D315/C172 Section 1 Practice Quiz - Basic Concepts (2026)

Introduction to Networking Concepts

How many layers does the OSI model have compared to the TCP/IP model?

OSI has 7 layers, while TCP/IP has 4 layers.

Which Windows network command displays the path a packet takes from source to destination?

tracert

Which cloud service model is best for software development companies that want to develop and test software applications without managing the underlying infrastructure?

PaaS

If a network admin needs to query a DNS server to resolve a hostname or domain name to an IP address, which command would they use on a Linux system?

Dig

A router operates at which layer of the OSI model?

Layer 3 - Network

In which topology do data packets travel from one device to another (within a closed loop), until the data packet arrives at the intended destination?

Ring

What is the primary function of a router in a network?

To connect multiple networks and route data packets between them

If a network admin needs to see if a TCP connection is active on a Windows computer, what command should they use?

netstat

Which Linux network command displays the path a packet takes from source to destination?

traceroute

Which Transport layer protocol provides guaranteed, reliable delivery of data?

TCP

Which type of network is typically used to connect multiple buildings located within a short distance of each other?

CAN (Campus Area Network)

What type of deployment is most likely to use dedicated hardware for cloud services?

Private Cloud

What is the purpose of a firewall in a network?

To filter incoming and outgoing traffic based on a set of rules

In which topology do all networking nodes connect to a central device?

Star

What is a Type 1 hypervisor?

Virtualization software that runs directly on the host's hardware to control the hardware and to manage VM guest operating systems

Which layers of the OSI model are combined into the Application layer of the TCP/IP model?

Layers 5 (Session), 6 (Presentation), and 7 (Application)

What characterizes a public cloud model?

It offers computing services over the public internet and is available to anyone who wants to purchase them

Which layer of the OSI model establishes, manages, and terminates connections with a remote device?

Layer 5 - Session

What defines a community cloud model?

It is shared by several organizations with common goals or concerns

Configuration in a Peer-to-Peer architecture is:

Decentralized configuration, where the configuration must be done on all devices individually

Which network command displays the IP Address to MAC Address mapping on a Windows computer?

arp -a

If a network admin needs to know if a computer is connected to the network and can respond, what command should the admin use?

ping

A switch operates at which layer of the OSI model?

Layer 2 - Data Link

What is the key characteristic of a hybrid cloud deployment model in the context of IT asset location?

IT assets are distributed between on-premises infrastructure and cloud services

Port Address (Port Numbers) operates at which layer of the OSI model?

Layer 4 - Transport

Which device is commonly used to provide wireless connectivity to devices in a local area network (LAN)?

Wireless Access Point (WAP)

If a network administrator is on a Linux computer and needs to get the IP Address of the computer they are working, what command should they use?

ifconfig

What does IaaS provide to the consumer?

Physical computing resources, virtualized and delivered over the internet

Which networking device repeats and sends a signal out of all its ports without inspecting any type of network addressing?

Hub

If a network admin needs to query a DNS server to resolve a hostname or domain name to an IP address, which command would they use?

nslookup

In which type of hypervisor would you most likely deploy a production virtual machine that provides a critical network service to hundreds of users?

Type 1

The Presentation layer of the OSI model:

Data encryption, decryption, and formatting

Which network topology is known for its ability to have multiple pathways for data to travel between any two network devices in case of a link failure?

Mesh

Which cloud deployment model involves using services from multiple cloud providers?

Multi-cloud

Configuration in client/server architecture is:

Centralized configuration, where the configuration is done on a central server and pushed to all other devices

Which network topology interconnects multiple other topologies?

Hybrid

Which type of hypervisor installs as an application on top of an existing operating system?

Type 2

Which of the following is a key benefit of SaaS?

Elimination of the need for application installations and updates on individual computers

If a network administrator needs to get the IP Address of the Windows computer they are working on, what command should the admin use?

ipconfig

Which device is commonly used to connect to an ISP, to facilitate Internet access?

Modem

Which wireless network topology has a central wireless device, such as a wireless router or wireless access point?

