Practice Exam: CompTIA Network+ Exam Prep, Third Edition
This exam consists of 70 questions that reflect the material covered in this book. The questions are representative of the types of questions you should expect to see on the Network+ exam; however, they are not intended to match exactly what is on the exam.
Some of the questions require that you deduce the best possible answer. In other cases, you are asked to identify the best course of action to take in a given situation. You must read the questions carefully and thoroughly before you attempt to answer them. It is strongly recommended that you treat this exam as if it were the actual exam. When you take it, time yourself, read carefully, and answer all the questions to the best of your ability.
The answers to all the questions appear in the section following the exam. Check your letter answers against those in the answers section, and then read the explanations provided. You might also want to return to the chapters in the book to review the material associated with any incorrect answers.
1. Which layer of the OSI model is responsible for placing the signal on the network media?
A. Physical
B. Data link
C. MAC
D. LLC
2. You have been contacted to upgrade a company’s 1Gbps links to 10Gbps. The company IT department needs the following:
• A connection that supports transfer distances up to 10 kilometers.
• A standard that uses single mode fiber
Which of the following standards would you recommend?
A. 10GBaseER
B. 10GBaseTX
C. 10GBaseSR
D. 10GBaseLR
3. You are a network administrator managing a midsize network that uses a NetWare print server, a Windows application server, and a Linux firewall server. One of your servers loses network connectivity; you type ifconfig at the command line to see whether the server has a valid IP address. Which server has lost connectivity?
A. The firewall server.
B. The print server.
C. The application server.
D. ifconfig is not a valid command on any of these platforms.
4. You are managing a network that uses both a UNIX server and a Windows 2008 server. Which of the following protocols can you use to transfer files between the two servers?
A. Telnet
B. PPP
C. FTP
D. PPTP
5. You have been called by a user who complains that access to a web page is very slow. What utility can you use to find the bottleneck?
A. ping
B. Telnet
C. tracert
D. nbtstat
6. During a busy administrative week, you install a new antivirus suite in your network of 55 computers, a new RAID array in one of the servers, and a new office suite on 25 of the computer systems. After all the updates, you are experiencing system errors throughout the entire network. Which of the following would you do to help isolate the problem?
A. Disable the RAID array.
B. Uninstall the office suite.
C. Check the antivirus suite vendor’s website for system patches or service packs.
D. Reinstall the antivirus software.
7. You suspect that someone is capturing the data sent in your network. In turn, you want to capture data to ensure it is encrypted and not readable by intruders. Which of the following network utilities can be used both by intruders and administrators to capture network traffic?
A. Port scanners
B. Packet filters
C. Data watchers
D. Packet sniffers
8. When a system running TCP/IP receives a data packet, which of the following does it use to determine what service to forward the packet to?
A. Port number
B. Packet ID number
C. Data IP number
D. IP protocol service type
9. Which of the following backup methods clear the archive bit? (Choose the two best answers.)
A. Differential
B. Sequential
C. Full
D. Incremental
10. You are troubleshooting a server connectivity problem on your network. A Windows Vista system is having trouble connecting to a Windows 2008 Server. Which of the following commands would you use to display per-protocol statistics on the workstation system?
A. arp -a
B. arp -A
C. nbtstat -s
D. nbtstat -S
E. netstat –s
11. You are working as a network administrator on a UNIX system. The system uses dynamic name resolution. What is used to dynamically resolve a hostname on a UNIX server?
A. IPX
B. ARP
C. DNS
D. LMHOSTS
12. During the night, one of your servers powers down. On reboot, print services do not load. Which of the following would be the first step in the troubleshooting process?
A. Examine the server log files.
B. Reboot the server.
C. Reinstall the printer.
D. Reinstall the printer software.
13. Which of the following technologies uses Category 5 cable?
A. 100BaseTX
B. Fiber optic
C. 10Base5
D. 10Base2
14. Which of the following utilities can be used to view the current network connections on a system?
A. ping
B. netstat
C. Telnet
D. tracert
15. You have been hired to review the security for a company’s network. Upon investigation, you notice that a wireless AP has been installed in a wiring closet without consent of the administrator. The AP is actively used by remote users to access resources on the company’s network. Which of the following security problems does this represent?
A. Rogue protocol interception
B. Rogue AP
C. Network sniffing
D. Social engineering
16. Which of the following are connectionless protocols? (Choose the two best answers.)
A. TCP
B. SFTP
C. HTTPS
D. UDP
17. You have just configured a wireless AP for your network. You want to ensure that a minimal level of security is provided for the connection by encrypting the data as it travels between the wireless devices and the access point. Which of the following protocols are you most likely to use for this purpose? (Select two.)
A. WEP
B. SSL
C. WST
D. WPA
18. You are working with a routing protocol that builds a map of the entire network and then holds that map in memory. What is the name of this type of protocol?
A. Distance vector protocol
B. Link vector protocol
C. Link state protocol
D. Distance state protocol
19. You are experiencing a problem with a workstation and want to ping the local host. Which of the following are valid ways to check your local TCP/IP connection? (Choose the two best answers.)
