350-601 Network Practice Question
An engineer is configuring a pair of Nexus 9000 switches as vPC peers. The vPC peer keepalive link is established. Which statement about the vPC peer keepalive is true?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the misconception that the vPC peer keepalive is a Layer 2 VLAN-based mechanism, but it is actually a Layer 3 IP keepalive that uses a management or dedicated routed interface, not a VLAN.
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
✓
It is a Layer 3 keepalive using the management or a dedicated interface to ensure peer reachability.
The vPC peer keepalive link is a Layer 3 mechanism that uses either the management interface (mgmt0) or a dedicated routed interface to send periodic keepalive messages (UDP port 3200) between vPC peers. Its sole purpose is to verify that the peer switch is still reachable at Layer 3, providing a secondary failure-detection path independent of the vPC peer-link. It does not carry data traffic, nor does it synchronize MAC or routing tables.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
It carries data traffic between vPC peers.
Why it's wrong here
Peer keepalive does not carry data; data uses peer-link.
- ✗
It is used to synchronize MAC address tables between peers.
Why it's wrong here
MAC synchronization happens over the peer-link, not keepalive.
- ✓
It is a Layer 3 keepalive using the management or a dedicated interface to ensure peer reachability.
Why this is correct
Correct: peer keepalive is a Layer 3 heartbeat, often over mgmt0 or dedicated interface.
- ✗
It provides a Layer 3 keepalive to detect peer failure and should be on a separate VLAN.
Why it's wrong here
Peer keepalive should be on a separate Layer 3 link, not a VLAN.
Quick reference
Access Control Model Comparison
| Model | Acronym | Who Controls Access? | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discretionary Access Control | DAC | Resource owner | Small teams, file shares |
| Mandatory Access Control | MAC | System / security labels | Classified govt / military |
| Role-Based Access Control | RBAC | Administrator (via roles) | Enterprise environments |
| Attribute-Based Access Control | ABAC | Policy engine (user + resource attributes) | Fine-grained, dynamic policies |
| Rule-Based Access Control | RuBAC | System rules / ACLs | Firewall rules, network ACLs |
Go deeper
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 350-601 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 350-601 exam.