Windows Settings & Configuration

Windows has two places to configure the operating system: the legacy Control Panel (present since Windows 95, still available in Windows 10 and 11) and the modern Settings app (introduced in Windows 8, progressively replacing Control Panel). Both are tested on 220-1202. Some tasks exist only in Control Panel, some only in Settings, and many in both — a technician needs to know where to look for each one.

Control Panel

Access Control Panel by searching "Control Panel" in the Start menu or typing control in the Run dialog (Win+R). The items below are the ones from the 220-1202 objective — know what each one does and what a technician uses it for.

Internet Options — Configures legacy Internet Explorer proxy settings, security zones, trusted/restricted site lists, and default browser behavior. Still present for enterprise compatibility and Group Policy integration. Modern browsers manage most of these settings internally, but Internet Options remains the exam-tested location for proxy configuration when navigating via Control Panel.

Devices and Printers — A visual view of all printers and connected devices. Add a local or network printer here, view device status, and set a printer as default. When a printer fails to appear in application print dialogs, check here first to confirm Windows has detected it.

Programs and Features — Lists all installed applications with options to uninstall, change, or repair each one. Also contains "View installed updates" for reviewing and removing Windows Updates. This is the Control Panel entry point for removing software.

Network and Sharing Center — Shows current network connection status and type (private, public, domain). Key links: "Change adapter settings" (opens the Network Connections view to configure IP address, DNS, and adapter properties) and "Set up a new connection." Overlaps with Settings → Network & Internet.

System — Shows computer name, domain or workgroup membership, Windows edition, and hardware summary (CPU, RAM). Contains links to Change settings (rename the computer, join/leave a domain or workgroup), Advanced system settings (performance options, virtual memory, user profiles, remote desktop), and Device Manager. For A+, System is the Control Panel starting point for computer renaming and domain join/leave.

Windows Defender Firewall — Enable or disable the firewall per network profile (private, public), allow specific applications through the firewall, and link to "Advanced settings" (Windows Defender Firewall with Advanced Security) for detailed inbound and outbound rule management. The most common technician task: "Allow an app or feature through Windows Defender Firewall." Deep firewall rule configuration is in the Security module.

Mail — Configures the MAPI mail profile for desktop mail clients such as Microsoft Outlook. Used when setting up Outlook for the first time or when troubleshooting a corrupt profile. Not relevant for web-based or mobile email.

Sound — Manages audio devices. Set the default playback device (speakers, headphones), configure the default recording device (microphone), adjust volume levels per application, configure audio enhancements, and set the communications tab behavior (duck other sounds during voice calls).

User Accounts — The legacy interface for managing local accounts: change account type between Standard User and Administrator, change the account name or picture, and manage Credential Manager (stored passwords for network resources). Overlaps with Settings → Accounts.

Device Manager — The same devmgmt.msc tool covered in L4. Accessible from Control Panel as a convenience link; the tool and its capabilities are unchanged. See L4 for the full reference.

Indexing Options — Configures which folders Windows Search indexes and which file types are included. If a user's file cannot be found through search even though it exists, its location may not be indexed. Add the folder here or rebuild the index (Advanced → Rebuild) to repair stale or corrupted results.

Administrative Tools — A shortcut folder containing links to MMC snap-ins: Computer Management, Event Viewer, Services, Task Scheduler, Performance Monitor, and others. These are the tools covered in L4. Administrative Tools is a navigation shortcut — not a separate feature.

File Explorer Options (Folder Options)

Access via File Explorer → View menu → Options, or search "File Explorer Options" in the Start menu. Two settings here are exam-critical.

Show hidden files, folders, and drives — Files with the "hidden" attribute set are invisible in File Explorer by default. Enabling this option reveals them. Technicians commonly need this to access AppData folders, view hidden configuration files, or investigate malware that installs to hidden locations.

Hide extensions for known file types — When this option is enabled (the Windows default), File Explorer hides the file extension for any file type Windows recognizes. A file named invoice.pdf.exe appears as invoice.pdf — the .exe extension is hidden because .exe is a known file type.

General options — Set where File Explorer opens by default (Quick access or This PC); configure whether folders open in the same window or a new one; choose single-click versus double-click to open items.

View options — The expanded View tab controls visibility of file extensions, hidden files, protected operating system files, and display preferences such as the full path in the title bar.

Power Options

Access via Control Panel → Power Options or Settings → System → Power & sleep. The hibernate vs. sleep distinction is among the most directly tested power concepts on the A+ exam.

Hibernate

Hibernate writes the entire contents of RAM to a file on disk (hiberfil.sys) and then powers off the computer completely. No power is drawn while hibernating. When the computer is powered on, Windows reads hiberfil.sys back into RAM and restores the session exactly as it was — every open application and document.

Key properties:

• No power draw after entering hibernate
• Session survives complete power loss (unplugged, battery removed, power outage) — the state is on disk
• Resume is slower than sleep — data must be read from disk back into RAM
• Requires disk space approximately equal to the installed RAM for hiberfil.sys

Sleep (Suspend)

Sleep keeps RAM powered in a low-power state. The CPU, display, and most subsystems power down, but the RAM modules stay on to preserve their contents. Resume is near-instant because the data never left RAM.