A. ping host
B. ping localhost
C. ping 127.0.0.1
D. ping 127.0.0.0
20. Which of the following network devices operates at the physical layer of the OSI model?
A. Router
B. Hub
C. Bridge
D. NIC
21. You have been asked to implement a RAID solution on one of your company’s servers. You have two hard disks and two hard disk controllers. Which of the following RAID levels could you implement? (Choose the three best answers.)
A. RAID 0
B. RAID 1
C. Disk duplexing
D. RAID 10
E. RAID 5
22. Which of the following represents a Class B IP address?
A. 191.23.21.54
B. 256.123.123.2
C. 24.67.118.67
D. 255.255.255.0
23. What utility would produce the following output?
A. netstat
B. nbtstat
C. ping
D. tracert –R
24. You have been called in to troubleshoot a problem with a newly installed email application. Internal users are able to communicate with each other via email, but neither incoming nor outgoing Internet email is working. You suspect a problem with the port-blocking configuration of the firewall system that protects the Internet connection. Which of the following ports would you allow to cure the problems with the email? (Choose the two best answers.)
A. 20
B. 25
C. 80
D. 110
E. 443
25. What is the default subnet mask for a Class B network?
A. 255.255.255.224
B. 255.255.255.0
C. 127.0.0.1
D. 255.255.0.0
26. At which OSI layer does TCP operate?
A. Network
B. Transport
C. Session
D. Presentation
27. What is the basic purpose of a firewall system?
A. It provides a single point of access to the Internet.
B. It caches commonly used web pages, thereby reducing the bandwidth demands on an Internet connection.
C. It allows hostnames to be resolved to IP addresses.
D. It protects one network from another by acting as an intermediary system.
28. Email and FTP work at which layer of the OSI model?
A. Application
B. Session
C. Presentation
D. User
29. Your manager has become increasingly concerned about the safety of network transmissions. You are asked by your manager to recommend a security strategy that will protect both internal and external network transmissions. Which of the following might you suggest?
A. Kerberos v4 encryption
B. IPsec
C. NTFS v5
D. SSL
30. While reviewing the security logs for your server, you notice that a user on the Internet has attempted to access your internal mail server. Although it appears that the user’s attempts were unsuccessful, you are concerned about the possibility that your systems may be compromised. Which of the following solutions are you most likely to implement?
A. A more secure password policy
B. A firewall system at the connection point to the Internet
C. File-level encryption
D. Kerberos authentication
31. Which of the following pieces of information is not likely to be supplied via DHCP?
A. IP address
B. NetBIOS computer name
C. Subnet mask
D. Default gateway
32. While troubleshooting a network connectivity problem, you notice that the network card in your system is operating at 10Mbps in half-duplex mode. At what data transfer rate is the network link operating?
A. 20Mbps
B. 5Mbps
C. 10Mbps
D. 11Mbps
33. Which of the following is a valid IPv6 address? (Select two.)
A. 2001:3000:4137::3cde::3f57:fe93
B. 2001:0:4137:9e50:3cde:37d1:3f57:fe93
C. 2001::4137:9e50:3cde:37d1:3f57::fe93
D. 2001::3cde:37d1:3f57:fe93
34. While troubleshooting a network connectivity problem on a Windows Server, you need to view a list of the IP addresses that have been resolved to MAC addresses. Which of the following commands would you use to do this?
A. arp -a
B. nbtstat -a
C. arp -d
D. arp –s
35. Which of the following statements best describes RAID 5?
A. A RAID 5 array consists of at least two drives. Parity information is written across both drives to provide fault tolerance.
B. A RAID 5 array consists of at least three drives and distributes parity information across all the drives in the array.
C. A RAID 5 array consists of at least three drives and stores the parity information on a single drive.
D. A RAID 5 array consists of at least four drives. The first and last drives in the array are used to store parity information.
36. You are concerned about collisions on your network. Currently you use hubs and the access method of CSMA/CD. Which of the following networks are you working with?
A. 802.1 wireless
B. 802.2
C. 802.5
D. 802.3
37. While you are troubleshooting a sporadic network connectivity problem on a Windows Vista system, you issue the ipconfig /all command to verify TCP/IP information and get the following results:
Considering this output, which of the following statements are true?
A. The DHCP server is unreachable.
B. The IP address and the subnet mask do not match.
C. The system is using IPv6 exclusively.
D. The physical address is incorrect.
38. You are performing a security audit for a large company. They are particularly concerned about remote authentication security. Which of the following remote authentication protocols would you not recommend?
A. PAP
B. CHAP
C. EAP
D. Multi-Chap v2
39. Recently your company has expanded to include another office across the street. You have been asked to link the two office using a wireless link. Which of the following wireless technologies would you use?
A. Point to Point
B. Wireless mesh
C. PtMP
D. Star bus bridge
40. A remote user calls you to report a problem she is having connecting to the corporate network over her DSL connection. The user is able to connect to the Internet and browse web pages, but she can’t connect to the corporate remote access gateway. Which of the following troubleshooting steps would you perform first?
