Boost your CCNA 200-301 knowledge with 33 practice questions covering OSI layers, RSTP, PPP, ACLs, and PortFast. Follow CertPunch for more certification prep and visit certpunch.com.
What you will practice
- Which OSI layer does RSTP utilize to avoid network loops?
- At which OSI layer does PPP operate?
- Which statement about named ACLs is accurate?
- What does PortFast do?
- What authentication method does SNMPv2 use?
- When subnetting a Class B address with 255.255.255.0, how many subnets and hosts per subnet are available? (S…
Answers and explanations
Tap a question to expand the answer and the exam reasoning. Try to commit to your own pick first.
Q1. Which OSI layer does RSTP utilize to avoid network loops?
Answer: A. Data Link
RSTP operates at the Data Link layer using BPDUs to prevent loops. The trap is confusing it with network-layer routing protocols.
Q2. At which OSI layer does PPP operate?
Answer: B. Layer 2
PPP operates at Layer 2 to encapsulate datagrams over point-to-point links. Other layers handle different network functions.
Q3. Which statement about named ACLs is accurate?
Answer: E. They handle both standard and extended ACLs
Named ACLs support both standard and extended filtering. They do not filter Layer 7 traffic or rate-limit networks.
Q4. What does PortFast do?
Answer: D. Allows instant data transfer without spanning tree delays
PortFast bypasses spanning tree delays for ports connected to end devices. Other options describe BPDU Guard or filtering.
Q5. What authentication method does SNMPv2 use?
Answer: C. Community strings
SNMPv2 uses community strings for authentication. SNMPv3 introduces stronger security like HMAC-SHA and CBC-DES.
Q6. When subnetting a Class B address with 255.255.255.0, how many subnets and hosts per subnet are available? (Select two)
Answer: E,F. Subnets: 256 || Hosts: 254
A Class B subnet mask of 255.255.255.0 creates 256 subnets and 254 hosts per subnet. Other options provide incorrect calculations.
Q7. What's the port number for SSH?
Answer: B. 22
B is correct; SSH uses port 22. Other options are for email, FTP, HTTP, and Telnet.
Q8. Which two statements correctly outline a router's role? (Pick two)
Answer: B,C. Discovers distinct networks || Chooses packet forwarding paths
Routers discover networks and choose forwarding paths, dividing broadcast domains. The first option is incorrect.
Q9. What are the first 24 bits of a MAC address known as?
Answer: D. OUI
The first 24 bits of a MAC address are the OUI, identifying the vendor. NIC refers to the hardware itself.
Q10. What advantages does Netflow provide? (Pick three)
Answer: A,B,D. Accounting and billing || Security analysis || Network, app, and user monitoring
Netflow provides accounting, security analysis, and network monitoring. Network planning is not a primary Netflow advantage.
Q11. On a corporate network, same-VLAN hosts connect, but cross-VLAN communication fails. What's needed?
Answer: A. Router with subinterfaces on the switch-connected interface
Inter-VLAN routing requires a Layer 3 device with subinterfaces to route traffic between VLANs. Option D is a common trap as it lacks subinterfaces.
Q12. Which three describe Dynamic ARP Inspection (DAI) accurately? (Pick three)
Answer: B,D,F. Verifies IP-MAC correspondence || Prevents ARP spoofing || Uses DHCP Snooping Binding Database
DAI verifies IP-MAC correspondence to prevent ARP spoofing using DHCP Snooping bindings. Option A is incorrect as DAI doesn't examine MAC from IPv4.
Q13. Which command enables PortFast on all access ports at once, skipping blocking to forwarding instantly?
Answer: A. (Config) # spanning-tree portfast default
The 'spanning-tree portfast default' command enables PortFast globally on all access ports. Option B is incorrect as PortFast doesn't apply to trunks.
Q14. If RIP (Hop Count 1), OSPF (Cost 66), and EIGRP (Metric 2174976) learn the same route, which is chosen?
Answer: B. EIGRP-learned route
EIGRP wins due to its lowest Administrative Distance (90). Metrics only matter within the same routing protocol.
Q15. Which NAT type maps one inside address to one outside address?
Answer: C. Static NAT
Static NAT provides a one-to-one mapping of an inside address to an outside address.