Key properties:

• Near-instant resume — RAM contents are already in place
• Requires continuous power (minimal, but continuous) to keep RAM alive
• Power loss = lost RAM contents — if the battery dies, power is cut, or an outage occurs while the system is sleeping, unsaved work is gone

Standby

"Standby" is legacy Windows XP terminology for what Windows 10 and 11 call "Sleep." Both refer to the same low-power RAM-stays-powered state. The term "Standby" appears in older documentation, hardware user guides, and some technician materials. For A+ exam purposes, treat Standby and Sleep as the same state.

Power Plans

Predefined profiles that balance performance against power consumption:

• Balanced — adjusts CPU speed and display brightness dynamically; the default for most machines
• Power Saver — reduces CPU performance ceiling and aggressively dims the display to maximize battery duration; appropriate for extended battery operation
• High Performance — maintains CPU at or near maximum speed; prevents display dimming; appropriate for desktop workstations doing sustained processing

Custom plans can be created by copying and modifying any of the three defaults.

Lid Close Action and Power Button Behavior

In Power Options → "Choose what the power buttons do" and "Choose what closing the lid does," each event can trigger a different action — Sleep, Hibernate, Shut down, or Do nothing — and can be configured separately for On battery and Plugged in. A common enterprise configuration: close the lid while plugged in → Do nothing (using the laptop as a fixed workstation with external monitors).

Fast Startup

Fast Startup is a hybrid shutdown mode. When enabled and the user clicks Shut Down, Windows performs a partial hibernate: it saves the kernel session to the hibernation file and powers off. On the next boot, Windows reloads the kernel session from disk rather than re-initializing the kernel from scratch, making startup noticeably faster.

Important difference from Restart: clicking Restart performs a full shutdown and cold boot — Fast Startup does not affect the Restart path.

USB Selective Suspend

Windows can individually suspend USB host controller ports when connected devices are idle, reducing power draw. Most devices resume cleanly when accessed again, but some USB devices do not properly respond to the resume signal and appear disconnected or unresponsive. The fix: disable USB selective suspend in Power Options → Change plan settings → Change advanced power settings → USB settings → USB selective suspend setting.

The Settings App

The modern Settings app (shortcut: Win+I) is the preferred configuration interface in Windows 10 and 11. Windows 11 reorganized the top-level sections compared to Windows 10 — the groupings and names differ, but the functionality largely overlaps. Both layouts are in scope for 220-1202.

System — Display (resolution, brightness, orientation, multiple monitors), Sound (output/input device selection, volume), Notifications (per-app notification controls), Power & sleep (quick access to sleep/hibernate timers), Storage (usage breakdown by category, Storage Sense configuration), and About (device name, processor, RAM, Windows edition, and version number). About is the modern quick-reference for hardware specs and Windows version — equivalent to Control Panel → System.

Devices (Windows 10) / Bluetooth & devices (Windows 11) — Bluetooth pairing, connected printers and scanners, mouse settings, touchpad gestures, AutoPlay settings.

Network & Internet — Wi-Fi connection selection and status, Ethernet adapter status, VPN connections, proxy configuration (manual proxy server or PAC file URL), and data usage tracking. Overlaps with Control Panel → Network and Sharing Center.

Personalization — Desktop wallpaper, Windows color scheme (light/dark mode, accent colors), lock screen image, Start menu layout, taskbar behavior and icon pinning, themes. Rarely touched during troubleshooting but commonly configured during machine setup.

Apps — Installed apps list (search, sort, uninstall), default apps (configure which app opens each file type or protocol), optional features (add/remove Windows components such as the OpenSSH client), and startup apps (identical functionality to Task Manager → Startup tab). Overlaps with Control Panel → Programs and Features.

Accounts — Your Info (Microsoft Account vs. local account status), Sign-in options (Windows Hello face/fingerprint, PIN, password, security key), Email & accounts (accounts synced to Mail and Calendar apps), Family & other users (add/remove users, change account type between Standard and Administrator), and Sync settings.

Time & Language — Date and time (manual entry or automatic via time server), time zone, region settings (currency format, date format by locale), language packs, and keyboard layout.

Gaming — Game Bar overlay (Win+G), Game Mode (prioritizes GPU/CPU resources for games by reducing background activity), and Captures (clip and screenshot recording location and quality). Typically not configured in enterprise environments.

Ease of Access (Windows 10) / Accessibility (Windows 11) — Vision (display scaling, high contrast, color filters, Narrator screen reader), Hearing (visual notifications for sounds, closed captions), and Interaction (keyboard shortcuts, Sticky Keys, Filter Keys, Mouse Keys, and on-screen keyboard).

Privacy (Windows 10) / Privacy & security (Windows 11) — Per-app permissions for sensitive hardware and data: location, camera, microphone, contacts, calendar, call history, messages. Also controls Windows diagnostic data level and advertising ID. When an app cannot access the camera or microphone, check here first — Windows grants or denies app access at the OS level independent of the app's own settings.

Update & Security (Windows 10) — Windows Update, Windows Security (Defender, firewall status), Backup, Recovery (reset this PC, advanced startup), and Activation. In Windows 11, this is reorganized: Windows Update becomes a standalone top-level section, and security controls move to Privacy & security.

The check questions below test your ability to select the correct settings location for a given task, apply the right power state to a scenario, and recognize the security implication of hidden file extensions.