350-601 Storage Network Practice Test 3 — 15 Questions

Question 1

A network engineer is troubleshooting a slow backup performance between a backup server and a tape library connected via FC. The backup server is connected to a Cisco MDS switch at 8 Gbps, and the tape library is connected at 4 Gbps. The backup job is using hardware compression. Which factor is most likely limiting performance?

Choose an answer to begin — your selection is scored in the full session.

Accepted Answer

Port speed mismatch between the server and tape library. The backup server is connected at 8 Gbps while the tape library is connected at 4 Gbps. In Fibre Channel, the link speed is negotiated per port, and the end-to‑end flow is limited by the slowest link in the path. Even though the server can transmit at 8 Gbps, the tape library can only receive at 4 Gbps, creating a bottleneck that caps the backup throughput. Hardware compression on the tape library does not cause this speed mismatch; it actually reduces the amount of data written to tape, but the physical link rate remains the limiting factor.

Answer

Insufficient buffer credits on the MDS switch

Answer

Hardware compression on the tape library

Answer

Half-duplex mode on the FC link

Question 2

A company is deploying FCoE in their data center. The design includes a Cisco Nexus 9000 switch with FEX modules. The storage team insists on using dedicated FCoE VLANs. Which best practice should be followed to ensure lossless behavior for FCoE traffic?

Accepted Answer

Enable PFC on the switch for the FCoE VLAN. FCoE requires lossless transport to prevent frame drops that could corrupt Fibre Channel frames. Priority Flow Control (PFC), defined in IEEE 802.1Qbb, enables pause frames on a per-priority basis, allowing the FCoE VLAN to be configured with a dedicated priority class that receives no-drop treatment. On Cisco Nexus 9000 switches, this is achieved by enabling PFC on the specific VLAN used for FCoE traffic, ensuring lossless behavior without affecting other traffic classes.

Answer

Configure traffic shaping on FCoE interfaces

Answer

Use the same VLAN for FCoE and IP traffic to reduce VLAN count

Answer

Disable flow control on all interfaces

Question 3

Which TWO statements about NPV (N_Port Virtualization) mode in FC networks are correct?

Accepted Answer

NPV is commonly used in top-of-rack (ToR) deployments to simplify SAN cabling.. NPV is specifically designed for top-of-rack (ToR) deployments to reduce the number of physical cables and simplify SAN cabling. In NPV mode, the ToR switch acts as a transparent proxy, forwarding FLOGI requests from end devices to the core NPV-enabled switch, which handles all fabric services. This eliminates the need for each ToR switch to have its own domain ID, reducing management complexity.

Answer

An NPV switch connects to the core switch using E-ports.

Answer

NPV switches can be used to connect FC and FCoE devices without a separate FCoE VLAN.

Answer

NPV switches perform fabric login (FLOGI) on behalf of attached devices.

Question 4

A Cisco MDS switch has the above configuration on two 16 Gbps FC interfaces. An engineer connects an initiator to fc1/2 and a target to fc1/1. The initiator cannot discover the target. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The fc1/1 interface is configured as an E-port but is connected to a storage target.. The configuration shows interface fc1/1 with the command 'switchport mode E', which explicitly configures it as an E-port (expansion port). E-ports are used to interconnect two Fibre Channel switches, not to connect a storage target. When a target is connected to an E-port, the link will not come up properly because the target expects to be connected to an F-port (fabric port) or FL-port, preventing discovery by the initiator.

Answer

The fc1/2 interface is configured as an F-port but the initiator requires an FL-port.

Answer

The fc1/1 interface is configured as dedicated rate-mode but the target expects shared.

Answer

The fc1/2 interface is configured as shared rate-mode which prevents F-port operation.

