CompTIA Network+ Certification Exam Practice Questions:

Networking Devices - Hubs, Routers, Switches, and More!

By Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933

To help you along in your CompTIA Network+ exam studies, here are ten free certification exam practice questions on networking devices. There may be more than one correct answer for each question.

Answers are posted below the questions. Have fun!

1. Which of the following devices works as a kind of firewall?  

A. bridge

B. switch

C. proxy server

D. web server

2. What term is broadly used to describe any combination of hardware and software devices that are used to connect otherwise non-compatible network environments? 

A. router

B. gateway

C. repeater

D. bridge

E. hub

F. switch

3. What L2 device is used to connect similar network segments while keeping their traffic separate unless absolutely necessary?  

A. bridge

B. router

C. hub

D. repeater

4. A proxy server serving as an "intercepting proxy" is running what service or protocol?  

A. MS Proxy Service

B. SLIP

C. PPP

D. NAT

5. The primary purpose of which of the following devices is to protect a network from external attack?  

A. firewall

B. router

C. CSU/DSU

D. switch

6. A switch examines the destination MAC address of an incoming frame. The destination is found to be off the same port that the frame came in on. What will the switch do?  

A. Forward the frame.

B. Filter the frame.

C. Broadcast the frame.

D. Flood the frame.

7. What device is needed to connect an RJ-45 connector to a Cisco router AUI port? 

A. serial adapter

B. transceiver

C. ST

D. BNC

8. Which of the following reduces broadcast traffic by default?  

A. hub

B. router

C. switch

D. repeater  

9. A switch receives a frame and examines the destination MAC address. There's no entry for that address in the MAC table. What will the switch do?  

A. Filter the frame.

B. Unicast the frame.

C. Drop the frame.

D. Flood the frame.

10. Identify the true statements regarding repeaters.  

A. They strengthen electrical signals.

B. They help to direct traffic.

C. They operate at the Physical layer.

D. They operate at the Data Link layer.

Answers after the break!

Here are the answers to the above questions:

1. C. Proxy servers do serve as a kind of firewall, since packet filtering of a kind is performed on a proxy server. Running NAT on a proxy server hides the internal IP addresses as well, protecting the internal network's privacy.

2. B.

3. A. Bridges can connect networks using different media.  An Ethernet segment could be connected to a network using Token Ring, for example. Bridges don't forward data across the bridge unless the destination address is known to be valid.

4. D. Proxy servers can also be used to run NAT.  When the client's browser uses the NAT process, the connection is redirected to the proxy server.  This redirection is an intercepting proxy. 

5. A. A firewall is your basic protection against Internet-based attackers.  A firewall is a physical device that filters packets heading for your PC, and those filters are set to block attempts to harm your PC. 

6. B. If the source and destination MAC addresses are shown in the switch's MAC address table as being found off the same port, the switch will filter the frame - that is, the frame will not be forwarded.

7. B. A transceiver is a tiny little rectangular device that fits in the palm of your hand, and this tiny device does a big job.  It allows a network device to connect to a media type it wasn't originally designed for.  The main use of  a transceiver is to allow a device to be connected to an AUI (Attachment Unit Interface) port.   Many Cisco routers have AUI ports, and a transceiver can be used to allow a cable with an RJ-45 connector to connect to a DB-15 port.  The RJ-45 connector is placed into one end of the transceiver, and the transceiver is then connected to the router's AUI port.

8. B. By default, a router limits the amount of broadcast traffic on a network, since a router's default behavior is to not forward broadcasts at all. A switch can be used to limit broadcast traffic, but it will not do so by default. VLANs must be created on the switch in order to create smaller broadcast domains.

9. D. If a switch has no entry in its MAC address table for a frame's destination MAC address, the switch will flood the frame - that it, the switch will send a copy of the frame out every single port on the switch except the port upon which it was originally received.

10. A, C. Repeaters help to strengthen an electrical signal - actually, a repeater takes an incoming signal and generates a new, clean copy of that signal. Repeaters operate at the Physical layer of the OSI model. Repeaters do not perform any switching or routing functions.

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To your success,

Chris Bryant

CCIE #12933

chris@thebryantadvantage.com