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About the test:

The Windows System Administration Online Test uses scenario-based MCQs to evaluate candidates on their understanding of core Windows system administration concepts such as Active Directory, group policy management, network services, and system monitoring. Additionally, the test may assess the candidate's knowledge of scripting languages, server virtualization, and disaster recovery. The test aims to evaluate the candidate's ability to effectively manage Windows-based enterprise environments.

Covered skills:

  • Windows System Administration
  • Group Policy
  • Networking
  • Server Security
  • Active Directory
  • Windows Server
  • PowerShell Scripting
  • Network Security

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9 reasons why
9 reasons why

Adaface Windows System Administration Test is the most accurate way to shortlist Windows System Administrators



Reason #1

Tests for on-the-job skills

The Windows System Administration Online Test helps recruiters and hiring managers identify qualified candidates from a pool of resumes, and helps in taking objective hiring decisions. It reduces the administrative overhead of interviewing too many candidates and saves time by filtering out unqualified candidates at the first step of the hiring process.

The test screens for the following skills that hiring managers look for in candidates:

  • Able to efficiently manage Windows System Administration tasks
  • Proficient in Active Directory management
  • Expertise in Group Policy implementation and management
  • Strong knowledge of Windows Server setup and configuration
  • Skilled in computer networking and troubleshooting
  • Proficient in PowerShell scripting for automation
  • In-depth understanding of server security practices
  • Well-versed in network security principles
Reason #2

No trick questions

no trick questions

Traditional assessment tools use trick questions and puzzles for the screening, which creates a lot of frustration among candidates about having to go through irrelevant screening assessments.

View sample questions

The main reason we started Adaface is that traditional pre-employment assessment platforms are not a fair way for companies to evaluate candidates. At Adaface, our mission is to help companies find great candidates by assessing on-the-job skills required for a role.

Why we started Adaface
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Reason #3

Non-googleable questions

We have a very high focus on the quality of questions that test for on-the-job skills. Every question is non-googleable and we have a very high bar for the level of subject matter experts we onboard to create these questions. We have crawlers to check if any of the questions are leaked online. If/ when a question gets leaked, we get an alert. We change the question for you & let you know.

How we design questions

These are just a small sample from our library of 10,000+ questions. The actual questions on this Windows System Administration Online Test will be non-googleable.

🧐 Question

Medium

Active Directory Replication Issues
Active Directory Replication
Event Log Analysis
Network Troubleshooting
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You are an experienced Windows Server administrator tasked with resolving a complex Active Directory replication issue across multiple sites. Users have reported authentication problems and inconsistent Group Policy applications. Upon examining the Event Logs from various Domain Controllers (DCs), you gather the following key log entries:
 image
Considering this information, what is the most appropriate first step in diagnosing and resolving this Active Directory replication issue?
A: Reinitialize the replication on DC01 to ensure it has the most current data.
B: Review and configure site link costs and schedules in Active Directory Sites and Services.
C: Perform a comprehensive network connectivity test between all sites.
D: Examine the DNS settings and records on each Domain Controller for inconsistencies.
E: Force a manual replication between DC01, DC02, and DC03 using repadmin.
F: Check firewall settings across sites for any rules that may block AD replication traffic.

Medium

Configuring Network Services
Network Services
Firewall Configuration
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You are administering a Windows Server that hosts a critical application accessible within the internal network. The server is configured to use a static IP address. Your task is to ensure the server can communicate with a specific range of IP addresses on the internal network (192.168.10.0/24) while blocking all other inbound and outbound network traffic. The server also needs to be accessible via Remote Desktop for maintenance purposes. Given these requirements, which of the following configurations would best achieve this goal?
A: Configure Windows Firewall to allow inbound RDP traffic and outbound traffic to 192.168.10.0/24; block all other traffic.
B: Set up a Network Security Group (NSG) to allow traffic from 192.168.10.0/24 and enable RDP access.
C: Implement an inbound firewall rule to allow RDP and an outbound rule to allow traffic to 192.168.10.0/24.
D: Create a VPN tunnel for the 192.168.10.0/24 subnet and configure RDP access through the VPN.
E: Enable RDP in the firewall settings and use a third-party firewall to restrict network traffic.
F: Disable the Windows Firewall and rely solely on router-based network security to manage traffic.

Medium

Remote access policy
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Michael Willis created a user in Active Directory Users And Computers, and added the user to the VPN Users security group, which has a Remote Access Policy. The network admin has set the Remote Access Policy for VPN Users for Monday to Friday from 7 AM to 6 PM. Now, Michael is showing the user how to set up the VPN client for PPTP tunneling over a video conference call, but the user is not able to connect. What could be the issue?
A. The user needs a certificate for his computer.
B. The user is in a different time zone.
C. Michael forgot to select the Allow Access radio button on the Dial-In tab for the user account
D. Michael needs to configure DNS on the client computer.

