350-501 Networking Practice Question
A network engineer is troubleshooting OSPFv3 on a service provider's IPv6 network. The router shows that OSPFv3 adjacency never reaches FULL, says 'Init'. The neighbor is directly connected over a point-to-point link. What is the most likely cause?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between OSPFv2 and OSPFv3 interface activation methods, trapping candidates who assume that OSPFv3 uses a similar 'network' command or that a global OSPF process automatically enables all interfaces.
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
✓
Missing 'ipv6 ospf' interface command on one side
The 'Init' state in OSPFv3 indicates that the router has received a Hello packet from the neighbor but the neighbor has not received a Hello packet back. On a point-to-point link, the most common cause is that the 'ipv6 ospf <process-id> area <area-id>' interface command is missing on one side, which prevents OSPFv3 from sending Hellos on that interface. Without this command, the interface is not enabled for OSPFv3, so the neighbor never sees a Hello and the adjacency cannot progress to FULL.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
LSA throttling prevents exchanges
Why it's wrong here
LSA throttling controls LSA generation, not adjacency formation.
- ✗
Mismatched OSPF router-id
Why it's wrong here
Mismatched router-id leads to adjacency failure in ExStart state.
- ✗
Mismatched area IDs
Why it's wrong here
Area ID mismatch causes adjacency to stall in ExStart/Exchange.
- ✓
Missing 'ipv6 ospf' interface command on one side
Why this is correct
OSPFv3 requires explicit interface configuration to activate adjacency.
Visual reference
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
This 350-501 question is part of Courseiva's 971-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 350-501 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 350-501 exam.