A. Check the corporate remote access gateway to see whether it is running and operating correctly.
B. Have the user reboot her system.
C. Have the user reconfigure the IP address on her system to one of the address ranges used on the internal corporate network, and then try again.
D. Have the user power cycle the DSL modem and try again.
41. You are implementing a security design for your wireless network. Which of the following security standards provides port-based network access control?
A. WEP
B. 802.1X
C. IPsec
D. Kerberos
42. What command would generate the following output?
A. ipconfig
B. netstat
C. ping
D. tracert
43. Which of the following address types are not associated with IPv6?
A. Broadcast
B. Multicast
C. Unicast
D. Anycast
44. Which of the following IPv6 address types is equivalent to IPv4 private address ranges?
A. Link local addresses
B. Unique local addresses
C. Global addresses
D. Unicast addresses
45. You are asked to specify a way to connect two buildings across a parking lot. The distance between the two buildings is 78 meters. An underground wiring duct exists between the two buildings, although there are concerns about using it because it also houses high-voltage electrical cables. The budget for the project is tight, but your manager still wants you to specify the most suitable solution regardless of cost. Which of the following cable types would you recommend?
A. Fiber optic
B. UTP
C. Thin coax
D. STP
46. You are attempting to configure a client’s email program. The user can receive mail but is unable to send any. In the mail server configuration screen of the mail application, you notice that the Type of Outgoing Mail Server field is blank. This explains why the client is unable to send mail. Which of the following protocols are you most likely to enter as a value in the Type of Outgoing Mail Server field?
A. NMP
B. POP3
C. SMTP
D. IMAP
47. A user calls to inform you that she can’t access the Internet from her system. When you visit the user, you run the ipconfig /all utility and see the following information. What is the most likely reason the user is having problems accessing the Internet?
A. The system is on a different subnet than the DNS servers.
B. DHCP is not enabled.
C. The subnet mask is incorrect.
D. The default gateway setting is not configured.
48. Your ISP account manager suggests that it might be appropriate for you to install a DNS server internally. Which of the following functions does the DNS server provide?
A. It performs network address translation services.
B. It streamlines the resolution of NetBIOS names to IP addresses.
C. It allows some hostname-to-IP address resolutions to occur internally.
D. It allows users to retrieve Internet web pages more quickly.
49. Which of the following is not one of the private address ranges?
A. 192.168.x.x
B. 10.x.x.x
C. 172.16.x.x
D. 224.181.x.x
50. Which of the following is a valid MAC address?
A. 00:D0:59:09:07:51
B. 00:D0:59
C. 192.168.2.1
D. 00FE:56FE:230F:CDA2:00EB:32EC
E. 00:DG:59:09:07:51
51. Which of the following IPv6 address types is equivalent to IPv4 automatic 169.254.0.0 addressing?
A. Link local
B. Unique local
C. Global address
D. Unicast
52. Which of the following technologies can be implemented on a switch to create multiple separate networks?
A. Proxy
B. Subnet masking
C. NAS
D. VLAN
53. Which of the following protocols are responsible for network addressing?
A. IP
B. FTP
C. IPsec
D. TCP
54. Which of the following connectors are you most likely to associate with a connection to the PSTN?
A. RJ-PT
B. RJ-45
C. SC
D. RJ-11
55. You are configuring dial-in remote access for several network users. Security is a primary concern. Which of the following protocols or services is used to authenticate remote access users?
A. RADIUS
B. IPsec
C. L2TP
D. PPTP
56. Which of the following cables are specific to Cisco routers?
A. Cisco UTP
B. Rollover
C. Cisco loopback
D. Cisco reverse
57. Which of the following is not a commonly implemented feature of a firewall system?
A. NAT
B. Packet filtering
C. Proxy
D. NAS
58. You have been asked to implement a secure wireless solution for a company. The solution you chose uses a supplicant, an authenticator, and an authentication server. Which of the following wireless security options are you using?
A. WEP open
B. WEP shared
C. 802.1x
D. 802.11x
59. You have enabled HTTPS because of concerns about the security of your web server application, which runs on a web server system in the DMZ of your corporate network. However, remote users are now unable to connect to the application. Which of the following is the most likely reason for the problem?
A. Port 80 is being blocked on the corporate firewall.
B. Port 443 is being blocked on the corporate firewall.
C. Remote users need to enable HTTPS support in their web browsers.
D. Port 110 is being blocked on the corporate firewall.
60. Which of the following is a valid Class A IP address?
A. 124.254.254.254
B. 127.0.0.1
C. 128.16.200.12
D. 131.17.25.200
61. In the 802.1X security framework, which of the following best describes the role of authenticator?
A. To verify encryption methods used
B. To encrypt usernames and passwords
C. The system or node requesting access and authentication to a network resource
D. A control mechanism that allows or denies traffic to pass though a port
62. You are troubleshooting a wireless network where there is a channel overlap between access points. Which of the following can be done to correct the problem?
