CCST - Cisco Certified Support Technician Basic Routing and Switching Questions and Answers

Question 1

A network switch receives an Ethernet frame on its Fa0/1 port. The destination MAC address of the frame is unknown to the switch. Which action will the switch take?

Accepted Answer

Forward the frame out all ports except for Fa0/1

Answer

When a switch receives a frame with a destination MAC address that is not in its MAC address table, its default behavior is to flood the frame. This means it forwards the frame out of every port in the same VLAN except for the port on which it was received, ensuring the frame reaches its destination if it exists on the network. The switch also adds the source MAC address and its corresponding port (Fa0/1) to its MAC address table.

Question 2

What is the primary function of a default gateway in a host's IP configuration?

Accepted Answer

To provide a path for traffic destined for hosts on remote networks

Answer

The default gateway is the IP address of a router on the same local network as the host. When the host needs to send a packet to an IP address that is not on its local subnet, it sends the packet to the default gateway. The gateway router is then responsible for forwarding the packet toward its final destination.

Question 3

A PC with IP address 192.168.1.10 needs to send data to a server with IP address 192.168.1.50 on the same local Ethernet network. The PC does not have the server's MAC address in its cache. Which protocol will the PC use to find the MAC address of the server?

Accepted Answer

ARP

Answer

The Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) is used to map a Layer 3 (IP) address to a Layer 2 (MAC) address on a local network. The PC will send out an ARP request broadcast on the local network asking for the MAC address associated with 192.168.1.50. The server will respond with an ARP reply containing its MAC address, allowing the PC to properly address the Ethernet frame.

Question 4

A network administrator wants to improve security and network efficiency by segmenting a single physical switch into two separate logical networks: one for the 'Sales' department and one for the 'Engineering' department. Devices in one department should not be able to communicate directly with devices in the other at Layer 2. Which technology should be implemented?

Accepted Answer

Virtual Local Area Networks (VLANs)

Answer

VLANs allow a network administrator to logically segment a single physical switch into multiple virtual switches. Each VLAN is a separate broadcast domain. This prevents Layer 2 traffic from crossing between the configured VLANs, effectively isolating the 'Sales' and 'Engineering' departments as requested, even though they are connected to the same physical hardware.

Question 5

Which of the following statements correctly differentiates the roles of switches and routers concerning traffic domains?

Accepted Answer

A switch forwards broadcast traffic by default, and each of its ports is a separate collision domain.

Answer

By default, a switch creates one large broadcast domain, meaning a broadcast frame sent by one device is forwarded to all other devices. However, switches segment collision domains; each port on a switch is its own collision domain. Routers, by contrast, do not forward broadcasts by default and are used to separate broadcast domains.

(CCST) Cisco Certified Support Technician Practice Test

(CCST) Cisco Certified Support Technician Practice Test

CCST - Cisco Certified Support Technician Basic Routing and Switching Questions and Answers