Maintenance and Troubleshooting Flashcards
7 cards from real CST practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Maintenance and Troubleshooting flashcards as text
Which symptom most clearly indicates a failing video balun in a passive UTP camera installation?
Answer: Ghosting, noise, or complete loss of video at the receiver end
A failing passive video balun degrades the signal conversion between coax and UTP, causing ghosting, noise bars, or total video loss at the receiver.
During a maintenance inspection, a technician discovers that camera housings on a rooftop installation have faded and cracked UV seals. What is the primary risk?
Answer: Water ingress leading to equipment failure
Cracked seals allow moisture to enter the housing, which can damage the camera's electronics, lens, and sensor over time.
A technician is troubleshooting a network switch that supports 24 PoE cameras. Eight cameras on the same switch suddenly go offline together. What is the most likely cause?
Answer: The switch's PoE power budget has been exceeded
When multiple PoE cameras on the same switch go offline simultaneously, the most common cause is the switch reaching its total PoE power budget limit.
What is the correct procedure when replacing a failed hard drive in a RAID-configured NVR?
Answer: Hot-swap the failed drive with a replacement of equal or greater capacity and allow the array to rebuild
In a RAID system, hot-swapping the failed drive with a same-size or larger drive allows the array to automatically rebuild without data loss or system downtime.
A PTZ camera's pan movement is jerky and inconsistent. After ruling out network issues, what mechanical component should be inspected?
Answer: The pan motor gears and drive belt
Worn or damaged pan motor gears and drive belts are common causes of erratic PTZ pan movement after electrical causes are eliminated.
When a camera's image has a strong color cast that cannot be corrected through white balance adjustment, what component is likely defective?
Answer: The image sensor or its color filter array
Persistent color casts that survive white balance correction typically indicate damage or degradation of the image sensor or its built-in color filter array.
What is the recommended interval for inspecting and cleaning outdoor camera housings in a high-pollution urban environment?
Answer: Quarterly or more frequently based on conditions
High-pollution environments accelerate lens contamination and seal degradation, requiring more frequent inspections — typically quarterly — to maintain performance.