A. Change the default channel on an access point.
B. Release and renew the SSID.
C. Increase the WEP security settings.
D. Change the default channel on a client system.
63. Which of the following key encryption methods use both a private and public key to encrypt and decrypt messages?
A. Symmetric
B. Asymmetric
C. Reverse
D. Switched
64. You have been hired by a company to help troubleshoot errors. The network is experiencing intermittent errors and you suspect poorly made cables. Which of the following represents this type of error?
A. Near-end cross talk
B. Cross talk
C. EMI
D. Attenuation
65. A user calls to inform you that he is having a problem accessing a printer. What is the next step in the troubleshooting process?
A. Document the problem.
B. Restart the printer.
C. Discuss the problem with the user.
D. Visit the user’s desk to reload printer driver software.
66. What is the purpose of implementing fault tolerance?
A. It reduces the amount of time the administrator spends performing backups.
B. It promotes data availability by eliminating a single point of failure.
C. It allows systems to be brought back online more quickly.
D. It protects data from accidental deletion.
67. Which of the following statements are true of subnetting? (Choose two.)
A. It results in more network addresses.
B. It results in more node addresses.
C. It results in fewer network addresses.
D. It results in fewer node addresses.
68. In a hardware loopback plug, which wire numbers are connected? (Choose the two best answers.)
A. 3 and 5
B. 1 and 3
C. 1 and 2
D. 3 and 4
E. 2 and 6
69. Which of the following network types is easiest to add new nodes to?
A. Bus
B. Ring
C. Star
D. Mesh
70. What kind of connector would you use to make a patch cable for a 100BaseT network?
A. RJ-45
B. RJ-11
C. RJ-13
D. BNC
Answers to Exam Questions
1. A. The physical layer of the OSI seven-layer model is responsible for placing the signal on the network media. The data-link layer (Answer B) is responsible for physical addressing and media access. MAC and LLC (Answers C and D) are sublayers of the data-link layer. For more information see Chapter 9.
2. D. 10GBaseLR can be used over distances up to 10km and uses single mode fiber. 10GBaseER can be used over distances up to 40km. 10GBaseSR can be used over only relatively short distances—up to 300 meters. There is no 10 Gigabit Ethernet standard called 10GBaseTX. For more information see Chapter 6.
3. A. The ifconfig command is used on a Linux system to determine the IP configuration of the system. With NetWare you use the config command to obtain information about network addresses. On a Windows 2000/2003 system, the ipconfig command is used to view the networking configuration, including the IP address. ifconfig can be used on UNIX/Linux platforms to view the networking configuration. For more information see Chapter 12.
4. C. FTP can be used to transfer files between Windows and UNIX systems. FTP is part of the TCP/IP protocol suite and is platform independent. The Telnet utility is used to open a virtual terminal session on a remote host (Answer A). PPP is used to establish communications over a serial link; thus, Answer B is incorrect. PPTP is used to establish a secure link over a public network such as the Internet (Answer D). For more information see Chapter 4.
5. C. tracert is a Windows command that can be used to display the full path between two systems, including the number of hops between the systems. The ping utility (Answer A) can be used to test connectivity between two devices, but it reports only the time taken for the round-trip; it does not give information about the time it takes to complete each hop in the route. The Telnet utility (Answer B) is used to open a virtual terminal session on a remote host. The nbtstat command (Answer D) is used to view statistical information about the NetBIOS status of a system. For more information, see Chapter 12.
6. C. Because the system errors are networkwide, it is likely that the cause of the problem in this scenario lies with the antivirus suite because it is installed on all computers. To troubleshoot such a problem, it would be a good idea to check for patches or updates on the vendor’s website. A problem with a RAID array (Answer A) would affect only the server in which it is installed, not the entire network. Because the office suite (Answer B) was installed on only some of the systems, it can be eliminated as a problem because all the systems are affected. The antivirus software (Answer D) appears to be the cause of the problem, but reinstalling it is unlikely to help. For more information see Chapter 11.
7. D. Packet sniffers are commonly used on networks both by administrators and by hackers to capture network data. They are either a hardware device or software, and they eavesdrop on network transmissions that are traveling throughout the network. The packet sniffer quietly captures data and saves to be reviewed at a later time. Answer A is incorrect because port scanners monitor traffic in and out of ports, such as those connected to a switch. Answers B and C are not valid traffic monitoring technologies. For more information, refer to Chapter 13.
8. A. The service to which a data packet is destined is determined by the port number to which it is sent. Answers B, C, and D are not valid. For more information, see Chapter 4.
9. C and D. Both the full and incremental backup methods clear the archive bit to indicate which data does and does not need to be backed up. In a differential backup (Answer A), the archive bit is not cleared. Sequential (Answer B) is not a type of backup. For more information, see Chapter 10.
10. E. The netstat -s command can be used to display per-protocol statistics. The arp command (Answers A and B) is used to view a list of the IP address-to-MAC address resolutions performed by the system. The nbtstat utility (Answers C and D) is used to view protocol statistics for the NetBIOS protocol. For more information, see Chapter 12.
