4: Comparing Local Networking Hardware

A technician is wirelessly transferring pictures from their camera to their computer. What kind of network does the technician establish?

A. Wi-Fi

B. LAN

C. PAN

D. WLAN

**C. PAN**

The technician has established a personal area network (PAN) which refers to using wireless connectivity to connect to devices at a range of a few meters.

Wi-Fi is the brand name for the IEEE 802.11 standards that can be used to implement a wireless local area network (WLAN).

A local area network (LAN) is a group of computers connected by cabling and one or more network switches that are all installed at a single geographical location.

A wireless local area network (WLAN), also known as Wi-Fi, uses radios and antennas for data transmission and reception. Most WLANs are based on the IEEE 802.11 series of standards.

An organization located on a large piece of rural property needs to connect its office building on the north side of the property with its warehouse and shipping operation on the south side of the property. The organization decides to connect the locations using long-range fixed wireless. What frequency spectrum must the organization use to ensure that nobody else can use the same frequency band?

A. Unlicensed

B. Licensed

C. 802.11ax

D. DFS

**B. Licensed**

A licensed frequency spectrum means that the organization purchases the exclusive right to use a frequency band within a given geographical area from the regulator.

Unlicensed spectrum means the operator uses a public frequency band, such as 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, and 5 GHz. Anyone can use these frequencies, meaning that interference is a risk.

802\.11ax, or Wi-Fi 6, can support up to eight clients, giving it better performance in congested areas. Wi-Fi 6 also adds support for uplink MU-MIMO and OFDMA.

Dynamic frequency selection (DFS) is a regulatory feature of wireless access points that prevents the use of certain 5 GHz channels when in the range of a facility that uses radar.

An administrator needs to supply power to a handset through the switch; however, the switch does not support Power over Ethernet (PoE). How can the administrator solve this problem?

A. A managed switch

B. An unmanaged switch

C. A power injector

D. A hub

**C. A hub**

If a switch does not support PoE, the administrator can use a device called a "power injector." The administrator connects one port on the injector to the switch port and the other port to the device.

Switches designed for larger LANs are managed switches. An administrator can connect to one of these switches over a management port and choose options for the switch's more advanced functionality.

An unmanaged switch performs its function without requiring any sort of configuration. It establishes Ethernet connectivity between the network interfaces connected to it without any more intervention.

A hub is a legacy network hardware device that implemented the 10BASE-T and 100BASE-T Ethernet cabling designs.

All the employees in a lawyer’s office communicate with the internet and each other through the same appliance. What kind of network is the office using?

A. SOHO

B. Zigbee

C. PAN

D. MAN

**A. SOHO**

The office uses a small office home office (SOHO) LAN, which is a business-oriented network using a single networking appliance to provide LAN and internet connectivity.

The Zigbee protocol is designed for operation on low-power devices without substantial CPU or storage resource. Zigbee is a wireless mesh networking protocol.

A personal area network (PAN) is a group of devices connected wirelessly, such as by Bluetooth.

A metropolitan area network (MAN) refers to a specific network type covering an area equivalent to a city or other municipality.

A network technician used a tool that energizes each wire in a cable. When the technician sent energy to some of the wires, the LED on the tool did not light up. What tool was the technician using?

A. Toner probe

B. Tone generator

C. Cable tester

D. Loopback plug

**C. Cable tester**

The technician was using a cable tester, which is a pair of devices that attach to each end of a cable and energize each wire in the cable to test if the wire is conducting a signal.

A toner probe identifies a cable from within a bundle. This may be necessary when cable technicians have not properly labeled the cables.

A tone generator applies a continuous audio signal on a cable to detect the signal and follow the cable over ceilings and through ducts.

A loopback plug tests a network interface card (NIC) or switch port. When a technician connects a loopback plug to a port, a solid link LED shows that the port can send and receive.

