300-445 Question 181
Select 3An enterprise network experiences performance degradation, and users report intermittent high latency and packet loss while accessing critical applications. Upon investigating, you observe that a specific link between two core routers shows high utilization and a spike in dropped packets. Which of the following actions would best help diagnose the root cause of this issue?
- A
Analyze NetFlow data to identify traffic patterns and top talkers on the affected link.
- B
Check interface error counters on the core routers for physical layer issues such as CRC errors.
- C
Perform a traceroute from a client device to the destination server to identify latency spikes along the path.
- D
Increase the bandwidth on the affected link to alleviate congestion and reduce packet drops.
- E
Use SNMP polling to monitor CPU and memory utilization on the core routers.
Show answer and explanation
Correct answers: A, B, C
Explanation
To diagnose network issues such as packet loss and congestion, it is essential to utilize tools and methods that provide insight into traffic patterns, potential physical layer problems, and latency along the network path. By analyzing NetFlow data, checking interface error counters, and performing traceroute, you can comprehensively identify the root cause of the performance degradation. Increasing bandwidth or monitoring device resources may address symptoms or unrelated issues but are not directly diagnostic steps for the given scenario.
- A. Correct.
Analyzing NetFlow data can reveal which applications or hosts are consuming excessive bandwidth and causing congestion on the link, making it a critical step in diagnosing the issue.
- B. Correct.
Interface error counters can provide insight into physical layer problems, such as faulty cables or hardware, that may contribute to packet loss and degraded performance.
- C. Correct.
Traceroute helps identify where latency spikes occur along the network path, which can indicate routing or congestion issues at specific hops.
- D. Incorrect.
While increasing bandwidth might alleviate the congestion temporarily, it does not address the root cause of the issue and is not a diagnostic step.
- E. Incorrect.
Monitoring CPU and memory utilization on the routers could be useful for identifying device performance issues but is not directly relevant to diagnosing packet loss and congestion on the link.