11. C. DNS is used on UNIX and Windows-based systems to resolve hostnames. IPX (Answer A) is a network layer connectionless protocol. ARP (Answer B) resolves IP addresses to MAC addresses. The LMHOSTS file (Answer D) is used on Windows systems to resolve NetBIOS names to IP addresses. For more information, see Chapter 4.
12. A. In this scenario your first step is to gather information by examining the server log files. When you have that information, you can proceed with the rest of the troubleshooting process. Rebooting the server (Answer B) is unlikely to cure the problem. Before you reinstall the printer (Answer C), you should examine the log files to see whether any problems are reported in the server log files. Before you reinstall the printer software (Answer D), examine the log files to see whether any problems are reported in the server log files. For more information, see Chapter 11.
13. A. 100BaseTX uses Category 5 cable. Fiber optic (Answer B) is a type of cable. 10Base5 (Answer C) is an ethernet networking standard that uses thick coaxial cable. 10Base2 (Answer D) is an ethernet networking standard that uses thin coaxial cable. For more information, see Chapter 6.
14. B. The netstat -a command can be used to display the current connections and listening ports. The ping utility (Answer A) is used to test connectivity between two devices on a TCP/IP network. Telnet (Answer C) is an application-level protocol that allows a virtual terminal session on a remote host. The tracert utility (Answer D) allows a path to be traced between two hosts. For more information, see Chapter 12.
15. B. A rogue access point describes a situation where a wireless access point has been placed on a network without knowledge of the administrator. The result is that it is possible to remotely access the rogue access point because it likely does not adhere to company security policies. Answers A and C are not valid security risk types. Answer D, social engineering, is a type of attack involving tricking people into performing actions or divulging confidential information such as passwords or usernames. For more information, see Chapter 15.
16. D. UDP is a connectionless protocol. Connectionless are a fire and forget or best effort delivery protocols. This makes them ideal for such applications as VoIP or streaming video where the occasional dropped packet is okay and speed is everything. TCP, on the other hand, has mechanisms built in that guarantee delivery and as such are not as fast as UDP. For more information, see Chapter 4.
17. A and D. WEP and WPA are both security protocols associated with wireless networking. Both are designed to protect data as it is transmitted from one end point to another. However, it has been found that WEP is not as secure as once believed. WPA improves on WEP security by providing a stronger security design. For more information on wireless security, see Chapter 7.
18. C. A router that uses a link-state protocol differs from a router that uses a distance-vector protocol because it builds a map of the entire network and then holds that map in memory. On a network that uses a link-state protocol, routers send out link-state advertisements (LSAs) that contain information about what networks they are connected to. The LSAs are sent to every router on the network, thus enabling the routers to build their network maps. For more information see Chapter 5.
19. B and C. To verify the IP configuration on a local computer system, you can either ping the localhost or the IP address 127.0.0.1. The default hostname for a system is localhost, not host, which means Answer A is incorrect. Answer D is not correct because this is the network address for the Class A loopback address, not a valid node loopback address. For more information, see Chapter 12.
20. B. A network hub operates at the physical layer of the OSI model. A router (Answer A) operates at the network layer of the OSI model. A bridge (Answer C) operates at the data-link layer of the OSI model. A NIC (Answer D) operates at the data-link layer of the OSI model. For more information, see Chapter 9.
21. A, B, and C. With two hard disks and two controllers, you can implement RAID 0, RAID 1, and disk duplexing. RAID 5 (disk striping with parity; Answer E) requires a minimum of three disks to be implemented. RAID 10 (Answer D) is a combination of RAID 1 (disk mirroring) and RAID 0 (disk striping). RAID 10 requires a minimum of four disks. For more information, see Chapter 10.
22. A. The first octet of a Class B address must be in the range 128 to 191. Answers B and C represent Class A addresses. Class A addresses run from 1 to 126. Answer D is not a valid IP address. For more information, see Chapter 5.
23. A. The netstat utility can be used to display protocol statistics and TCP/IP network connections. The nbtstat utility (Answer B) shows statistical information about the NetBIOS over TCP/IP connections. The ping utility (Answer C) is used to test the connectivity between two devices on a TCP/IP network. The tracert utility (Answer D) traces the path between two hosts on a TCP/IP network. For more information, see Chapter 12.
24. B and D. TCP/IP port 25 is used by SMTP. TCP/IP port 110 is used by POP3. Because SMTP is used to send mail and POP3 is used to retrieve mail, port 25 and port 110 are the two ports that would need to be allowed for incoming and outgoing Internet email. TCP/IP port 21 (Answer A) is used by FTP. TCP/IP port 80 (Answer C) is used by HTTP. TCP/IP port 443 (Answer E) is used by HTTPS. For more information, see Chapter 4.
25. D. The default subnet mask for a Class B address is 255.255.0.0. Answer A is not a valid subnet mask. Answer B is the default subnet mask for a Class C network. Answer C is the local loopback address. For more information, see Chapter 5.
