300-445 Question 32
Single answerYour organization is deploying a network assurance solution to monitor the performance of a multi-branch enterprise network. The team is deciding between active and passive monitoring techniques. Which of the following statements correctly describes a key difference between active and passive monitoring as per RFC 7276 and RFC 7799?
- A
Active monitoring generates synthetic traffic to measure performance metrics, while passive monitoring relies on actual traffic flowing through the network.
- B
Active monitoring is only used for security purposes, while passive monitoring is used exclusively for performance analysis.
- C
Passive monitoring requires injecting test packets into the network, whereas active monitoring only observes existing traffic.
- D
Active monitoring is more suitable for analyzing historical traffic patterns, while passive monitoring is better for real-time performance evaluation.
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
Active and passive monitoring are complementary techniques for network performance evaluation. Active monitoring, as defined in RFC 7276 and RFC 7799, involves generating synthetic traffic to test the network's performance under controlled conditions. This makes it suitable for proactive troubleshooting and real-time assessments. Passive monitoring, on the other hand, relies on analyzing real traffic already traversing the network, providing insights into actual user experience without introducing additional load.
- A. Correct.
Correct. Active monitoring involves generating synthetic traffic (test packets) to measure performance metrics such as latency, jitter, and packet loss. Passive monitoring, on the other hand, analyzes existing, real user traffic to gather performance insights.
- B. Incorrect.
Incorrect. Active monitoring is not limited to security purposes, and passive monitoring is widely used for both performance and security analysis.
- C. Incorrect.
Incorrect. This option reverses the roles of active and passive monitoring. Passive monitoring observes existing traffic, while active monitoring injects test packets.
- D. Incorrect.
Incorrect. Active monitoring is designed for real-time assessments, while passive monitoring can be used for both real-time and historical data analysis.