4.1 KiB
4.1 KiB
CompTIA A+ Core 2 Final Sprint Schedule
Current Date: June 19, 2026
Primary Exam: July 7, 2026 — 18 days
Hard Deadline: July 17, 2026 — retake window if July 7 is not a pass
What's Been Completed
| Date | Task | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Before June 11 | All lessons, labs, quizzes created — OS (1–11), SEC (1–11), TRB (1–4), OPS (1–10) | ✅ Done |
| June 11 | OS-5 quiz: 7/7. Lab pending. | ✅ Done |
| June 17 | SEC-6 (10-Step Malware Removal) studied. Updated OS-4 with DISM/bootrec/taskkill. FLASH_NOTES.md created. Sybex baseline: ~50% — "Next Step" logic identified as weak area. | ✅ Done |
| June 18 | OS-1 and OS-2 quizzes | ✅ Done |
Sprint to July 7
Week 1 — Core Domains (June 19–23)
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June 19 (Today):
- Study: Windows Admin Tools (Disk Mgmt, Event Viewer, Performance Monitor)
- Lab: OS-3 Admin Tools Practice
- Drill: 3 "Next Step" scenarios
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June 20:
- Study: Command Line (sfc, dism, chkdsk, gpupdate, bootrec, taskkill)
- Lab: OS-4 Command Line Practice
- Drill: SFC vs DISM trap — know when to switch
-
June 21:
- Study: macOS & Linux client tools
- Quiz: OS-8 and OS-9
- Note: macOS lab optional (use friend's Mac if available)
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June 22:
- Study: Windows Networking (IP config, DNS, firewall, shares)
- Quiz: OS-7
- Drill: "Works by IP but not by name" scenario
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June 23:
- Study: Workstation Hardening + Data Destruction
- Quiz: SEC-7 and SEC-9
- Drill: Order of operations for secure disposal
Week 2 — Troubleshooting + Procedures (June 24–30)
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June 24:
- Study: Troubleshooting Windows OS (boot errors, BSOD, profile issues)
- Quiz: TRB-1
- Drill: "Clicking hard drive = chkdsk /r" vs "BCD error = bootrec /rebuildbcd"
-
June 25:
- Study: Troubleshooting Mobile OS & Apps
- Quiz: TRB-2
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June 26:
- Study: Operational Procedures — Documentation, Ticketing, SLAs
- Quiz: OPS-1
- Note: Domain 4 is 21% — do not skip
-
June 27:
- Study: Change Management + Backup/Recovery
- Quiz: OPS-2 and OPS-3
-
June 28:
- Study: Scripting Basics (Batch, PowerShell, Bash syntax)
- Quiz: OPS-8
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June 29:
- Study: Professionalism, Safety (ESD), AI Concepts
- Quiz: OPS-7 and OPS-10
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June 30:
- Mid-Sprint Full Practice Exam (Professor Messer)
- Analyze every wrong answer — log weak domains
Final Push (July 1–7)
- July 1: Targeted review of weak areas from June 30 exam
- July 2: Full Practice Exam (Sybex) — hardest questions, aim for explanation accuracy
- July 3: PBQ Marathon — Disk Management, Help Desk, Command Line simulations
- July 4: Acronyms, port numbers, and "Next Step" logic review
- July 5: Final Full Practice Exam — simulate real conditions (90 min, no notes)
- July 6: Light review only — 10-Step Malware Removal and Troubleshooting Methodology
- July 7: EXAM DAY. Trust the process.
Retake Window: July 8–17 (Only if July 7 is Not a Pass)
- July 8: Review score report — identify exact weak objectives
- July 9–10: Intensive drill on the 2–3 weakest objectives only
- July 11: Full practice exam focused on weak domains
- July 12–13: PBQ simulations + "Next Step" scenario drilling
- July 14: Full timed practice exam — aim for 750+
- July 15: Light review — acronyms, port numbers, order-of-operations
- July 16: Rest. Review the one thing you feel least confident about.
- July 17: RETAKE EXAM — HARD DEADLINE. Must pass today.
Domain Tracking
- Domain 1.0 Operating Systems — 28%
- Domain 2.0 Security — 28%
- Domain 3.0 Software Troubleshooting — 23%
- Domain 4.0 Operational Procedures — 21%
Known Weak Areas (from June 17 Sybex baseline)
- "Next Step" troubleshooting logic — official CompTIA order matters
- SFC vs DISM (when SFC fails → cache corrupt → run DISM RestoreHealth)
- Malware response order: quarantine BEFORE scanning
- Disk failures: clicking/missing = chkdsk /r vs BCD error = bootrec /rebuildbcd
- DNS: works by IP not name = nslookup
- Domain 4 Operational Procedures — highest risk for neglect