Infrastructure

What type of network is typically used to connect devices within a single building?

LAN (Local Area Network)

What type of network is typically used to connect networks over the scope of a city?

MAN (Metropolitan Area Network)

Which type of network is used for device communication over a short distance, such as connecting wireless earbuds to a cell phone?

PAN

A network that is used to connect computer networks and LANs over vast geographical distances is known as?

WAN (Wide Area Network)

In client/server architecture, what role do client devices play?

They request and consume services provided by the server.

The MAC (Media Access Control) Address operates at which layer of the OSI model?

Layer 2 - Data Link

An IP Address operates at which layer of the OSI model?

Layer 3 - Network

How does the role of a device in a P2P network compare to its role in a client/server network regarding resource sharing?

In P2P, devices can both request and provide resources, while in client/server, roles are more rigidly defined.

A small business is upgrading from a peer-to-peer network to a client/server environment to improve security and efficiency. After the transition, all user accounts, profiles, and access to shared resources will be controlled from a management server rather than managed individually on each computer.

In this type of network, how are system configuration and user management typically handled?

Centralized – configuration is managed on a server and distributed to clients

A company is developing a secure web application that transmits sensitive customer data. During testing, the development team confirms that the data is being encrypted before transmission and properly decrypted when received, ensuring it remains readable only by the intended systems.

Which layer of the OSI model is responsible for handling encryption?

Layer 6

A remote worker has set up a home office in a room far away from their main wireless router. The Wi-Fi signal is weak, causing frequent disconnects during video meetings. Because they are renting, they cannot run new network cables through the walls to connect their computer directly.

Which device should they purchase to boost the existing Wi-Fi signal into the home office?

Wireless Range Extender

Employees working inside the office can quickly access shared files and printers, but when working from home, they must use remote access tools to reach those same resources because the network is limited to that single building.

What type of network is being used in this scenario?

LAN

A software development team is building and testing applications in a cloud environment. They want to focus only on writing and deploying code without worrying about managing servers, operating systems, or infrastructure.

Which cloud service model best fits this need?

PaaS

An organization is preparing to deploy mission-critical production servers that will host high-demand applications. To ensure maximum performance, stability, and direct access to physical hardware resources, the infrastructure team selects a virtualization platform designed for efficiency and reliability.

Which type of hypervisor best meets these requirements?

Type 1

After a recent network change, employees in one department report they can no longer access shared resources in another department. The network team determines the issue is related to how data is being routed between different subnets using IP addresses.

Which OSI layer is responsible for this functionality?

Network

A large financial institution operates its own dedicated data center to host critical banking applications and sensitive customer data. To support business continuity, the organization allows employees at a secondary branch location to securely access these internal resources remotely. The environment is fully owned, managed, and restricted to the organization, with no external sharing.

What type of cloud deployment model is being used in this scenario?

Private Cloud

A user logs into a remote application to complete a transaction. During the process, the system maintains an active connection, allowing the user to pause and resume work without needing to log in again. Once the task is finished, the connection is properly closed.

Which layer of the OSI model is responsible for establishing, managing, and terminating this type of communication?

Session

A growing company wants to avoid relying on a single cloud provider for its critical applications. To improve flexibility and reduce risk, the IT team deploys different workloads across multiple cloud platforms from different vendors.

What type of cloud deployment model is the company using?

Multi-Cloud

A company’s internal applications become unreliable during peak hours because systems hosted in different buildings cannot communicate efficiently. The IT team upgrades the internal network to ensure consistent performance across all office buildings within the same area.

What type of network has the company implemented?

CAN

A group of college students living in a dorm share files like notes, projects, and media directly between their laptops over the local network. Each student manages their own sharing settings and permissions on their device, with no single system overseeing access for everyone.

What type of network architecture are they using?

Peer-to-Peer

A security analyst suspects a workstation may be compromised and communicating with external systems. They want to identify all current network connections to determine if any are suspicious.

