This is a realistic ten-week plan assuming around 8 to 10 hours of study per week: six weeks for Core 1 (220-1201), then four for Core 2 (220-1202), with each exam sat while the material is fresh. Adjust the pace to your background, but keep the structure - the two exams barely overlap, so study them in sequence, not in parallel, and keep the gap between sittings short because both passes must come from the same version.
Week 1 - Set up and PC hardware fundamentals
Download the official objectives for both exams. Set up your lab: an old desktop you can open, a screwdriver set, an anti-static wrist strap, and a free hypervisor on your main machine. Learn motherboards, CPUs, cooling, power supplies and the CMOS battery. Checkpoint: you can name every major component inside your case and what it does.
Week 2 - Memory, storage and connectors
Cover DIMM vs SODIMM and DDR generations, HDD vs SATA SSD vs NVMe, RAID 0/1/5/10, and the connector zoo: RJ45, RJ11, USB variants, HDMI, DisplayPort, SATA. Physically reseat RAM and a drive. Checkpoint: you can pick the right memory module and storage upgrade for a described machine.
Week 3 - Mobile devices and printers
Study laptop serviceable parts (SODIMM, M.2, battery, display stack: panel, backlight, digitizer), mobile connectivity (Bluetooth, NFC, cellular vs Wi-Fi, airplane mode), and printer technologies with their classic print-quality symptoms. Checkpoint: you can map a laptop or printer symptom to the failed component.
Week 4 - Networking
Learn TCP vs UDP, the common ports, network hardware roles (router, switch, access point), Wi-Fi bands and SSIDs, and IP addressing: private ranges, subnet mask, default gateway, DHCP, DNS, NAT, VPN. Checkpoint: you can recall the common ports cold and explain what a default gateway does.
Week 5 - Virtualization, cloud and the troubleshooting methodology
Build a Windows VM and a Linux VM in your hypervisor. Learn IaaS/PaaS/SaaS, public/private/hybrid deployment, and memorise the CompTIA troubleshooting methodology in order. Checkpoint: both VMs run, and you can recite the methodology steps without notes.
Week 6 - Core 1 review and exam
Drill symptom-to-cause mapping (POST beeps, overheating, drive failure, network drops), take a full timed mock, review misses, and sit Core 1 (220-1201). Checkpoint: Core 1 passed - momentum matters, so start Core 2 the same week.
Week 7 - Windows administration
Learn the tool-to-job mapping: Task Manager, Event Viewer, Device Manager, Disk Management. Cover file systems (NTFS vs FAT32/exFAT), editions, user accounts and command-line basics. Practise everything in your Windows VM. Checkpoint: given a task, you can name the Windows tool and perform it in the VM.
Week 8 - macOS, Linux and security
Cover macOS features (Time Machine, Keychain) and Linux basics in your VM. Then security: malware families, social engineering, MFA, least privilege, UAC, WPA2/WPA3, BitLocker, and the malware-removal sequence in order. Checkpoint: you can walk the malware-removal sequence from memory, in order.
Week 9 - Software troubleshooting and operational procedures
Practise proportionate fixes: app crashes, Safe Mode for driver problems, boot errors, adware symptoms, frozen mobile apps. Then the procedures: ESD safety, ticketing and documentation, change management with rollback plans, chain of custody, PII and backups. Checkpoint: for any symptom, you can name the least invasive first step.
Week 10 - Core 2 review and exam
Take a full timed mock for Core 2, revisit weak domains, drill the two ordered sequences (troubleshooting methodology, malware removal) one last time, confirm logistics, and sit Core 2 (220-1202). Checkpoint: both cores passed - the certification is complete.
A note on practice
Practise doing tasks, not recognising answers: both exams open with performance-based questions that simulate real work. Use only original, syllabus-based practice material - sites promising shortcuts violate exam policy and can get a certification revoked - and keep the official objectives as your master checklist throughout.