APCSP Internet Architecture 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which protocol is responsible for breaking data into packets and routing them across the internet?
- HTTP
- IP (Correct answer)
- DNS
- FTP
Correct answer: IP
IP (Internet Protocol) handles addressing and routing packets across networks.
Question 2: What does DNS stand for and what is its primary function?
- Data Network System; stores user data
- Domain Name System; translates domain names to IP addresses (Correct answer)
- Dynamic Node Service; assigns dynamic IPs
- Digital Network Standard; encrypts web traffic
Correct answer: Domain Name System; translates domain names to IP addresses
DNS translates human-readable domain names like 'example.com' into numeric IP addresses.
Question 3: A web server at IP address 203.0.113.5 receives a request. Which layer of the TCP/IP model handles delivering this packet to the correct application on that server?
- Network layer
- Data link layer
- Transport layer (Correct answer)
- Physical layer
Correct answer: Transport layer
The transport layer uses port numbers to deliver data to the correct application process.
Question 4: Which of the following best describes 'fault tolerance' in the context of internet architecture?
- The internet can only support a fixed number of simultaneous connections
- The internet continues to function even when some nodes or connections fail (Correct answer)
- All data must travel through a central server to ensure reliability
- Fault tolerance means no packets are ever lost
Correct answer: The internet continues to function even when some nodes or connections fail
Fault tolerance means the network can reroute traffic around failures so communication continues.
Question 5: What is the purpose of a subnet mask in networking?
- It encrypts traffic between two hosts
- It determines which portion of an IP address identifies the network vs. the host (Correct answer)
- It assigns dynamic IP addresses to devices
- It translates domain names to IP addresses
Correct answer: It determines which portion of an IP address identifies the network vs. the host
A subnet mask separates the network portion from the host portion of an IP address.
Question 6: Which statement about IPv6 is accurate compared to IPv4?
- IPv6 uses 32-bit addresses, providing fewer total addresses
- IPv6 uses 128-bit addresses, vastly expanding the available address space (Correct answer)
- IPv6 is slower than IPv4 due to longer addresses
- IPv6 replaced IPv4 completely in 2010
Correct answer: IPv6 uses 128-bit addresses, vastly expanding the available address space
IPv6 uses 128-bit addresses, providing approximately 3.4×10^38 unique addresses compared to IPv4's ~4.3 billion.
Question 7: In packet switching, what happens when a packet arrives at a router and the preferred route is congested?
- The packet is discarded and the sender is notified immediately
- The router can forward the packet along an alternate path (Correct answer)
- The packet waits indefinitely until the preferred route clears
- The router requests a direct connection between sender and receiver
Correct answer: The router can forward the packet along an alternate path
Routers can dynamically select alternate paths when preferred routes are congested, a key feature of packet switching.
APCSP Internet Architecture 2
Which protocol is responsible for breaking data into packets and routing them across the internet?