26. B. TCP operates at the transport layer of the OSI model. Answers A, C, and D are all incorrect. For more information, see Chapter 9.
27. D. The purpose of the firewall system is to protect one network from another. One of the most common places to use a firewall is to protect a private network from a public one such as the Internet. Answer A is incorrect because although a firewall can provide a single point of access, that is not its primary purpose. Answer B more accurately describes the function of a proxy server. Answer C describes the function of a DNS server. For more information, see Chapter 14.
28. A. Both email and FTP work at the application layer of the OSI model. Email and FTP are application layer protocols, not session layer protocols. User (Answer D) is not a layer of the OSI model. For more information, see Chapter 9.
29. B. IPsec is a security protocol that provides end-to-end security for network transmissions. This means that IPsec can be used to secure transmissions inside the network as well as those that travel beyond the LAN. IPsec can be used only on TCP/IP networks. Kerberos is an authentication system that provides a method to verify the identity of a computer system over an insecure network connection. NTFS is a file system with Windows server and professional desktop systems that provides file-level security using encryption. SSL is widely used to securely send credit card and other sensitive data to a vendor’s website. For more information, see Chapter 14.
30. B. To prevent unauthorized access to a private network from the Internet, you can use a firewall server to restrict outside access. Implementing a more secure password policy (Answer A) is a good idea, but it is not the best choice of those available. Implementing a file-level encryption system (Answer C) is a good idea, but it is not the best choice of those available. Kerberos (Answer D) is an authentication system, not a method to prevent unauthorized access to the system. For more information, see Chapter 14.
31. B. A DHCP server does not supply NetBIOS computer names to client systems. The IP address (Answer A) is one of the pieces of information provided by DHCP. The subnet mask (Answer C) is one of the pieces of information provided by DHCP. The default gateway (Answer D) is one of the pieces of information supplied by DHCP. For more information, see Chapter 4 and Chapter 5.
32. C. Because the NIC is functioning at half-duplex 10Mbps, the transfer rate is 10Mbps. If it were operating at 10Mbps and full duplex, the effective speed would be 20Mbps. None of the other answers are correct. For more information, see Chapter 3, “Networking Components and Devices.”
33. B and D. IPv6 uses a 128-bit address, which is expressed as eight octet pairs in hexadecimal format, separated by colons. Because it is hexadecimal, only numbers and the letters A through F can be used. An IPv6 address is composed of eight hexadecimal octets. In IPv6 addresses, the :: can be used in place of a series of zeros, but the double colon can only be used once per address. Therefore Answer D of 2001::3cde:37d1:3f57:fe93 is correct. Its actual address without the :: would be 2001:0000:0000:0000:3cde:37d1:3f57:fe93. For more information, see Chapter 5.
34. A. The arp -a command is used to display the IP addresses that have been resolved to MAC addresses. The nbtstat command (Answer B) is used to view protocol statistics for NetBIOS connections. arp -d (Answer C) is not a valid command. The arp -s command (Answer D) allows you to add static entries to the ARP cache. For more information, see Chapter 12.
35. B. A RAID 5 array consists of at least three hard disks and stripes parity information across all disks in the array. RAID 5 (disk striping with parity; Answer A) requires at least three drives. The parity information is stored in a stripe across all three drives in the array (Answer B). RAID 5 requires only three drives, which makes Answer D incorrect. For more information, see Chapter 10.
36. D. CSMA/CD relates to the IEEE specification 802.3 or ethernet. CSMA/CD is a media access method where the CD stands for collision detection. Collision detection helps prevent two systems from sending signals at the same time. The 802.1x (Answer A) standard describes an authentication standard commonly used on wireless networks. The 802.2 (Answer B) standard defines the media access methods for various networking standards. The 802.5 (Answer C) standard defines token ring networking. For more information, see Chapter 6.
37. A. In this scenario it is likely that the DHCP server is unavailable. We know this because the system is configured with a 169.x.x.x address. This address type is assigned using APIPA and used when a DHCP server cannot be found. For more information, see Chapter 12.
38. A. PAP is the least secure of the authentication methods because it uses unencrypted passwords. The Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP) is an extension to PPP and supports multiple authentication methods, including token cards, Kerberos, one-time passwords, certificates, public key authentication, and smart cards. CHAP is a challenge/response authentication protocol that provides security for remote authentication. Multi-Chap v2 is not a valid authentication strategy. For more information on authentication methods, refer to Chapter 15.
39. A. A point-to-point wireless topology connects one location to another. Wireless point-to-point systems are often used in wireless backbone systems, such as microwave relay communications, or as a replacement for a single wired communication cable. The point-to-point link can be used to connect two locations to share data and resources. The wireless mesh topology is used to interconnect multiple systems with redundant links. Point to multipoint (PtMP) is used for connecting one wireless point to several others. Star bus bridge is not a wireless topology. For more information, see Chapter 1 for information on network topologies.