Which command should the technician use?

netstat

A financial firm runs customer-facing applications in the cloud for scalability but keeps internal accounting systems on isolated in-house servers, with secure synchronization between both environments.

Which cloud deployment model does this describe?

Hybrid Cloud

A systems administrator installs virtualization software on a personal computer so they can run multiple operating systems for testing. The virtualization software runs on top of the existing operating system.

What type of hypervisor is being used?

Type 2

A Linux administrator is troubleshooting a server that has lost connectivity after a configuration change. They want to verify which network interfaces are active and review their assigned IP settings.

Which command should the administrator use for this check?

ifconfig

A cybersecurity team has detected repeated port‑scanning activity from an external IP. To protect internal systems, they deploy a device that monitors inbound and outbound traffic, allowing or blocking connections based on rules for specific ports and IP ranges. 

Which device provides this protection?

Firewall

A company notices inconsistent performance when employees in different countries access centralized applications, prompting IT to evaluate the type of network needed to support reliable long-distance communication.

What type of network supports this?

WAN

A network administrator notices intermittent connectivity issues and suspects a device may be sending traffic to the wrong hardware address due to outdated cached information. They want to review the system’s current IP-to-MAC address mappings.

Which command should the administrator use to display this mapping?

arp -a

A network administrator observes that internal network traffic is being efficiently directed only to the intended devices instead of being broadcast to all systems, improving overall performance and reducing congestion.

Which type of network device is responsible for moving data between devices on the same local network?

Switch

A technician is preparing to deploy a new application and wants to confirm that a server is reachable over the network before beginning testing. They decide to send a simple request to check connectivity.

Which command should the technician use?

ping

A gaming studio is developing an online multiplayer platform where fast, real-time updates are critical to gameplay. The developers decide that occasional packet loss is acceptable if it improves speed and responsiveness during gameplay.

Which transport‑layer protocol should the developers implement?

UDP

A university equips every classroom with a wireless access point (WAP) that all student laptops and tablets connect through. Students’ devices never connect directly to each other but communicate only through the WAP. 

What type of wireless topology is this?

Infrastructure Mode

A network technician investigating why two office computers can’t communicate discovers a crushed Ethernet cable during a desk move. Because no electrical signals can pass through the damaged cable, communication between the devices completely fails.

At which OSI layer is this failure occurring?

Physical

A systems engineer is troubleshooting why an internal application cannot be reached using its domain name, even though the server is online. They want to directly query DNS servers from a Linux system to verify name resolution.

Which command should the engineer use?

dig

A data center uses a dedicated high-speed network that connects multiple servers directly to centralized storage systems, allowing fast and reliable access to large volumes of data without relying on the main organizational network.

What type of network is being used in this scenario?

SAN

In a small office, all computers, printers, and VoIP phones are connected to a single central switch located in the server room. When one workstation loses connection, only that device is affected while the rest of the network continues operating normally, helping the IT team quickly isolate the issue.

Which network topology is being used here?

Star

A user successfully connects to a server, but the company’s internal web application fails to display correctly in the browser. The issue is traced to how HTTP requests and responses are being handled.

At which OSI layer does this HTTP communication take place?

Application

A user reports that they can access a website using its IP address but not its domain name. The technician wants to verify whether DNS is correctly resolving the domain from a Windows workstation.

Which command should the technician use to diagnose the problem?

nslookup

A group of coworkers is in a conference room preparing for a presentation when the office wireless network becomes unavailable. To continue working, they quickly connect their laptops directly to one another wirelessly to share files and collaborate without relying on any existing network.

Which type of wireless topology is being used in this scenario?

Ad Hoc Mode

A manufacturing facility uses an older network setup where each machine is wired to the next in sequence, and the final machine connects back to the first (closing the loop). After a cable was accidentally unplugged, the entire network became inaccessible.

Which topology is the facility using?

Ring

A commuter pairs their wireless earbuds with their smartphone to listen to an audiobook during travel. The connection works only within a short range and automatically disconnects when the user moves too far away from the device.

Which type of network is being used?

