Free CompTIA A+ Flashcards: Core 1 and Core 2
Flip through the recall content of both A+ exams - ports, RAID levels, the laser imaging process, command-line tools, the malware removal order and the rest. Every card is tagged with its core and its objective, so you can drill the exam you are actually sitting. No account needed.
Sample A+ flashcards (interactive version loads with JavaScript):
- RAID 5 - fault tolerance and usable capacity? Survives one disk failure; usable capacity is n-1 disks. Needs a minimum of three disks.
- Laser printing process, in order? Processing, charging, exposing, developing, transferring, fusing, cleaning.
- What does a 169.254.x.x address mean? APIPA - the client could not reach a DHCP server and self-assigned.
- tracert vs pathping? tracert maps the route quickly; pathping maps it then measures packet loss per hop over several minutes.
- su vs sudo? su switches user for a whole session using the target's password; sudo runs one command using your own password.
- Malware removal order? Investigate and verify, quarantine, remediate, schedule scans and updates, enable System Restore, educate the user.
- What is in /etc/passwd? User account records - and no passwords. The hashes live in /etc/shadow.
- Core 1 vs Core 2 pass mark? Core 1 is 675 of 900; Core 2 is 700 of 900.
What flashcards can and cannot do for the A+
Worth being precise about this, because A+ is a poor fit for a pure flashcard strategy and the objectives say so out loud. 13 of Core 1's 27 sub-objectives and 23 of Core 2's 36 begin with "Given a scenario" - roughly half of Core 1 and nearly two thirds of Core 2. That content tests whether you can apply something under time pressure, and no card can rehearse that.
So use cards where the objectives use recall verbs, and questions everywhere else:
- Cards work well on: the ports table (Core 1, 2.1), cable types and connectors (3.2), RAM characteristics (3.3), RAID levels (3.4), wireless standards (2.2), the whole virtualization and cloud domain (4.1, 4.2), and on Core 2 the security definitions (2.1, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.9), command-line tools (1.5, 1.9), licensing and privacy (4.6) and the AI objective (4.10).
- Cards cannot help with: every troubleshooting objective on either exam, the SOHO configuration objectives, printer deployment and maintenance as applied tasks, or anything you would meet as a performance-based question. Those need full-length practice.
The exception worth knowing: ordered sequences. The laser imaging process, the malware removal steps and the change management stages are all recall content that happens to be sequential, and they are all asked in order. Cards are unusually good at those, and they are unusually commonly dropped.
The best cards are the ones you make from your own wrong answers
A generic deck covers what everyone forgets. The cards worth reviewing are the ones built from questions you got wrong, with the explanation attached. Sit a full free paper, and every explanation becomes a card you can keep.
APLUS1-EXAM-FULL
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Frequently asked questions
Are flashcards enough to pass the A+?
No, and the objectives explain why. Thirteen of Core 1's 27 sub-objectives and 23 of Core 2's 36 begin with "Given a scenario", so roughly half of Core 1 and nearly two thirds of Core 2 test application rather than recall. Cards are excellent for the remainder and cannot touch the scenario half. Use both.
Which A+ content is worth making cards for?
Anything whose objective verb is Explain, Summarize, Identify or Compare and contrast. That means the ports table, cable types, RAM, RAID, wireless standards and the virtualization domain on Core 1; the security definitions, data destruction methods, licensing and privacy, command-line tools and the AI objective on Core 2. Ordered sequences are especially card-friendly.
Do I need separate cards for each core?
In practice yes, since the content barely overlaps and the exams are sat separately. Every card in the deck above is tagged with its core so you can filter to the exam in front of you. Reviewing Core 2 material while preparing for Core 1 mostly spends review time on content you are not about to be tested on.
What is the laser printing process order?
Processing, charging, exposing, developing, transferring, fusing, cleaning. Asked directly and in order, from Core 1 objective 3.8. Printers appear three times on Core 1 - deployment in 3.7, maintenance in 3.8 and troubleshooting in 5.6 - so this is worth more than most candidates assume.
Is this deck free?
Yes, and no account is needed to use it. The paid product is the practice exams, not the cards.