ANS-C01 Network Management and Operations Practice Question
This ANS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of network management and operations. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A network engineer is setting up a VPC peering connection between two VPCs (VPC-A and VPC-B) in different AWS accounts. The VPCs are in the same region. After accepting the peering request, instances in VPC-A cannot communicate with instances in VPC-B. What should the engineer check first?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "first"
Why it matters: Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The route tables in both VPCs have routes to the peer VPC CIDR.
Option C is correct because route tables must be updated with routes to the peer VPC CIDR. Without these routes, traffic is not directed to the peering connection. Option A is incorrect because security groups can be configured to allow cross-account traffic, but they are not the first check. Option B is incorrect because the peering connection is already accepted. Option D is incorrect because NACLs are not the primary issue; routes are.
Key principle: Count usable hosts — not total addresses — and remember that the network and broadcast addresses are not available to hosts in standard IPv4 subnets.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
The security groups in both VPCs allow traffic from the peer VPC CIDR.
Why it's wrong here
Security groups are important but routes are needed first.
✗
The network ACLs in both VPCs allow traffic from the peer VPC CIDR.
Why it's wrong here
NACLs are stateless and may block traffic, but routes are the first check.
✓
The route tables in both VPCs have routes to the peer VPC CIDR.
Why this is correct
Without routes, traffic cannot traverse the peering connection.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "first" in the question point toward this answer.
Common exam trap: usable hosts are not the same as total addresses
Subnetting questions often tempt you into counting all addresses. In normal IPv4 subnets, the network and broadcast addresses are not usable host addresses.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Subnetting questions test whether you can identify the network, broadcast address, usable range, mask and correct subnet. Slow down enough to calculate the block size correctly.
KKey Concepts to Remember
CIDR notation defines the prefix length.
Block size helps identify subnet boundaries.
Network and broadcast addresses are not usable hosts in normal IPv4 subnets.
The required host count determines the smallest suitable subnet.
TExam Day Tips
→Write the block size before choosing the subnet.
→Check whether the question asks for hosts, subnets or a specific address range.
→Do not confuse /24, /25, /26 and /27 host counts.
Key takeaway
Count usable hosts — not total addresses — and remember that the network and broadcast addresses are not available to hosts in standard IPv4 subnets.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A healthcare organisation deploys an application with a public-facing web tier and a private database tier. The database subnet has no public IP and only accepts connections from the web tier's security group. Questions like this test whether you can design cloud network isolation using VNets/VPCs, subnets, and security group rules.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Review block sizes, usable host formulas (2^n − 2), and how to find network and broadcast addresses for /24 through /30. Then practise related ANS-C01 subnetting questions on CIDR, address ranges, and subnet selection.
Network Management and Operations — This question tests Network Management and Operations — CIDR notation defines the prefix length..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The route tables in both VPCs have routes to the peer VPC CIDR. — Option C is correct because route tables must be updated with routes to the peer VPC CIDR. Without these routes, traffic is not directed to the peering connection. Option A is incorrect because security groups can be configured to allow cross-account traffic, but they are not the first check. Option B is incorrect because the peering connection is already accepted. Option D is incorrect because NACLs are not the primary issue; routes are.
What should I do if I get this ANS-C01 question wrong?
Review block sizes, usable host formulas (2^n − 2), and how to find network and broadcast addresses for /24 through /30. Then practise related ANS-C01 subnetting questions on CIDR, address ranges, and subnet selection.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "first". Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
What is the key concept behind this question?
CIDR notation defines the prefix length.
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Question Discussion
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