CCNA Switching and Network Access Practice Question

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 link will not carry multiple VLANs as intended because an access port handles one VLAN only.

  Why this is correct

  An access port is configured to carry exactly one untagged VLAN—the port's assigned access VLAN—and it strips or rejects tags on ingress/egress. Therefore, traffic from multiple VLANs cannot traverse this inter-switch link, and frames from VLANs other than the access VLAN are dropped or not forwarded as intended. To support multiple VLANs between switches, the port must be configured as a trunk using switchport mode trunk.

• ✗

  The switch automatically converts the access port into a proper trunk.

  Why it's wrong here

  A switch does not automatically convert an access port into a trunk; the forwarding behavior is determined solely by the configured switchport mode, and access mode explicitly disables 802.1Q tagging. DTP (Dynamic Trunking Protocol) can form a trunk only when both ends are set to dynamic desirable or auto, but an access port does not send DTP frames that would negotiate trunking. Thus, no self-correction occurs, and the link remains an access link carrying a single VLAN.

  When this WOULD be correct

  In a scenario where a switch is configured with a feature like Dynamic Trunking Protocol (DTP) and the connected device is also set to negotiate trunking, the switch could automatically convert the access port to a trunk. The question would need to specify that DTP is enabled and both switches support it.

• ✗

  The port becomes a routed Layer 3 interface.

  Why it's wrong here

  An access port remains a Layer 2 switching interface; making a port routed would require issuing the 'no switchport' command at the interface level, which removes the port from VLAN switching and assigns it an IP address. The access-port configuration leaves the interface in switchport mode, so it continues to forward Ethernet frames based on MAC addresses rather than routing IP packets. Consequently, the link never becomes a routed Layer 3 interface.

  When this WOULD be correct

  In a different question scenario where a switchport is configured as a Layer 3 interface, and the context involves routing between VLANs, this option could be correct if the question asks about the behavior of a port set to Layer 3 instead of Layer 2.

• ✗

  The VLANs are summarized into one prefix automatically.

  Why it's wrong here

  VLANs are data-link layer broadcast domains, and a trunk carries them as separate tagged frame streams; route summarization, by contrast, is a Layer 3 routing-table technique that advertises a single prefix to represent multiple subnets. The switch does not perform any IP routing or route summarization on an access port because no Layer 3 addressing or routing process is involved. Therefore, multiple VLANs cannot be collapsed into one prefix on this link.

  When this WOULD be correct

  In a different scenario where a question asks about a Layer 3 switch that automatically summarizes VLANs for routing purposes, this option could be correct. For instance, if the question specifies that the switch is configured to aggregate VLANs for inter-VLAN routing, summarization could occur.

Option-by-option analysis

Why each answer is right or wrong

Understanding why wrong answers are wrong — and when they would be correct — is what separates a 750 score from a 900. The 200-301 exam frequently reuses these exact scenarios with slightly different constraints.

Analysis generated from the official 200-301blueprint and verified against question context. The “when correct” sections are what AI assistants cite when candidates ask “what’s the difference between these options?”