1.2 - CompTIA A+ Core 2

Universal Serial Bus (USB) boot

A boot method allowing installation from a bare-bones OS version found on a USB drive, requiring computer and motherboard support.

Prebuilt Execution Environment (PXE)

A network-based boot method enabling a remote OS boot, requiring BIOS support and a boot server.

Internet-based installation

A method of installing operating systems directly from the Internet, including Linux distros, macOS Recovery, and Windows updates.

Internal hard drive (partition) installation

Files from an external drive (e.g., ISO files) can be copied onto a separate drive to start the operating system from that particular partition.

Clean install

Wiping the existing operating system and installing a new one from scratch for a fresh start without previous data.

Upgrade installation

Installing a newer version of an operating system while retaining existing files and applications.

Image deployment

Installing/configuring an OS on a computer using a created image, allowing installation on multiple machines.

Repair installation

A Windows-only method that reinstalls all files while maintaining base configurations, leaving user files unmodified.

Zero-touch deployment

Installation of an OS with pre-set configurations for an organization, allowing immediate usability upon powering on.

Recovery partition

A hidden partition on a storage device containing all files necessary for installing an operating system.

Partitioning

The process of separating data into logical pieces on a physical drive, useful for maintaining separate operating systems.

GUID Partition Table (GPT)

A modern standard for partitioning storage drives, requiring UEFI BIOS and supporting up to 128 partitions.

Master Boot Record (MBR)

An older partitioning scheme supporting up to 4 primary partitions and a maximum size of 2 TB.

Quick format

A fast method of formatting, creating a new file table but not checking the disk for previous data.

Full format

A comprehensive method of formatting that rewrites the disk with zeros and checks for bad sectors, making recovery impossible.

Extended partition

A non-bootable partition used to create multiple logical partitions within one, limited to one per storage device.