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350-701 Practice Question: Which TWO of the following are required to…
Which TWO of the following are required to configure a site-to-site IPsec VPN on a Cisco IOS router?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between mandatory and optional components, so the trap here is that candidates may think NAT exemption or AAA is always required, when in fact they are only needed in specific scenarios (e.g., overlapping subnets or centralized authentication).
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
✓
ISAKMP policy
ISAKMP (Internet Security Association and Key Management Protocol) policy is required to define the parameters for Phase 1 of an IPsec VPN, including encryption, authentication, Diffie-Hellman group, and lifetime. Without an ISAKMP policy, the router cannot establish the secure management tunnel needed to negotiate IPsec Security Associations (SAs).
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
ISAKMP policy
Why this is correct
ISAKMP policy is required for IKE phase 1 negotiation.
- ✓
ACL to define interesting traffic
Why this is correct
The crypto ACL selects the traffic to be encrypted.
- ✗
NAT exemption for VPN traffic
Why it's wrong here
NAT exemption is only needed if NAT is configured; not always required.
- ✗
AAA new-model
Why it's wrong here
AAA new-model is not a prerequisite for site-to-site VPN.
- ✗
DHCP pool for remote clients
Why it's wrong here
DHCP pool is for remote access VPN clients, not site-to-site.
Quick reference
VPN Protocol Comparison
| Protocol | Port | Encryption | Authentication | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IKEv2 / IPsec | UDP 500 / 4500 | AES-256 | Certificates / PSK | Site-to-site & remote access |
| SSL / TLS VPN | TCP 443 | TLS 1.3 | Certificates / MFA | Clientless remote access |
| L2TP / IPsec | UDP 1701 | AES (IPsec) | PSK / Certificates | Legacy remote access |
| WireGuard | UDP 51820 | ChaCha20 | Public keys | Modern high-performance VPN |
| PPTP | TCP 1723 | MPPE (weak) | MS-CHAPv2 | Legacy — avoid in production |
PPTP is considered insecure. IKEv2/IPsec and SSL VPN are the current recommended options.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 350-701 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 350-701 exam.