40. A. In this scenario, you would first check the remote access gateway to see whether it is running and operating correctly. Because the user can browse web pages, this is not a connectivity problem. Answer B is incorrect because although rebooting the system might help, the system appears to be working correctly, and rebooting it is unlikely to cure the problem. The IP address configuration appears to be working because the user is able to access web pages and so Answer C is incorrect. The Internet connection appears to be working, so cycling the power on the DSL modem, as described in Answer D, is unlikely to help. For more information, see Chapter 11 and Chapter 8.
41. B. IEEE 802.1x defines a security standard for port-based, network access control. Originally designed for authentication on wired ethernet networks, it has been adopted by 802.11 standards to provide authentication services for WLANs. WEP (Answer A) is a wireless security standard that offers encryption services but not port-based authentication. IPsec (Answer C) is a protocol designed to provide end-to-end security for network transmissions. Kerberos (Answer D) is an authentication system that provides a method to verify the identity of a computer system over an insecure network connection. For more information on security standards, see Chapter 7.
42. D. The output displayed in this question is from the Windows tracert utility. Answers A, B, and C are all incorrect. These utilities produce output that is different from the output shown. For more information, see Chapter 12.
43. A. A key difference between IPv4 and IPv6 is in the address types. When it comes to IPv6 addresses, there are three main types of addresses: unicast, multicast, and anycast addresses. IPv4 uses broadcast addressing and IPv6 doesn’t. Broadcast messages send data to all systems on the network, which can cause too much network traffic. For more information, see Chapter 5.
44. B. Unique local addresses are equivalent to the IPv4 private address space (10.0.0.0/8, 172.16.0.0/12, and 192.168.0.0/16). Like IPv4, where private address ranges are used in private networks, IPv6 uses site-local addresses. Site-local addresses are not automatically configured and must be assigned either through stateless or stateful address configuration processes. The prefix used for the site-local address is (FC00::/7). For more information see Chapter 5.
45. A. Fiber-optic cable provides the most resistance to EMI and therefore is often used in environments where there is a risk of interference. Although it is inexpensive, UTP (Answer B) cable has very low resistance to EMI. Therefore, it should not be run near high-voltage electric cables. Thin coax (Answer C) has low resistance to EMI. Therefore, it should not be run near high-voltage electric cables. STP (Answer D) has a good level of resistance to EMI, but it is still not as resistant as fiber optic. Not factoring in the cost, fiber optic is the most suitable solution. For more information, see Chapter 2.
46. C. SMTP is used for sending email. Answer A is not a valid answer. Answers B and D are incorrect because POP3 and IMAP are email retrieval protocols, not protocols for sending email. For more information, see Chapter 4.
47. D. The most likely cause of the problem is that the default gateway is not configured. Answer A is incorrect because from the output it appears that the DNS servers are on the same subnet as this system. Answer B does not apply because addressing is configured statically, so there is no DHCP service. This is not a problem, however. Answer C is incorrect because the subnet mask is the correct default subnet mask for a Class C network. For more information, see Chapter 11.
48. C. DNS allows hostname resolutions to occur internally. In most cases, companies use a DNS server provided by the ISP. In some cases, however, it might be appropriate to have a DNS server on the internal network. Answer A is incorrect because NAT is normally a function of firewall or proxy servers. Answer B describes the purpose of a WINS server. Answer D describes the function of a proxy server. For more information, see Chapter 4.
49. D. Private address ranges are designed for use on private networks. The ranges are 192.168.x.x, 10.x.x.x, and 172.16.x.x–172.32.x.x. Answers A, B, and C are all valid private IP address ranges. For more information, see Chapter 5.
50. A. The MAC address is a 6-byte address expressed in six pairs of hexadecimal values. Because it is hexadecimal, only the letters A through F and numbers can be used. Answer B is incorrect because MAC addresses are expressed as six hexadecimal pairs. Answer C shows an example of an IPv4 address. Answer D shows an example of an IPv6 address. Answer E is incorrect because MAC addresses are expressed in hexadecimal; therefore, only the letters A through F and numbers can be used. For more information, see Chapter 5.
51. A. Link-local addresses are automatically configured on all interfaces. This automatic configuration is equivalent to the 169.254.0.0 automatically assigned IPv4 addressing. The prefix used for a link-local address is fe80::/10. For more information, see Chapter 5.
52. D. A VLAN is implemented on a switch to create multiple separate networks. A proxy server (Answer A) is used to cache websites and increase speed for Internet retrieval using the cache. Subnet masking (Answer B) is not a valid method of creating separate networks. NAS (Answer C) describes storage devices attached directly to the network media. For more information, see Chapter 1.
53. A. IP is the protocol responsible for network addressing. Answer B, FTP, is used to transfer data between system. IPsec is a protocol used to secure network transmissions. TCP is a transport-layer protocol not responsible for network addressing. For more information, see Chapter 5.
54. D. The RJ-11 connector is used for phone line connections, which is what you would be using to connect to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN). There is no connector called RJ-PT (Answer A). RJ-45 (Answer B) connectors are used with twisted-pair network cabling. SC (Answer C) connectors are associated with fiber-optic cabling. For more information, see Chapter 2.