Question 5

A large enterprise is deploying a new storage network for a VMware vSphere cluster with 200 VMs. The cluster uses vSphere 7 with vVols and requires a SAN that supports 16 Gbps FC. The storage team wants to use a Cisco MDS 9148S switch and has configured two VSANs: VSAN 100 for production and VSAN 200 for backup. The backup server is connected to VSAN 200. After the deployment, the backup administrator reports that backup jobs from the backup server to the storage array are failing. The storage array is connected to both VSANs via a single FC interface configured in 'auto' mode. The backup server is connected to an F-port in VSAN 200. The storage array's interface shows 'trunking' enabled and is in 'up' state. What is the most likely cause of the backup failure?

Accepted Answer

Configure the MDS switch interface connected to the storage array as a trunk port and ensure VSAN 200 is in the allowed list.. The storage array is connected to both VSANs via a single interface with trunking enabled, but the MDS switch interface connected to the array is not configured as a trunk port. Without trunking on the switch side, the interface can only belong to one VSAN (likely VSAN 100 by default), so traffic from the backup server in VSAN 200 cannot reach the storage array. Option A resolves this by configuring the switch interface as a trunk port and explicitly allowing VSAN 200 in the allowed VSAN list, enabling the array to communicate with both VSANs.

Answer

Move the backup server to VSAN 100 to match the production storage.

Answer

Change the storage array interface to 'F' mode to force it to be in a single VSAN.

Answer

Disable trunking on the storage array interface to prevent VSAN mismatch.

Question 6

Sequence the steps for configuring OSPF on a Cisco Nexus switch in a data center fabric.

Accepted Answer

First, create the OSPF process with 'router ospf '. Second, configure the router ID with 'router-id '. Third, enable OSPF on interfaces using 'ip router ospf area '. Finally, verify with 'show ip ospf'.. OSPF configuration involves creating the process, setting router ID, enabling on interfaces, and verification.

Answer

First, configure the router ID before creating the OSPF process, then create the process, then enable on interfaces, then verify.

Answer

First, create the OSPF process, then enable OSPF on interfaces, then configure the router ID, then verify.

Answer

First, enable OSPF on interfaces, then create the OSPF process, then set router ID, then verify.

Question 7

Sequence the steps to configure a Cisco UCS Fabric Interconnect (FI) for the first time.

Accepted Answer

Set management IP, then configure cluster mode, then create local users, then configure uplink ports, then verify connectivity.. Initial FI setup involves IP assignment, cluster mode, user creation, uplink config, and verification.

Answer

Configure uplink ports, then set management IP, then configure cluster mode, then create local users, then verify connectivity.

Answer

Create local users, then set management IP, then configure cluster mode, then configure uplink ports, then verify connectivity.

Answer

Set management IP, then create local users, then configure cluster mode, then configure uplink ports, then verify connectivity.

Question 8

Sequence the steps to configure a VXLAN with BGP EVPN on a Cisco Nexus switch.

Accepted Answer

1. Enable overlay features (feature nv overlay, feature vni, feature bgp).
2. Configure VTEP loopback and NVE source interface.
3. Configure VLAN and VNI mapping (vn-segment).
4. Configure BGP EVPN address-family and neighbors.. VXLAN EVPN requires overlay feature, VNI mapping, VTEP loopback, BGP peering, and verification.

Answer

1. Configure VTEP loopback and NVE source interface.
2. Enable overlay features.
3. Configure VLAN and VNI mapping.
4. Configure BGP EVPN address-family and neighbors.

Answer

1. Enable overlay features.
2. Configure VLAN and VNI mapping.
3. Configure VTEP loopback and NVE source interface.
4. Configure BGP EVPN address-family and neighbors.

Answer

1. Enable overlay features.
2. Configure VTEP loopback and NVE source interface.
3. Configure BGP EVPN address-family and neighbors.
4. Configure VLAN and VNI mapping.

Question 9

Match each Cisco NX-OS feature to its description.

Accepted Answer

VDC: Allows partitioning a single physical switch into multiple logical switches.. The correct matches are VDC with logical partitioning, VRF with multiple routing tables, FEX with remote line card, and Port Channel with link bundling. Common confusion is between VDC and VRF.

Answer

VDC: Enables multiple independent routing tables within a single switch.

