Copy and paste from the following data to produce each assessment task. Write these in plain English and spell out how, when and where the task is to be carried out, under what conditions, and what resources are needed. Include guidelines about how well the candidate has to perform a task for it to be judged satisfactory.
Required skills
communication skills to liaise with internal and external personnel regarding desktop requirements and issues
literacy skills to interpret technical documentation
numeracy skills to:
take test measurements
interpret results
evaluate performance of the desktop workstation
problem-solving skills to address desktop problems reported by the client
research skills to interrogate vendor databases and websites to resolve desktop problems
technical skills to select and use desktop operating system and network diagnostics to test desktop functionality and performance.
Required knowledge
features of:
current desktop applications, compatibility issues and resolution procedures
current desktop operating systems
broad knowledge of:
command line interface and scripts
controlling the boot process
error logging and reporting
file naming conventions related to selected operating system
guidelines for selecting a secure password
network protocols and transmission control protocol or internet protocol (TCP/IP) network connectivity
operating systems and their functions, including file system, memory management and process scheduling
printer driver and queue management
process or task management, including process termination
tools available for remote assistance and administration
troubleshooting tools and techniques, including network diagnostic utilities
user account, group and password administration
detailed knowledge of:
file system navigation and manipulation utilities, including edit, copy, move and search
operating system help and support utilities.
The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.
Desktop applications may include: | CAD software database email client internet browser line-of-business applications printer sharing publishing and presentation software remote-access clients spreadsheet technical software word processor. |
Appropriate person may include: | authorised business representative client IT support manager network administrator network manager small office home office (SOHO) customer small or medium enterprise (SME) customer supervisor. |
File systems may include: | EXT FAT HFS+ NFS new technology file system (NTFS). |
Back up may be performed using: | operating system backup utilities third-party software network copy zip utilities. |
Local data may include: | files and directories user home directories user profiles. |
Client may include: | external organisations individuals internal departments internal employees. |
Desktop operating system may include: | Linux Mac Windows. |
Installation or update method may include: | CD, DVD installation as a virtual machine Pup Red Hat Network universal serial bus (USB) boot disk Windows Server Update Services Yum. |
Network settings may include: | default gateway DNS server firewall IP address and subnet mask (static or dynamic). |
Hardware devices may include: | device drivers disk drives keyboard modem monitor mouse network interfaces printer scanner USB drive. |
User environment may include: | users and groups login defaults and options login scripts graphical environment environmental variables and prompts authentication and authorisation user profiles unmask prompt. |
External data may include: | applications databases file transfer protocol (FTP) sites network file systems or shares SharePoint sites USB drives websites. |
Security options and security settings may include: | anti-spam software antivirus software internet-browser privacy security settings operating system firewall utilities proxy settings SE Linux Windows Group Policy. |
Network protocols may include: | dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) dynamic name system (DNS) file transfer protocol (FTP) hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP and HTTPS) internet message access protocol (IMAP) network file system (NFS) network time protocol (NTP) post office protocol (POP) server messages block (SMB) simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP) simple network management protocol (SNMP) TCP/IP. |
Performance may be affected by: | desktop environment driver versions hard drive cache mobile computing performance issues network page files, swap files and virtual memory power options processor scheduling services. |
Desktop problems may include: | disk and storage problems, such as file system full, file system fragmentation, and disk failure hardware device problems, such as printer configuration and display settings network connectivity problems, such as cable unplugged or dynamic IP address not received workstation boot problems. |
Copy and paste from the following performance criteria to create an observation checklist for each task. When you have finished writing your assessment tool every one of these must have been addressed, preferably several times in a variety of contexts. To ensure this occurs download the assessment matrix for the unit; enter each assessment task as a column header and place check marks against each performance criteria that task addresses.
Observation Checklist