Medium

Security log file
Event Viewer
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Harper is hired as the system admin for an e-commerce company, Dove. There is a Windows Server 2003 system which was installed by another administrator, just before they left. The admin seems to have finished the installation, but they did not set up any configuration after the installation. Harper checks the maximum log sizes in Event Viewer, and realizes that the maximum size of the Security log is 16 MB. What can we tell on the basis of this information?

Medium

Dynamic Function Invocation
Dynamic Expressions
Array Manipulation
Function Invocation
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You're tasked with dynamically invoking functions based on their names stored in an array. Additionally, you're required to filter out functions that have the term "Admin" in their name. Your colleague suggests the following approach:
 image
Assuming no other functions are defined in the session, which of the following will $results contain after executing the script?

Medium

Error Handling with Try-Catch-Finally
Error Handling
Exceptions
Script Flow
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You're analyzing a script designed to interact with a remote API. The script fetches data, processes it, and then ensures that all temporary files are deleted. You come across the following code block:
 image
After a successful data fetch, the script occasionally throws the custom error. When this happens, what will be the output and state of the system?
A: The output will display "Network error
B: The output will display "General error
C: The script will exit without any output due to the custom error, but the temporary file will be deleted.
D: The output will display "General error
E: The script will terminate prematurely, not executing the finally block.

Hard

Execution Policy Bypass
Execution Policy
Security
Script Invocation
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A server you are working on has the PowerShell execution policy set to "Restricted", preventing scripts from running. You need to execute a script named "Deploy.ps1". You recall a technique to bypass the execution policy without changing it permanently. Which of the following methods would allow you to run "Deploy.ps1" without permanently altering the execution policy?
A: Set-ExecutionPolicy Unrestricted -Scope Process; .\Deploy.ps1
B: PowerShell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\Deploy.ps1
C: Invoke-Command -ScriptBlock { .\Deploy.ps1 }
D: Start-Process PowerShell -ArgumentList "-ExecutionPolicy Unrestricted", "-File .\Deploy.ps1"
E: Import-Module .\Deploy.ps1

Medium

Logging with Transcript
Logging
Transcription
Error Handling
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You're reviewing a script designed to automate server maintenance tasks. One requirement is to log every action and potential error for auditing purposes. The script utilizes Start-Transcript and Stop-Transcript cmdlets to capture the session. Here's a snippet:
 image
After several successful runs, you notice that some logs are missing crucial information regarding errors. Which of the following could be a reason for the missing error details?
A: The -Append parameter is causing overwritten logs.
B: Not all errors are displayed in the console, hence not captured by the transcript.
C: The Stop-Transcript cmdlet needs to be invoked with an -ErrorAction Continue parameter.
D: Transcription only captures standard output, not error streams.
E: The log file path should be specified again in Stop-Transcript.

Medium

Nested Runspaces
Runspaces
Variable Scoping
Concurrency
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You're optimizing a script for performance by leveraging runspaces to execute tasks concurrently. Each runspace is supposed to increment a shared counter object. Here's your setup:
 image
You expect the $global:counter to be 5 after all runspaces complete. However, it's not consistently reaching that value. What's the most probable reason for this behavior?
A: Runspaces can't access global variables.
B: The counter increment operation is not thread-safe, leading to race conditions.
C: The runspace pool size is limiting the number of concurrent operations.
D: The $global:counter initialization should be inside the script block.
E: The runspace pool's Close and Dispose methods are prematurely terminating the runspaces.

Medium

Mac address and IP on router hop
Routers
Switches
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Refer to the following exhibit:
 image
Host A is sending a packet to Host B. 

1. What is the source and destination MAC address at point PA?
2. What is the source and destination IP address at point PB?
// Option A
PA: source MAC - Mac-A
PA: destination MAC - Mac-B
PB: source IP - 192.168.1.1
PB: destination IP - 192.168.3.1

// Option B
PA: source MAC - Mac-A
PA: destination MAC - Mac-RA
PB: source IP - 192.168.3.3
PB: destination IP - 192.168.3.1

// Option C
PA: source MAC - Mac-A
PA: destination MAC - Mac-B
PB: source IP - 192.168.3.3
PB: destination IP - 192.168.3.1

// Option D
PA: source MAC - Mac-A
PA: destination MAC - Mac-RA
PB: source IP - 192.168.1.1
PB: destination IP - 192.168.3.1

Easy

MX Record, DMARC and Email Authentication
DNS
MX Records
DMARC
SPF
DKIM
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You work as a network administrator for a company, "example.com", that recently started experiencing issues with email spoofing. To mitigate the problem, you decide to implement DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance) in addition to existing SPF (Sender Policy Framework) and DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) records.

