350-601 Compute Practice Question
What is the purpose of a witness VM in a HyperFlex cluster?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between the witness VM's quorum role and the management or storage functions of other components, leading candidates to confuse it with the HyperFlex Management Controller or a storage node.
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
✓
To break ties in cluster quorum decisions
In a HyperFlex cluster, the witness VM provides a tie-breaking vote for cluster quorum decisions when the cluster experiences a network partition or node failure. It ensures that the surviving side can maintain a majority and continue operating, preventing split-brain scenarios where both sides would independently write data.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
To break ties in cluster quorum decisions
Why this is correct
Witness ensures quorum in failure scenarios.
- ✗
To act as a management node for the cluster
Why it's wrong here
Management is done via controller VMs.
- ✗
To provide additional storage capacity
Why it's wrong here
Witness does not provide storage.
- ✗
To replicate data across sites
Why it's wrong here
Data replication is done by HXDP, not witness.
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