Q16. Given a NIC MAC of CC-3F-18-F0-67-CA, which binary represents its OUI?
Answer: A. 11001100-00111111-00011000
The OUI is the first 24 bits of the MAC, CC-3F-18, converting correctly to binary.
Q17. Which global command on a Cisco router lets you see connected Cisco devices?
Answer: D. cdp run
The global command 'cdp run' enables CDP to discover Cisco devices on the network.
Q18. Which router boot step locates an IOS image?
Answer: C. Bootstrap
The bootstrap program locates the IOS image during router boot. Option B is wrong; Mini-IOS is a fallback, not the main step.
Q19. See the exhibit. Which address range best summarizes Main router's routing table?
Answer: C. 172.16.0.0/20
172.16.0.0/20 covers all subnets efficiently. Option A is too broad; option D is too narrow for the exhibit.
Q20. Which process establishes a virtual TCP path while ensuring reliability?
Answer: B. 3-way handshake
TCP's 3-way handshake establishes a reliable connection before data transfer. Option C is part of it, not the full process.
Q21. Which two describe DNS accurately? (Pick two)
Answer: A,C. One domain can have multiple IPs || Multiple domains can share one IP
DNS supports one-to-many domains to IPs for load balancing and many-to-one for hosting multiple services.
Q22. In 'IP NAT INSIDE SOURCE LIST 1 POOL ABC OVERLOAD', what does 'overload' signify?
Answer: E. Maps multiple hosts to one global address
'Overload' enables PAT, mapping multiple internal hosts to one public IP using port numbers.
Q23. Which is true about ENABLE PASSWORD vs. ENABLE SECRET?
Answer: F. 'Enable Secret' uses MD5 encryption
'Enable Secret' uses MD5 encryption and overrides 'Enable Password' if both are configured.
Q24. Which feature, when active, stops routing protocols from sending hello messages on an interface?
Answer: B. Passive-interface
Passive-interface blocks routing protocol hellos and updates on an interface.
Q25. For network 206.140.3.0 with mask 255.255.255.224, what's the correct notation?
Answer: B. 206.140.3.0/27
255.255.255.224 uses 27 bits, so the correct notation is 206.140.3.0/27.
Q26. Which traits define PUPPET? (Pick three)
Answer: B,F. Operates as a PULL mechanism || Relies on manifests
Puppet uses a PULL mechanism and relies on manifests. Chef uses Recipes and Cookbooks, while Ansible uses SSH and Netconf.
Q27. How many severity levels of syslog messages are displayed on the console by default?
Answer: A. Seven levels
By default, the console displays all seven syslog severity levels. Other options misstate the default configuration.
Q28. How do you configure a Catalyst switch to permit Telnet access from devices on different networks? (Choose four)
Answer: B,C,D,E. Set a VTY password || Assign an IP address || Define a default gateway || Configure an enable password
Telnet access requires a VTY password, IP address, default gateway, and enable password. Port security is not required.
Q29. Which IEEE standard protocol supports EtherChannel formation?
Answer: D. LACP
LACP is the IEEE standard for EtherChannel. PAGP is a Cisco-proprietary alternative, while OSPF and NTP are unrelated.
Q30. What does the command '(Config) #errdisable Recovery INTERVAL 400' accomplish?
Answer: A. Adjusts the auto-recovery timer
The command sets the auto-recovery timer to 400 seconds for err-disabled ports. Option C incorrectly specifies port security recovery.
Q31. What happens when these commands are applied to a Cisco switch? 'Switch(config-if)# switchport port-security' and 'Switch(config-if)# switchport port-security mac-address sticky'?
Answer: D. Dynamic MACs are retained in running-config
Sticky MAC addresses are dynamically learned and saved to the running-config. Option B is wrong because they're not in startup-config.
Q32. How does EIGRP for IPv4 differ from EIGRP for IPv6?
Answer: C. Only EIGRPv6 needs a router ID in the routing process
EIGRPv6 requires a manually configured router ID if no IPv4 address exists. Option A is a trap because AS numbers are used in both versions.
Q33. Which traits belong to Layer 3 switches? (Select two)
Answer: C,D. Can divide broadcast domains || Routes based on IP addresses
Layer 3 switches divide broadcast domains and route IP traffic. Option A is a trap because Layer 3 switches support routing.
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