N10-009 Free Practice Questions — Page 3 (2026)

Question 17

A network technician needs to configure IP addressing in a Class С network with eight subnets total: • Three for 60 hosts • Three for 15 hosts • Two for seven hosts Which of the following solutions should the technician use to accomplish this task?

A. CIDR

B. APIPA

C. VLSM

D. RFC 1918

Show Answer

Correct Answer: C

Explanation:
The network requires multiple subnets with different host capacities (60, 15, and 7 hosts). This cannot be efficiently achieved with a single fixed subnet mask. VLSM (Variable Length Subnet Masking) allows the technician to create subnets of varying sizes within the same Class C network, matching each subnet to its host requirement and minimizing wasted IP addresses. The other options do not address variable subnet sizing.

Question 18

Which of the following cables is the most appropriate to use when running bulk cables in ceilings?

A. Plenum

B. Coaxial

C. Ethernet

D. DAC

Show Answer

Correct Answer: A

Explanation:
Bulk cabling in ceilings—especially in plenum air-handling spaces—must meet fire and smoke safety codes. Plenum-rated cables are designed to emit low smoke and low toxicity when burned, making them the appropriate and code-compliant choice. The other options describe cable types or use cases, not the required fire rating.

Question 19

A network administrator installs a wireless AP to an existing PoE switch on G1/0/1. The administrator notices that the new wireless AP is not receiving any power. The administrator logs in to the switch and views the following power statistics: Which of the following is the most likely reason the wireless AP is not receiving power?

A. The switch is not configured to provide power over the connected port.

B. The wireless AP’s power cable is damaged.

C. The wireless AP is not receiving power due to overutilization.

D. The switch’s firmware needs to be updated.

Show Answer

Correct Answer: A

Explanation:
The most likely cause is that PoE is not enabled on the switch port. If the port is administratively down or PoE is disabled on G1/0/1, the AP will not receive power. Other options are less likely without evidence of a faulty cable, power budget exhaustion, or firmware issues.

Question 20

A network administrator is extending a network beyond the primary equipment location. Which of the following is where the administrator should install additional network switches?

A. MDF

B. VPC

C. VXLAN

D. IDF

Show Answer

Correct Answer: D

Explanation:
The primary equipment location is the MDF (Main Distribution Frame). When a network is extended beyond that central location, additional access or aggregation switches are placed in Intermediate Distribution Frames (IDFs) to serve other floors or areas. VPC and VXLAN are virtualization/overlay technologies, not physical locations. Therefore, the correct answer is IDF.

Question 21

A network administrator deploys new network hardware. While configuring the network monitoring server, the server could authenticate but could not determine the specific status of the hardware. Which of the following would the administrator most likely do to resolve the issue?

A. Use the public community string.

B. Import the appropriate MI

C. Set up a switch port analyzer and forward traffic.

D. Configure SNMPv3 privacy.

Show Answer

Correct Answer: B

Explanation:
The monitoring server can authenticate via SNMP, so connectivity and credentials are working. The inability to determine detailed hardware status indicates it lacks the vendor-specific object definitions needed to interpret SNMP data. Importing the appropriate MIB allows the monitoring system to understand and display specific status metrics for the new hardware.

Question 22

A network engineer receives a new router to use for WAN connectivity. Which of the following best describes the layer the network engineer should connect the new router to?

A. Core

B. Leaf

C. Spine

D. Access

Show Answer

Correct Answer: A

Explanation:
A WAN-facing router connects at the Core layer, which is responsible for external connectivity (WAN/Internet) and interconnecting major network domains. In a spine–leaf design, spine switches provide high-speed internal forwarding within a data center fabric, not direct WAN edge connectivity. WAN routers typically sit at the core or edge/core boundary, not at the access, leaf, or spine layers.

Question 23

Three access points have Ethernet that runs through the ceiling. One of the access points cannot reach the internet. Which of the following tools can help identify the issue?

A. Network tap

B. Cable tester

C. Visual fault locator

D. Toner and probe

Show Answer

Correct Answer: B

Explanation:
If one access point cannot reach the internet while others work, a likely cause is a physical Ethernet cabling issue between that AP and the switch. A cable tester is designed to verify continuity, pinout, and faults such as opens, shorts, or miswires in Ethernet cables. The other tools do not directly validate basic cable integrity in this scenario.

Question 24

An employee connects to the company network from home using a VPN. Company data uses the VPN, while internet traffic uses the home ISP connection. Which of the following best describes the connectivity method in use?

A. IPSec

B. Split-tunnel

C. Clientless

D. Out-of-band

Show Answer

Correct Answer: B

Explanation:
The scenario describes a VPN configuration where only traffic destined for the corporate network is sent through the VPN, while all other internet-bound traffic continues to use the user's local ISP connection. This is the defining characteristic of a split-tunnel VPN. IPSec is a VPN protocol, clientless refers to browser-based access, and out-of-band is unrelated to VPN traffic routing.

Question 25

A network engineer is implementing a new connection between core switches. The engineer deploys the following configurations to the switches: Which of the following is the state of the core-sw01 port-channel interfaces?

A. Incrementing CRC errors

B. Error disabled

C. Administratively down

D. Suspended

Show Answer

Correct Answer: D

Explanation:
With LACP configured in active mode on core-sw01 but no corresponding EtherChannel/LACP configuration on core-sw02, LACP negotiation cannot complete. On Cisco switches, this condition does not error-disable the interface; instead, the member links are placed into a suspended state because no compatible LACP partner is detected. Therefore, the port-channel interfaces on core-sw01 are suspended.

Question 26

Which of the following Layer 1 devices is responsible for the termination of fiber-optic connections on an SFP-capable switch?

A. Transceiver

B. Modem

C. Ethernet NIC

D. Repeater

Show Answer

Correct Answer: A

Explanation:
On an SFP-capable switch, the SFP transceiver is the Layer 1 (Physical layer) component that terminates the fiber-optic cable and converts optical signals to electrical signals and vice versa. Modems, NICs, and repeaters do not serve this specific termination role for SFP fiber connections.