Answer

VRF: Allows partitioning a single physical switch into multiple logical switches.

Question 10

Match each Cisco storage protocol to its characteristic.

Accepted Answer

Fibre Channel: Uses dedicated optical cabling and switches.. The correct matches are: Fibre Channel uses dedicated hardware, iSCSI uses IP, FCoE encapsulates FC over Ethernet, and NVMe-oF extends NVMe over fabrics. Common confusions include mixing Fibre Channel and FCoE, or iSCSI and Fibre Channel characteristics.

Answer

Fibre Channel: Runs over standard Ethernet.

Answer

iSCSI: Uses dedicated fabric and optical cabling.

Question 11

Match each Cisco data center automation tool to its primary use.

Accepted Answer

Intersight: Cloud-based management platform. Automation tools streamline data center operations. UCS Manager handles server management, ACI automates network policy, Intersight offers cloud management, and Nexus Dashboard provides monitoring. The distractors swap these roles.

Answer

UCS Manager: Automates network policy management

Answer

ACI: Manages Cisco UCS blade and rack servers

Question 12

A storage administrator reports that a new host cannot log into the SAN. The host is connected to a Cisco MDS switch. The switch interface shows up/up but the host is not in the active zone. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The zone set is not activated.. The host cannot log into the SAN despite the interface showing up/up because the zone set is not activated. In Cisco MDS Fibre Channel SANs, zone configurations are stored in the zone database but only take effect when the zone set is activated (using the 'zone activate' command). Without an active zone set, no zoning is enforced, and the host's WWPN is effectively invisible to other devices, preventing login even though the physical link is operational.

Answer

The switch port is in an isolated state.

Answer

The FC cable is faulty.

Answer

The host's WWPN is not in the zone configuration.

Answer

The host's driver is not installed.

Question 13

A Cisco MDS switch is configured with two VSANs. Hosts in VSAN 1 cannot communicate with hosts in VSAN 2. What is the most likely reason?

Accepted Answer

The VSANs are not connected through an IVR zone.. By default, VSANs are isolated from each other, meaning traffic cannot cross VSAN boundaries. Inter-VSAN Routing (IVR) must be explicitly configured to allow communication between hosts in different VSANs. Without IVR, hosts in VSAN 1 and VSAN 2 remain in separate fabrics and cannot communicate, even if they are connected to the same switch.

Answer

The IVR is not configured.

Answer

The FC domain ID is conflicting.

Answer

The switch does not support multi VSAN.

Answer

The hosts are on different switches.

Question 14

An engineer is troubleshooting a SAN performance issue. The MDS switch shows high CRC errors on an F port. The host is connected via a 16 Gbps FC link. The errors increase when the host sends large I/O. What is the most likely cause?

Accepted Answer

The cable length exceeds the supported distance for 16 Gbps.. At 16 Gbps Fibre Channel, signal integrity degrades over long cable distances, causing bit errors that manifest as CRC errors on the F port. The error increase with large I/O is characteristic of marginal signal quality, as larger frames are more likely to encounter corrupted bits. Option E correctly identifies that the cable length exceeds the supported distance for 16 Gbps, typically 10 meters for OM3 multimode fiber or 100 meters for OM4, depending on the transceiver type.

Answer

The host's HBA firmware is outdated.

Answer

The zone configuration is incorrect.

Answer

The host is experiencing buffer credit starvation.

Answer

The switch port is configured for 8 Gbps.

Question 15

Which feature allows a Fibre Channel switch to use multiple links between two switches as a single logical link?

Accepted Answer

SAN port channel. SAN port channel (C) is correct because it allows multiple physical Fibre Channel links between two switches to be aggregated into a single logical link, providing load balancing and redundancy. This is achieved by bundling up to 16 physical ISLs into one logical interface, using a proprietary hashing algorithm to distribute frames across the member links while maintaining in-order delivery.

Answer

NPIV

Answer

NPV

Answer

SPAN

Answer

FCIP