PAN

A remote worker has just moved into a new house and is setting up their home office. The local Internet Service Provider (ISP) has activated the internet connection at the wall. The worker needs to connect a device that will connect their home Wi-Fi router to the internet.

What is this device?

Modem

A network administrator is investigating slow connectivity between two systems located in different regions. They want to compare how packets travel across the network from both a Windows and a Linux machine.

Which pair of commands should they use?

tracert (Windows) and traceroute (Linux)

A system administrator configures a firewall to allow secure web traffic by opening TCP port 443 so that HTTPS traffic can pass through while other ports remain blocked.

At which OSI layer are these port numbers used?

Transport

A technician observes that devices communicate correctly within the same local network but experience issues when sending data to external networks. They learn that different types of addressing are used depending on whether communication is local or routed.

Which statement correctly identifies the OSI layer associated with each type of address?

IP = Layer 3, MAC = Layer 2

In a manufacturing facility, multiple machines are linked through one long coaxial cable that runs along the production floor. All data travels on this single communication line, and if any part of the cable becomes damaged, operations across all devices come to a complete stop.

What type of network topology does this describe?

Bus

A technician is setting up a new Windows workstation, but the user reports they cannot access any internal resources. Before investigating further, the technician wants to confirm the system received correct network settings, such as IP address, subnet mask, and default gateway router.

Which command should they use?

ipconfig

A large organization designs its network by combining different topology types in different areas—using star configurations within departments and mesh connections between critical systems to improve reliability and performance.

Which network topology does this describe?

Hybrid

A technician is wiring a new office and needs to connect several desktop computers to the central network switch. Because they are connecting unlike devices (a computer to a switch), they need a standard copper patch cable.

Which type of patch cable should the technician use?

Straight-Through

A manufacturing company is upgrading its network across a factory floor with heavy machinery that generates significant electromagnetic interference (EMI). They need a cable that is completely immune to this interference and supports high speeds.

Which type of cable should they install?

Fiber Optic

A growing company is migrating its applications to the cloud but wants full control over its virtual machines, storage, and networking configurations. The IT team provisions virtual servers, installs their own operating systems, and manages applications while the cloud provider supplies the underlying hardware.

Which cloud service model is the company using?

IaaS

Several regional hospitals collaborate to share patient data, research findings, and specialized applications. Due to strict regulatory requirements and shared goals, they decide to use a cloud environment that is jointly managed and accessible only to participating healthcare organizations with similar compliance needs.

Which type of cloud deployment model best describes this arrangement?

Community Cloud

A rapidly growing company has expanded to several departments and now employs thousands of users across multiple locations. The IT team needs a way to centrally manage user accounts, enforce security policies, and control access to shared resources such as files, printers, and applications.

Which network architecture would best support these requirements?

Client/Server

During a large-scale emergency response drill, multiple public agencies located throughout the same city struggle to share real-time data efficiently between their different locations. The government deploys a high-speed network to improve communication and coordination between these services.

What type of network is this?

MAN

A network administrator observes that a switch is forwarding frames within a local network by using MAC addresses to deliver data only to the intended device, reducing unnecessary traffic.

At which OSI layer does this switching process occur?

Layer 2

A coffee shop provides wireless internet access for customers throughout the building, allowing laptops and smartphones to connect without physical cables using the organization’s network infrastructure.

What type of network is being used in this scenario?

WLAN

After expanding the network, a company separates departments into different IP subnets. Employees notice they can no longer communicate across departments until a device is installed to properly direct traffic between these IP networks.

Which device performs this role?

Router

A startup is launching a new web application and needs scalable computing resources without investing in physical hardware. To keep costs low and allow access from anywhere, the company hosts its application and data on shared resources provided over the internet by a third-party vendor.

Which type of cloud deployment model is the company using?

Public Cloud

Employees at a marketing firm log in through their browsers each morning to manage client projects, track time, and upload deliverables using an online application. They never install software locally, and updates are handled automatically by the provider. 

What cloud service model does this describe?

SaaS