Your current DNS records for example.com include the following:

- MX 10 mail.example.com (IP address 203.0.113.10)
- TXT "v=spf1 ip4:203.0.113.10 -all"
- TXT "v=DKIM1; k=rsa; p=public-key-here"

You add the following DMARC record:

- TXT "_dmarc.example.com" "v=DMARC1; p=quarantine; pct=100; rua=mailto:[email protected]"

After implementing the DMARC record, an external mail server sends an email to your domain. The email passes the SPF and DKIM checks but fails the DMARC check.

What will likely happen to the email?
A: The email will be accepted and delivered to the recipient's inbox.
B: The email will be rejected and returned to the sender as undeliverable.
C: The email might be delivered to the recipient's spam or junk folder.
D: The email will be accepted, but a report will be sent to the sender.
E: The email will be silently discarded, and the sender will not be notified.

Medium

Remote network resources
Gateway
Routing protocols
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Review the following exhibit:
 image
Angelina noticed that the computers on 192.168.10.0/24 network can ping their default gateway. But they found that these computers cannot connect to any remote network resources. Which of the following is the most likely reason for this?

Medium

SSL Certificate Expiry
SSL/TLS
Network Security
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You are a network administrator for an e-commerce company. The company's online store allows customers to browse products and make purchases securely over the internet. The online store uses SSL/TLS for secure communication. You receive reports that some customers are seeing a security warning in their web browsers when trying to access the online store. Upon investigation, you discover the following information:

- The SSL certificate used by the online store's web server is valid for one year and is due to expire in two days.
- The web server is configured to automatically redirect HTTP traffic to HTTPS.
- The SSL certificate was issued by a trusted certificate authority (CA), and all major web browsers have the CA's root certificate in their trusted certificate stores.
- The SSL certificate includes the correct domain name for the online store.

Given the above information, which of the following steps should be taken to resolve the issue and prevent customers from seeing the security warning?
A: Extend the validity of the current SSL certificate by one year.
B: Obtain a new SSL certificate from the same CA and install it on the web server before the current certificate expires.
C: Remove the automatic redirect from HTTP to HTTPS on the web server.
D: Ask customers to ignore the security warning and proceed to the online store.
E: Replace the SSL certificate with a self-signed certificate.
🧐 Question🔧 Skill

Medium

Active Directory Replication Issues
Active Directory Replication
Event Log Analysis
Network Troubleshooting

2 mins

Windows Administration
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Medium

Configuring Network Services
Network Services
Firewall Configuration

2 mins

Windows Administration
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Medium

Remote access policy

2 mins

Windows Administration
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Medium

Security log file
Event Viewer

2 mins

Windows Administration
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Medium

Dynamic Function Invocation
Dynamic Expressions
Array Manipulation
Function Invocation