A network technician is upgrading a legacy network for a small business and is replacing their legacy hub with a device that learns MAC addresses and uses them to forward frames to only the destination port, rather than sending them out to every port. What kind of device is the technician replacing the hub with?

A. NIC

B. Patch panel

C. PoE

D. Switch

**D. Switch**

The technician replaces the hub with a switch that tracks MAC addresses for each of its ports and uses learned MAC addresses to forward frames to the destination port only.

Each Ethernet network interface card (NIC) port has a unique hardware/physical address, called the "media access control" (MAC) address and Ethernet data identifies the source and destination MAC addresses in a header.

In most types of office cabling, a technician connects a computer to a wall port and the cabling running through the walls connects to a patch panel.

Power over Ethernet (PoE) is a means of supplying electrical power from a switch port over ordinary data cabling to a powered device (PD).

A network technician is trying to locate the Cat 6A cable in a closet full of unmarked boxes with different types of cabling in them. How will the technician be able to tell which cable is Cat 6A? (Select all that apply.)

A. The words “twisted pair cable” is on the cable jacket.

B. The TIA/EIA standard is on the cable jacket.

C. The Cat specification is on the cable jacket.

D. The cable type is on the cable jacket.

**C. The Cat specification is on the cable jacket.**

**D. The cable type is on the cable jacket.**

The technician can locate the cable by looking at the cable jacket since manufacturers print the Cat specification on the cable jacket.

The technician will locate the cable by looking at the cable jacket because manufacturers print the cable type, such as UTP unshielded twisted pair (UTP) or foiled/unshielded twisted pair (F/UTP), on the cable jacket.

The words “twisted pair cable” are not on the cable jacket of Ethernet cables, but the Cat specification and the cable type, such as unshielded twisted pair (UTP) or foiled/unshielded twisted pair (F/UTP), is on the cable jacket.

The TIA/EIA-568-C Commercial Building Telecommunications Cabling Standards define the Cat specifications, but this is not on the cable jacket. TIA/EIA refers to the Telecommunications Industry Association/Electronic Industries Alliance.

A small company hired a network technician to upgrade its network. Surprisingly the company was still using a legacy hardware device that configures a network into a star topology. What device was this?

A. Managed switch

B. PoE-enabled switch

C. Hub

D. Patch panel

**C. Hub**

The company was using a hub, which is a legacy network hardware device that configured networks in what is referred to as a "star topology" because each end system is cabled to a concentrator (the hub).

Switches designed for larger LANs are managed switches. An administrator can connect to one of these switches over a management port and choose options for the switch's more advanced functionality.

A PoE-enabled switch is referred to as endspan power sourcing equipment (PSE). When supported, this device determines the device’s power consumption and sets the appropriate supply voltage level. This is not a legacy device.

In most types of office cabling, a technician connects a computer to a wall port and the cabling running through the walls connects to a patch panel.

A technician is able to use the standard adapter built into a computer's motherboard to connect to the company's network using a patch cable. What kind of network is the company using?

A. Bluetooth

B. Gigabit Ethernet

C. Fiber optic

D. Wi-Fi

**B. Gigabit Ethernet**

The company is using Gigabit Ethernet as many PC motherboards have a built-in 1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet compatible adapter.

Bluetooth is used to connect peripheral devices to PCs and mobile devices and to share data between two systems. Bluetooth is a wireless technology, so no need for any patch cables to be used.

If the company was using a fiber-optic network, the technician would have to use a network interface card (NIC) adapter that supports fiber optic as this is not a standard type of adapter on motherboards.

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 series of standards defines Wi-Fi which uses radios and antennas for data transmission and reception.

A college that has several campuses located in different parts of the city has hired a network technician. What type of network will the technician most likely be working on?

A. LAN

B. Wi-Fi

C. MAN

D. WAN

**C. MAN**

The network technician will be working on a metropolitan area network (MAN), which can be a company with multiple connected networks within the same metropolitan area.

A local area network (LAN) is a group of computers connected by cabling and one or more network switches that are all installed at a single geographical location.