55. A. The RADIUS service provides authentication services for remote access users for a dial-up network. RADIUS uses a client-server model. IPsec (Answer B) is a protocol designed to encrypt local and remote network data communications. L2TP (Answer C) and PPTP (Answer D) are used to authenticate users over a VPN link. For more information, see Chapter 7 and Chapter 15.
56. B. The rollover cable is a Cisco proprietary cable used to connect a computer system to a router or switch console port. Like UTP cable, the rollover cable has eight wires inside and an RJ-45 connector on each end that connects to the Cisco router and the computer port. None of the other answers are valid. For more information, see Chapter 2.
57. D. A firewall can provide several services to the network, including NAT, proxy services, and packet filtering. NAS is not a function of a firewall server. Answers A, B, and C are all incorrect because NAT, packet filtering, and proxy functionality are all commonly implemented on firewall systems. For more information, see Chapter 14.
58. C. 802.1X is an IEEE standard specifying port-based network access control. 802.1X uses a supplicant, an authenticator, and an authentication server. Wireless networks can also use WEP and WPA for security, with WPA being the more secure of the two because it uses the TKIP security protocol. 802.11x refers to the various 802.11 wireless standards available. For more information, see Chapter 7.
59. B. The most likely explanation is that port 443, the HTTPS default port, is being blocked by a corporate firewall. Port 80 (Answer A) is used by HTTP. All modern web browsers support HTTPS automatically; therefore, Answer C is incorrect. Port 110 (Answer D) is used by POP3. For more information, see Chapter 4.
60. A. Class A subnets use the range 1 to 126 for the value of the first octet. Answer B is the loopback address, which allows the IP stack functionality to be tested. Answers C and D are both addresses in the Class B range (128–191). For more information, see Chapter 5.
61. C. There are three main components of the 802.1X security framework: the supplicant, which is the system or node requesting access and authentication to a network resource; the authenticator, usually a switch or AP that acts as a control mechanism allowing or denying traffic to pass though a port; and the authentication server, which is responsible for validating the credentials of the supplicant that is trying to the network or resource. For more information, see Chapter 7.
62. A. Ordinarily, the default channel used with a wireless device is adequate; however, it may be necessary to change the channel if there is overlap with another nearby access point. The channel is changed on the access point through a configuration screen on a client system. For more information see Chapter 7.
63. B. Keys can be used in two ways to secure data communications: public key encryption (asymmetric) and private (symmetric) key encryption. Private (symmetric) key encryption uses a single key for both encryption and decryption. If a person possesses the key, he or she can both encrypt and decrypt messages. Unlike public keys, this single secret key cannot be shared with anyone except people who should be permitted to decrypt and encrypt messages. For more information, see Chapter 15.
64. A. Near-end cross talk, or NeXT, occurs when connectors are not properly attached to UTP cable. Specifically, the cross talk can occur if the wires pushed into the RJ-45 connector are crossed or crushed. Cross talk can occur when network cables are placed too closely together. EMI is caused by interference from motors or other devices. Attenuation refers to the diminishing of data signals as they travel down a particular media. For more information see Chapter 11.
65. C. Not enough information is provided to make any real decision about what the problem might be. In this case, the next troubleshooting step would be to talk to the user and gather more information about exactly what the problem might be. All the other answers are valid troubleshooting steps, but only after the information gathering has been completed. For more information see Chapter 11.
66. B. Fault tolerance promotes data availability by eliminating a single point of failure. Answer A is incorrect because, although fault tolerance may reduce the reliance on backups, they should still be performed. Answer C is incorrect because in the strict definition, being fault tolerant does not help a system get back online more quickly. Answer D is incorrect because being a fault tolerant system does not protect data from accidental deletion. For more information, see Chapter 10.
67. A and D. The process of subnetting involves using parts of the node portion of the IP address to create more network addresses. The process of using parts of the network portion of the IP address to create more node addresses and fewer network addresses is called supernetting. For more information, see Chapter 5.
68. B and E. A hardware loopback plug connects the 2 and 6 wires and 1 and 3 wires to simulate a live network connection. Answers A, C, and D are all incorrect; these answers are not correct for the cable in a hardware loopback adapter. For more information, see Chapter 2.
69. C. Each node on a star network uses its own cable, which makes it easy to add users without disrupting current users. Adding a node to a bus network can sometimes involve breaking the segment, which makes it inaccessible to all other nodes on the network. This makes Answer A incorrect. Answer B is incorrect because a true ring network model would require that the ring be broken to add a new device. Answer D is incorrect because a mesh topology requires that every device be connected to every other device on the network. It is, therefore, difficult to expand a mesh network. For more information, see Chapter 1.
70. A. 100BaseT networks use twisted-pair cable and RJ-45 connectors. RJ-11 (Answer B) connectors are associated with telephone cable. RJ-T (Answer C) is not a valid type of connector. A BNC connector (Answer D) is associated with coaxial cable. The 10BaseT standard uses twisted-pair cable. For more information, see Chapter 2.