ACSP Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield ACSP facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. Which macOS feature caches software updates and App Store content locally so devices on the same network download from the local cache instead of the internet? → Content Caching
2. Which of the following utilities is NOT available directly within the standard macOS Recovery Utilities window? → Migration Assistant
3. Which `find` command locates all `.log` files modified within the last 7 days under `/var/log`? → find /var/log -name '*.log' -mtime -7
4. Which Terminal command configures macOS system settings such as time zone, remote login, and sleep behavior? → systemsetup
5. What does enabling 'Remote Login' in Sharing preferences allow on a Mac? → SSH access via Terminal from other computers
6. A Mac on a school network receives an IP but the user cannot browse to any website. Pinging 8.8.8.8 succeeds but pinging google.com fails. What is the problem? → DNS resolution is failing
7. What is the primary advantage of having multiple APFS volumes within a single container, as opposed to traditional partitioning? → All volumes within the container share the free space of that container.
8. A technician uses Wireless Diagnostics on macOS. Which tab shows a real-time graph of signal quality and noise for the connected network? → Performance
9. Which macOS command-line tool can be used to flush the DNS cache? → dscacheutil -flushcache && killall -HUP mDNSResponder
10. A technician sees 'kernel_task' consuming a large percentage of CPU in Activity Monitor. What does elevated kernel_task CPU usage typically indicate? → macOS is throttling CPU performance to manage thermal conditions
11. In macOS Ventura and later, what replaced System Preferences? → System Settings
12. When using Time Machine with a network share (SMB), what file format does macOS use to store the backup? → Sparse bundle disk image (.sparsebundle)
13. Which keyboard shortcut quickly opens Accessibility Options on macOS? → Option+Command+F5
14. A user enables iCloud Keychain on their Mac. Which of the following types of data does iCloud Keychain synchronize across the user's Apple devices? → Passwords, passkeys, credit card numbers, and Wi-Fi passwords
15. What is the function of the 'networksetup -setdnsservers' command in macOS Terminal? → Assigns custom DNS server addresses to a specified network service
16. What does the 'spindump' diagnostic tool capture on macOS? → Stack traces of hung processes causing the spinning wait cursor
17. Which macOS command-line tool is used to install, remove, and list configuration profiles on a Mac? → profiles
18. Which of the following is a primary function of the Content Caching service in macOS? → To reduce internet data usage by storing local copies of Apple software updates.
19. Which macOS feature limits what resources and capabilities an app can access, even if the app's code attempts to access them? → App Sandbox
20. How many Exchange ActiveSync accounts can a single Exchange payload in a configuration profile configure? → 1
21. A user's Mac has a corrupted APFS volume. Which Terminal command can be used to verify and repair the file system? → fsck -fy /dev/disk1s1
22. Which file system format does Apple recommend when formatting a startup volume for modern macOS installations? → APFS (Apple File System)
23. In macOS, where can an administrator configure a Mac to use a specific DNS server for a particular network interface? → System Settings > Network > [Interface] > Details > DNS
24. What does 'Revive' do in Apple Configurator 2 for Apple silicon Macs? → Updates the firmware and recoveryOS on an Apple silicon Mac without erasing user data
25. Which connector type do Apple's MagSafe 3 cables use on the Mac end and the power adapter end respectively? → MagSafe 3 on the Mac end, USB-C on the adapter end
26. What does the 'noatime' mount option do when applied to an APFS or HFS+ volume on macOS? → Prevents access-time timestamps from being updated when files are read
27. An IT admin wants to prevent users from adding personal Apple Accounts to company-owned iPhones. Which MDM restriction accomplishes this? → Restrict 'Allow Adding Personal Apple Accounts'
28. Which command displays a real-time, continuously updating list of running processes on macOS? → top
29. Which log file should a technician examine first to identify the cause of a recent kernel panic on macOS? → /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/ for .panic files
30. An MDM admin sends a 'Lock Device' command to a supervised iPhone that already has a passcode set. What is the result? → The device locks immediately and requires the existing passcode to unlock