2 mins

PowerShell
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Medium

Error Handling with Try-Catch-Finally
Error Handling
Exceptions
Script Flow

2 mins

PowerShell
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Hard

Execution Policy Bypass
Execution Policy
Security
Script Invocation

3 mins

PowerShell
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Medium

Logging with Transcript
Logging
Transcription
Error Handling

2 mins

PowerShell
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Medium

Nested Runspaces
Runspaces
Variable Scoping
Concurrency

3 mins

PowerShell
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Medium

Mac address and IP on router hop
Routers
Switches

2 mins

Computer Networks
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Easy

MX Record, DMARC and Email Authentication
DNS
MX Records
DMARC
SPF
DKIM

2 mins

Computer Networks
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Medium

Remote network resources
Gateway
Routing protocols

3 mins

Computer Networks
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Medium

SSL Certificate Expiry
SSL/TLS
Network Security

2 mins

Computer Networks
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🧐 Question🔧 Skill💪 Difficulty⌛ Time
Active Directory Replication Issues
Active Directory Replication
Event Log Analysis
Network Troubleshooting
Windows Administration
Medium2 mins
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Configuring Network Services
Network Services
Firewall Configuration
Windows Administration
Medium2 mins
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Remote access policy
Windows Administration
Medium2 mins
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Security log file
Event Viewer
Windows Administration
Medium2 mins
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Dynamic Function Invocation
Dynamic Expressions
Array Manipulation
Function Invocation
PowerShell
Medium2 mins
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Error Handling with Try-Catch-Finally
Error Handling
Exceptions
Script Flow
PowerShell
Medium2 mins
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Execution Policy Bypass
Execution Policy
Security
Script Invocation
PowerShell
Hard3 mins
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Logging with Transcript
Logging
Transcription
Error Handling
PowerShell
Medium2 mins
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Nested Runspaces
Runspaces
Variable Scoping
Concurrency
PowerShell
Medium3 mins
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Mac address and IP on router hop
Routers
Switches
Computer Networks
Medium2 mins
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MX Record, DMARC and Email Authentication
DNS
MX Records
DMARC
SPF
DKIM
Computer Networks
Easy2 mins
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Remote network resources
Gateway
Routing protocols
Computer Networks
Medium3 mins
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SSL Certificate Expiry
SSL/TLS
Network Security
Computer Networks
Medium2 mins
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Reason #4

1200+ customers in 75 countries

customers in 75 countries
Brandon

With Adaface, we were able to optimise our initial screening process by upwards of 75%, freeing up precious time for both hiring managers and our talent acquisition team alike!


Brandon Lee, Head of People, Love, Bonito

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Reason #5

Designed for elimination, not selection

The most important thing while implementing the pre-employment Windows System Administration Online Test in your hiring process is that it is an elimination tool, not a selection tool. In other words: you want to use the test to eliminate the candidates who do poorly on the test, not to select the candidates who come out at the top. While they are super valuable, pre-employment tests do not paint the entire picture of a candidate’s abilities, knowledge, and motivations. Multiple easy questions are more predictive of a candidate's ability than fewer hard questions. Harder questions are often "trick" based questions, which do not provide any meaningful signal about the candidate's skillset.

Science behind Adaface tests
Reason #6

1 click candidate invites

Email invites: You can send candidates an email invite to the Windows System Administration Online Test from your dashboard by entering their email address.

Public link: You can create a public link for each test that you can share with candidates.

API or integrations: You can invite candidates directly from your ATS by using our pre-built integrations with popular ATS systems or building a custom integration with your in-house ATS.

invite candidates
Reason #7

Detailed scorecards & benchmarks

Reason #7

Detailed scorecards & benchmarks

Along with scorecards that report the performance of the candidate in detail, you also receive a comparative analysis against the company average and industry standards.

View sample scorecard
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Reason #8

High completion rate

Adaface tests are conversational, low-stress, and take just 25-40 mins to complete.

This is why Adaface has the highest test-completion rate (86%), which is more than 2x better than traditional assessments.

test completion rate
Reason #9

Advanced Proctoring


Learn more

About the Windows System Administration Assessment Test

Why you should use Pre-employment Windows System Administration Online Test?

The Windows System Administration Online Test makes use of scenario-based questions to test for on-the-job skills as opposed to theoretical knowledge, ensuring that candidates who do well on this screening test have the relavant skills. The questions are designed to covered following on-the-job aspects:

  • Managing and troubleshooting Windows systems
  • Deploying and configuring Active Directory services
  • Designing and implementing Group Policy
  • Administering Windows Server
  • Understanding and troubleshooting computer networks
  • Writing PowerShell scripts for automation
  • Implementing server security measures
  • Configuring network security protocols
  • Monitoring and maintaining server performance
  • Managing user accounts and permissions in Active Directory

Once the test is sent to a candidate, the candidate receives a link in email to take the test. For each candidate, you will receive a detailed report with skills breakdown and benchmarks to shortlist the top candidates from your pool.

What topics are covered in the Windows System Administration Online Test?

  • Windows System Administration

    Windows System Administration involves the management and configuration of Windows operating systems, ensuring their smooth operation and optimal performance.

  • Active Directory

    Active Directory is a directory service developed by Microsoft that provides a centralized database for managing network resources, including users, groups, and computers.

  • Group Policy

    Group Policy is a feature in Windows Server that allows administrators to manage user and computer settings centrally, providing control over various aspects of the network environment.

  • Windows Server

    Windows Server is a powerful operating system designed specifically for server environments, offering features such as file sharing, remote access, and application distribution.

  • Networking

    Networking involves the design, implementation, and management of computer networks, including the configuration of network devices and protocols.

  • PowerShell Scripting

    PowerShell Scripting is a scripting language developed by Microsoft for automating administrative tasks in the Windows operating system. It allows for efficient scripting and automation of common system administration tasks.

  • Server Security

    Server Security involves implementing measures to protect servers from unauthorized access, potential threats, and vulnerabilities, ensuring the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of data.