A wireless local area network (WLAN), also known as Wi-Fi, uses radios and antennas for data transmission and reception. Most WLANs are based on the IEEE 802.11 series of standards.

A wide area network (WAN) spans multiple geographic locations. One example of a WAN is the internet, a global network of networks.

A network technician is upgrading a grocery store’s checkout lines with contactless payment devices. What type of wireless technology are the payment devices based on?

A. 802.11a

B. Bluetooth

C. RFID

D. NFC

**D. NFC**

The payment devices are based on near-field communications (NFC), which can work as both tag and reader to exchange information with other NFC devices.

The IEEE 802.11a is a wireless standard that uses the 5 GHz frequency band only. The data encoding method allows a maximum data rate of 54 Mbps.

Bluetooth is a short-range, wireless radio-network transmission medium normally used to connect two personal devices, such as a mobile phone and a wireless headset.

A radio-frequency ID (RFID) is a means of encoding information into passive tags, which can be energized and read by radio waves from a reader device.

A company hired a network technician to manage the part of their network that is based on the 802.11 standard. What type of network will the technician be managing?

A. LAN

B. Wi-Fi

C. MAN

D. WAN

**B. Wi-Fi**

The technician will be managing the Wi-Fi portion of the company’s network. Most Wi-Fi networks are based on the IEEE 802.11 series of standards.

Most cabled local area networks (LANs) are based on the 802.3 Ethernet standards maintained by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

A metropolitan area network (MAN) refers to a specific network type covering an area equivalent to a city or other municipality.

A wide area network (WAN) spans multiple geographic locations. A company dedicated to facilitating access to the internet from local networks is an internet service provider (ISP).

A company hired an administrator to manage their computers that host the employees’ shared resources and applications. What kind of computers will the administrator manage?

A. Client

B. SAN

C. Server

D. Datacenter

**C. Server**

The administrator will manage the company’s server computers. A company dedicates a server computer to running network applications and hosting shared resources.

A client computer allows end users to access the applications and resources to do work. Desktop administrators usually manage a company's client computers.

A storage area network (SAN) provisions access to a configurable pool of storage devices that is isolated from the main network and that only application servers can use.

A datacenter has dedicated networking, power, climate control, and physical access control features all designed to provide a highly available environment for running critical applications.

A network technician is installing a device with an inductor that will copy all the traffic coming through the cable to a monitor port. What type of device is the technician installing?

A. SMF

B. MMF

C. Active TAP

D. Passive TAP

**D. Passive TAP**

The technician is installing a passive test access point (TAP) which is a box with ports for incoming and outgoing network cabling that physically copies the signal from the cabling to a monitor port.

Single-mode fiber (SMF) has a small core (8–10 microns) and carries a long wavelength (1,310 or 1,550 nm) infrared signal, generated by a high-power, highly coherent laser diode.

Multi-mode fiber (MMF) has a larger core (62.5 or 50 microns) and carries a shorter wavelength infrared light (850 nm or 1,300 nm).

An active TAP is a powered device that performs signal regeneration, which may be necessary for some circumstances.

A network technician needs to deploy a computer on an Ethernet network and notices that the computer will sit on a shelf directly under a fluorescent light. What type of cable will the technician use?

A. STP

B. UTP

C. Coax

D. Fiber optic

**A. STP**

The technician will use shielded twisted pair (STP) which provides extra protection against interferences in environments with high levels of external interference, such as fluorescent lighting.

Unshielded twisted pair (UTP) contains four copper conductor wire pairs each twisted at a different rate from the other pairs which reduces interference.

Coaxial (coax) cable is a different type of copper cabling that also carries electrical signals. Technicians mostly use it for CCTV installations, Cable Access TV (CATV), and broadband cable modems.

Fiber optic cable consists of an ultra-fine core of glass that conveys light pulses. The core is inside of glass or plastic cladding, which guides the light pulses along the core.

