general server component consideration, it is not the primary hardware compatibility factor when selecting and seating a NIC in an expansion slot.

BBus type and speedCorrect

NICs connect to the server motherboard through an expansion bus such as PCIe, and both the slot form factor (x1, x4, x8, x16) and the generation speed (PCIe Gen 3, Gen 4) must match the available slots on the motherboard. An incompatible bus type will physically prevent installation, and a speed mismatch can force the adapter to operate at a reduced or unsupported data rate, degrading network throughput.

CCPU stepping

CPU stepping refers to the hardware revision level of a processor silicon die and has no direct bearing on NIC selection, installation, or slot compatibility.

DCAS latency

CAS latency is a RAM timing parameter that describes memory access delay cycles and is entirely irrelevant to network adapter hardware compatibility.

Concept tested: NIC installation hardware compatibility - expansion bus type and speed

Topics

#NIC installation#bus type#hardware compatibility#expansion slot

Community Discussion

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