Episode 65: Establishing and Testing a Theory of Cause

Once you’ve verified that a problem exists, the next step is to develop and test a theory about what’s causing it. In this episode, we explain how to take what you know and form a hypothesis—whether it’s a failing power supply, bad memory, or driver conflict. You’ll learn how to prioritize possible causes based on likelihood, user behavior, and historical trends with similar hardware or configurations.

Then, we walk through the testing phase, where you confirm or disprove your theory using tools, replacement parts, or configuration changes. CompTIA often presents you with multiple theories in a single question and asks which one to test first, so this episode will help you sort them logically. Knowing how to form and test a solid theory saves time and leads to faster resolutions. Brought to you by BareMetalCyber.com.