A network technician is connecting a computer to the network using Ethernet. How is the physical connection to the cable made?

A. Using the MAC address

B. Using the RJ45 port

C. Using a patch panel

D. Using PoE

**B. Using the RJ45 port**

In Ethernet communications, a RJ45 port in the computer's network interface card (NIC) establishes the physical connection to the cable.

Each Ethernet network interface card (NIC) port has a unique hardware/physical address, called the "media access control" (MAC) address and Ethernet data identifies the source and destination MAC addresses in a header.

In most types of office cabling, a technician connects a computer to a wall port and the cabling running through the walls connects to a patch panel.

Power over Ethernet (PoE) is a means of supplying electrical power from a switch port over ordinary data cabling to a powered device (PD).

A network technician needs to replace a broken Ethernet cable. What kind of connector will the technician use to terminate the new cable?

A. F-type

B. RJ-45

C. SC

D. LC

**B. RJ-45**

Modular RJ-45 connectors terminate twisted pair cabling for Ethernet. RJ45 connectors are also known as "8P8C," standing for eight-position/eight-contact.

Manufacturers typically terminate coax for CATV installations using a screw-down F-type connector.

A subscriber connector (SC) terminates fiber optic cables and has a push/pull design that allows for simpler insertion and removal than a fiber channel (FC) connector.

A lucent connector (LC) terminates fiber optic cables and is a small form factor connector with a tabbed push/pull design. LC is similar to SC, but the smaller size allows for higher port density.

A network technician is upgrading the wireless network so that it can take advantage of "multiple input multiple output" (MIMO) to increase reliability and bandwidth. What standard is the technician upgrading the wireless network to?

A. 802.11n

B. 802.11g

C. 802.11b

D. 802.11a

**A. 802.11n**

The technician is upgrading the wireless network to 802.11n which uses MIMO to increase reliability and bandwidth by multiplexing signal streams from 2–3 separate antennas.

The IEEE 802.11g uses the same encoding mechanism and 54 Mbps rate as 802.11a but in the 2.4 GHz band used by 802.11b and with the same channel layout.

The IEEE 802.11b standard uses the 2.4 GHz frequency band, however, the signal encoding methods used by 802.11b are inferior to 802.11a and support a nominal data rate of just 11 Mbps.

The IEEE 802.11a standard uses the 5 GHz frequency band only. The data encoding method allows a maximum data rate of 54 Mbps.

A network technician sets up the wireless network in such a way that each client device connects to the network via an access point (AP). What type of configuration is this?

A. Frequency bands

B. Infrastructure mode

C. DFS

D. Channels

**B. Infrastructure mode**

Infrastructure mode means that the technician configures each client device (station) to connect to the network via an access point (AP).

A frequency band is a portion of the microwave radio-frequency spectrum in which wireless products operate, such as the 2.4 GHz band or 5 GHz band.

Dynamic frequency selection (DFS) is a regulatory feature of wireless access points that prevents the use of certain 5 GHz channels when in range of a facility that uses radar.

Wi-Fi products have frequency bands. Channels are smaller bands with those frequency bands that allow multiple networks to operate at the same location without interfering with one another.

A wireless network technician is upgrading the access points in a conference center to provide better Wi-Fi connectivity during conferences. What standard will provide connectivity to the most clients?

A. MU-MIMO

B. Wi-Fi 5

C. OFDMA

D. Wi-Fi 6

**D. Wi-Fi 6**

Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) can support up to eight clients, giving it better performance in congested areas. Wi-Fi 6 also adds support for uplink MU-MIMO and OFDMA.

In Wi-Fi 5, downlink multiuser MIMO (DL MU-MIMO) allows an access point to use its multiple antennas to send data to up to four clients simultaneously.

In practice, most Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) access points only support 4x4 streams. A single stream over an 80 MHz channel has a nominal rate of 433 Mbps.

Wi-Fi 6 introduces orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) which can work alongside MU-MIMO to improve client density.