This 350-501 practice question tests your understanding of networking. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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.
A service provider is designing a Layer 2 MPLS VPN to connect multiple customer sites. Which technology should be used to provide end-to-end Ethernet service with MAC address transparency and support for multiple customer VLANs?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
VPLS (Virtual Private LAN Service)
VPLS (Virtual Private LAN Service) is the correct choice because it emulates an Ethernet bridge across an MPLS core, providing MAC address transparency and supporting multiple customer VLANs through a multipoint-to-multipoint topology. Unlike point-to-point services, VPLS learns MAC addresses and forwards frames based on them, enabling end-to-end Ethernet service across distributed sites.
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.
✗
MPLS Traffic Engineering (MPLS TE)
Why it's wrong here
MPLS TE optimizes traffic flows, but does not provide Layer 2 VPN services.
✓
VPLS (Virtual Private LAN Service)
Why this is correct
VPLS provides multipoint Ethernet services with MAC address transparency and supports multiple VLANs via QinQ or VLAN mapping.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
VPWS (Virtual Private Wire Service)
Why it's wrong here
VPWS is a point-to-point service, not multipoint, and does not support MAC learning across multiple sites.
✗
RSVP-TE signaling
Why it's wrong here
RSVP-TE is used to establish TE tunnels, not to provide L2VPN services.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Cisco often tests the distinction between point-to-point (VPWS) and multipoint (VPLS) services, and candidates mistakenly choose VPWS when the question explicitly requires connecting multiple sites with MAC transparency.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
VPLS uses a full mesh of pseudowires between provider edge (PE) routers and relies on MAC address learning (similar to a transparent bridge) to forward frames to the correct destination. It supports VLAN transparency by preserving the original 802.1Q tags across the MPLS core, allowing customer VLANs to be extended without modification. In real-world deployments, VPLS can face scalability challenges due to the full mesh requirement and MAC table size, often addressed with Hierarchical VPLS (H-VPLS) or EVPN as a modern alternative.
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 help-desk technician troubleshoots why a newly connected PC cannot reach shared printers on the same floor. The cable is good, the switch port is active, but the PC is in VLAN 20 and the printers are in VLAN 10. The uplink trunk only allows VLAN 10. A trunk being up does not mean every VLAN crosses it.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Networking — This question tests Networking — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: VPLS (Virtual Private LAN Service) — VPLS (Virtual Private LAN Service) is the correct choice because it emulates an Ethernet bridge across an MPLS core, providing MAC address transparency and supporting multiple customer VLANs through a multipoint-to-multipoint topology. Unlike point-to-point services, VPLS learns MAC addresses and forwards frames based on them, enabling end-to-end Ethernet service across distributed sites.
What should I do if I get this 350-501 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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Question Discussion
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