- A
The WLC’s WLAN is misconfigured for WPA3-Enterprise, and the laptop lacks a supplicant for 802.1X authentication.
Why wrong: The scenario explicitly states WPA3-Personal (SAE) is configured, which uses a pre-shared key, not RADIUS or 802.1X.
- B
The laptop’s wireless adapter does not support Protected Management Frames, which are mandatory for WPA3-Personal.
PMF is a prerequisite for WPA3. If the client cannot negotiate PMF, the SAE authentication will time out. This explains why only that laptop fails, even though it supports 802.11ax.
- C
The WLC has disabled 802.11ax OFDMA on the 5 GHz band, preventing the 802.11ax laptop from associating.
Why wrong: OFDMA is a data scheduling feature that operates post-association. Its presence or absence does not affect the authentication or association process.
- D
The laptop’s driver is configured for 160 MHz channel width, which is incompatible with the WLC’s channel plan, causing authentication to fail.
Why wrong: Channel width mismatches may degrade performance or cause the client to connect on a basic subband, but they do not prevent the initial authentication and association frames from being exchanged.
Quick Answer
The answer is that the Windows 10 laptop’s wireless adapter lacks Protected Management Frame (PMF) support, which is mandatory for WPA3-Personal. WPA3-Personal uses the Simultaneous Authentication of Equals (SAE) handshake, and IEEE 802.11w requires PMF to secure management frames during this process; without PMF, the handshake fails with an authentication timeout. On the CCNA 200-301 v2 exam, this scenario tests your understanding that WPA3-Personal enforces PMF, while WPA2 does not—a common trap is assuming all 802.11ax clients support PMF by default. Remember that legacy 802.11ac devices connect because they fall back to WPA2, which has no PMF requirement. Memory tip: “WPA3 = PMF mandatory, or you get a timeout.”
CCNA Network Infrastructure and Connectivity Practice Question
This 200-301 practice question tests your understanding of network infrastructure and connectivity. 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.
An administrator deploys a new WLAN on a Cisco 9800 WLC using WPA3-Personal (SAE) with AES encryption. A single 802.11ax laptop running Windows 10 fails to connect, displaying an authentication timeout despite entering the correct passphrase. Other clients, including legacy 802.11ac devices, connect without issue.
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
The laptop’s wireless adapter does not support Protected Management Frames, which are mandatory for WPA3-Personal.
WPA3-Personal (SAE) mandates the use of Protected Management Frames (PMF) as defined in IEEE 802.11w. If the laptop's wireless adapter or driver does not support PMF, it cannot complete the SAE handshake, resulting in an authentication timeout. Legacy 802.11ac clients can connect because they are using WPA2, which does not require PMF.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
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 WLC’s WLAN is misconfigured for WPA3-Enterprise, and the laptop lacks a supplicant for 802.1X authentication.
- ✓
The laptop’s wireless adapter does not support Protected Management Frames, which are mandatory for WPA3-Personal.
Why this is correct
PMF is a prerequisite for WPA3. If the client cannot negotiate PMF, the SAE authentication will time out. This explains why only that laptop fails, even though it supports 802.11ax.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
The WLC has disabled 802.11ax OFDMA on the 5 GHz band, preventing the 802.11ax laptop from associating.
Why it's wrong here
OFDMA is a data scheduling feature that operates post-association. Its presence or absence does not affect the authentication or association process.
- ✗
The laptop’s driver is configured for 160 MHz channel width, which is incompatible with the WLC’s channel plan, causing authentication to fail.
Why it's wrong here
Channel width mismatches may degrade performance or cause the client to connect on a basic subband, but they do not prevent the initial authentication and association frames from being exchanged.
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.
✓The laptop’s wireless adapter does not support Protected Management Frames, which are mandatory for WPA3-Personal.Correct answer▾
Why this is correct
PMF is a prerequisite for WPA3. If the client cannot negotiate PMF, the SAE authentication will time out. This explains why only that laptop fails, even though it supports 802.11ax.
✗The WLC’s WLAN is misconfigured for WPA3-Enterprise, and the laptop lacks a supplicant for 802.1X authentication.Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Misidentifying the WLAN security type: WPA3-Personal does not require an enterprise supplicant, so this is not the cause.
✗The WLC has disabled 802.11ax OFDMA on the 5 GHz band, preventing the 802.11ax laptop from associating.Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Confusing radio resource management with connection establishment: OFDMA settings do not block initial association, only data transmission efficiency.
✗The laptop’s driver is configured for 160 MHz channel width, which is incompatible with the WLC’s channel plan, causing authentication to fail.Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Misattributing connection failures to channel bandwidth settings; these are negotiated after successful association and do not impact the 802.11 authentication and association phases.
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?”
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Cisco often tests the mandatory dependency of Protected Management Frames (802.11w) for WPA3-Personal, leading candidates to incorrectly attribute the failure to channel width or OFDMA incompatibility.
Trap categories for this question
Scenario analysis trap
The scenario explicitly states WPA3-Personal (SAE) is configured, which uses a pre-shared key, not RADIUS or 802.1X.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In WPA3-Personal, the Simultaneous Authentication of Equals (SAE) handshake replaces the four-way handshake of WPA2 and requires PMF to protect management frames from forgery. If the client driver does not support 802.11w, the SAE commit and confirm frames may be dropped or ignored, leading to a timeout. On Cisco 9800 WLCs, PMF is automatically enabled when WPA3 is selected, and the WLAN will reject clients that do not advertise PMF capability.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A small business has 20 workstations on the 192.168.1.0/24 network and one public IP from its ISP. The router uses PAT (NAT overload) so all 20 devices share one public address using different source ports. NAT questions test whether you understand the four address terms and which direction each translation applies.
What to study next
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this 200-301 question test?
Network Infrastructure and Connectivity — This question tests Network Infrastructure and Connectivity — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The laptop’s wireless adapter does not support Protected Management Frames, which are mandatory for WPA3-Personal. — WPA3-Personal (SAE) mandates the use of Protected Management Frames (PMF) as defined in IEEE 802.11w. If the laptop's wireless adapter or driver does not support PMF, it cannot complete the SAE handshake, resulting in an authentication timeout. Legacy 802.11ac clients can connect because they are using WPA2, which does not require PMF.
What should I do if I get this 200-301 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 25, 2026
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.
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