  • Network Security

    Network Security focuses on securing computer networks from unauthorized access, cyber threats, and data breaches, employing various technologies and practices to ensure the network's confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

  • Full list of covered topics

    The actual topics of the questions in the final test will depend on your job description and requirements. However, here's a list of topics you can expect the questions for Windows System Administration Online Test to be based on.

    Windows installation
    User management
    Group management
    Group Policy Objects
    Domain controllers
    DNS configuration
    DHCP setup
    File sharing and permissions
    Remote Desktop Services
    Server roles and features
    PowerShell cmdlets
    PowerShell scripting basics
    Active Directory organizational units (OUs)
    Domain trusts
    Certificate Services
    Network protocols
    TCP/IP fundamentals
    Firewalls and ports
    Virtual private networks (VPNs)
    Internet Information Services (IIS)
    Windows Server Update Services (WSUS)
    Windows Event Viewer
    System monitoring and performance tuning
    Backup and restore procedures
    Security policies and configurations
    Antivirus and malware protection
    Intrusion detection and prevention systems
    Access control lists (ACLs)
    Network segmentation
    Network devices (routers, switches, etc.)
    Subnetting and IP addressing
    Network troubleshooting tools
    Network protocols (TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, etc.)
    Routing and switching
    WiFi security
    PowerShell scripting advanced topics
    Windows PowerShell Desired State Configuration (DSC)
    Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI)
    Windows Registry
    Server hardening
    Security best practices
    Incident response and recovery
    Disaster recovery planning
    Penetration testing
    Wireless network security
    Web application security
    Network monitoring and analysis
    Cloud security
    Security audits and compliance
    Identity and access management
    Encryption and decryption
    Public key infrastructure (PKI)
    Secure Socket Layer (SSL) certificates
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What roles can I use the Windows System Administration Online Test for?

  • Windows System Administrator
  • Windows Network Administrator
  • Windows Engineer
  • Technical Support Specialist
  • Infrastructure Engineer

How is the Windows System Administration Online Test customized for senior candidates?

For intermediate/ experienced candidates, we customize the assessment questions to include advanced topics and increase the difficulty level of the questions. This might include adding questions on topics like

  • Deploying and managing DNS services
  • Implementing Windows Server roles and features
  • Configuring network protocols and services
  • Securing Windows servers against unauthorized access
  • Troubleshooting network connectivity issues
  • Creating and managing Windows Server virtual machines
  • Managing and troubleshooting Windows Server backup and recovery
  • Configuring and managing DHCP services
  • Implementing server hardening techniques
  • Analyzing and optimizing network performance
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The hiring managers felt that through the technical questions that they asked during the panel interviews, they were able to tell which candidates had better scores, and differentiated with those who did not score as well. They are highly satisfied with the quality of candidates shortlisted with the Adaface screening.


85%
reduction in screening time

Windows System Administration Hiring Test FAQs

Can I combine multiple skills into one custom assessment?

Yes, absolutely. Custom assessments are set up based on your job description, and will include questions on all must-have skills you specify. Here's a quick guide on how you can request a custom test.

Do you have any anti-cheating or proctoring features in place?

We have the following anti-cheating features in place:

  • Non-googleable questions
  • IP proctoring
  • Screen proctoring
  • Web proctoring
  • Webcam proctoring
  • Plagiarism detection
  • Secure browser
  • Copy paste protection

Read more about the proctoring features.

How do I interpret test scores?

The primary thing to keep in mind is that an assessment is an elimination tool, not a selection tool. A skills assessment is optimized to help you eliminate candidates who are not technically qualified for the role, it is not optimized to help you find the best candidate for the role. So the ideal way to use an assessment is to decide a threshold score (typically 55%, we help you benchmark) and invite all candidates who score above the threshold for the next rounds of interview.

What experience level can I use this test for?

Each Adaface assessment is customized to your job description/ ideal candidate persona (our subject matter experts will pick the right questions for your assessment from our library of 10000+ questions). This assessment can be customized for any experience level.

Does every candidate get the same questions?

Yes, it makes it much easier for you to compare candidates. Options for MCQ questions and the order of questions are randomized. We have anti-cheating/ proctoring features in place. In our enterprise plan, we also have the option to create multiple versions of the same assessment with questions of similar difficulty levels.

I'm a candidate. Can I try a practice test?

No. Unfortunately, we do not support practice tests at the moment. However, you can use our sample questions for practice.

What is the cost of using this test?

You can check out our pricing plans.

Can I get a free trial?

Yes, you can sign up for free and preview this test.

I just moved to a paid plan. How can I request a custom assessment?

Here is a quick guide on how to request a custom assessment on Adaface.

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40 min tests.
No trick questions.
Accurate shortlisting.
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