200-301 Question 73
Single answerA network administrator is troubleshooting a connectivity issue between two switches in a network. The switches are connected using a FastEthernet link. Upon investigation, the administrator discovers that the devices are using a half-duplex communication mode. Which issue is most likely to occur in this scenario?
- A
Increased packet collisions on the link
- B
Reduced bandwidth utilization due to link aggregation
- C
The link will automatically switch to full-duplex mode
- D
The link will fail to establish communication
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
In a half-duplex Ethernet shared media environment, only one device can transmit data at a time. This results in frequent collisions when multiple devices attempt to send data simultaneously, leading to performance issues. Understanding the behavior of shared media and duplex configurations is crucial for troubleshooting and ensuring optimal network performance.
- A. Correct.
Half-duplex communication on shared Ethernet media can cause increased packet collisions because only one device can send data at a time, leading to contention on the link.
- B. Incorrect.
Link aggregation is unrelated to the duplex settings. Reduced bandwidth utilization is incorrect in this context as the issue described is specific to duplex mismatch or half-duplex operation.
- C. Incorrect.
The link will not automatically switch to full-duplex mode unless it is manually configured or autonegotiation is enabled and working correctly.
- D. Incorrect.
While poor performance may occur, a half-duplex setting does not prevent the link from establishing communication entirely.