CCNA Network Infrastructure and Connectivity Practice Question
An engineer is reviewing transport protocols for a new application. Which two characteristics are associated with TCP rather than UDP?
⚠ Common exam trap
Don't confuse reliability with speed; TCP's reliability features add overhead, making it slower than UDP.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Connection establishment before data transfer
TCP is connection-oriented and provides reliability with sequence numbers, acknowledgments, and retransmissions. UDP is lighter but does not guarantee delivery.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Connection establishment before data transfer
Why this is correct
TCP performs a three-way handshake (SYN, SYN-ACK, ACK) to establish a connection before any application data is transmitted, ensuring both hosts are synchronized and ready. This connection-oriented process negotiates initial sequence numbers and window sizes, providing a reliable session foundation. UDP, in contrast, sends datagrams immediately without any setup, so this behavior is uniquely characteristic of TCP and therefore correct.
- ✗
Best-effort delivery with no acknowledgments
Why it's wrong here
This is a property of UDP, not TCP. TCP guarantees delivery through acknowledgments (ACKs) and retransmissions, whereas best-effort delivery without ACKs means packets may be lost silently. Since the question asks about TCP-specific features, this option is incorrect because it describes UDP's minimal reliability model, which lacks the feedback mechanisms that define connection-oriented protocols.
When this WOULD be correct
This option would be correct in a question asking for characteristics of UDP, such as 'Which two characteristics are associated with UDP rather than TCP?'
- ✓
Sequencing and retransmission support
Why this is correct
TCP provides reliability through sequence numbers, which allow the receiver to reorder out-of-order segments and detect missing data, triggering retransmission of unacknowledged segments. This ensures that bytes are delivered exactly once and in the correct order, a service UDP completely lacks. Since the application expects dependable data transfer, these mechanisms are essential TCP features, making this option correct.
- ✗
Lower overhead because no session state is tracked
Why it's wrong here
This option describes UDP's stateless nature, which avoids the overhead of connection tracking, sequence numbering, and windowed flow control. In contrast, TCP maintains per-connection state (like sequence and acknowledgment counters) and a state machine, adding overhead but enabling reliability. Because the scenario requires TCP's robust features, the lack of state tracking is not a benefit here, so this option is incorrect.
When this WOULD be correct
This option would be correct if the question were 'Which two characteristics are associated with UDP rather than TCP?' or 'Which characteristic describes UDP compared to TCP?'
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.
✓Connection establishment before data transferCorrect answer▾
Why this is correct
TCP performs a three-way handshake (SYN, SYN-ACK, ACK) to establish a connection before any application data is transmitted, ensuring both hosts are synchronized and ready. This connection-oriented process negotiates initial sequence numbers and window sizes, providing a reliable session foundation. UDP, in contrast, sends datagrams immediately without any setup, so this behavior is uniquely characteristic of TCP and therefore correct.
✗Best-effort delivery with no acknowledgmentsWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Best-effort delivery with no acknowledgments is a characteristic of UDP, not TCP. TCP provides reliable delivery with acknowledgments and retransmission.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
This option would be correct in a question asking for characteristics of UDP, such as 'Which two characteristics are associated with UDP rather than TCP?'
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse the terms 'best-effort' with TCP's reliable delivery, or they might think TCP also uses best-effort at the network layer, ignoring transport layer reliability.
✗Lower overhead because no session state is trackedWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
TCP has higher overhead because it maintains session state (sequence numbers, acknowledgments, etc.), while UDP is stateless and has lower overhead. The question asks for characteristics of TCP, not UDP.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
This option would be correct if the question were 'Which two characteristics are associated with UDP rather than TCP?' or 'Which characteristic describes UDP compared to TCP?'
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse the characteristics of TCP and UDP, or they might think 'lower overhead' is a general advantage that could apply to TCP in some contexts, but TCP's overhead is inherently higher due to its reliability features.
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?”
Visual reference
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Related to this question
Learn chapter
Network Management Protocols Overview
Key term
User Datagram Protocol
User Datagram Protocol (UDP) is a fast, connectionless network protocol that sends data without first checking if the receiver is ready or if the data arrived safely.
Key term
TCP
TCP is a connection-oriented transport layer protocol that ensures reliable, ordered, and error-checked delivery of data between applications over IP networks.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 200-301 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Cisco certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the 200-301 exam.