Question 12 of 1,000

Security and Services →mediumMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped

350-501 Security and Services Practice Question

This 350-501 practice question tests your understanding of security and services. 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 preparing for maintenance on a BGP-speaking router. To minimize packet loss, they want to signal to neighbors that the session is being shut down gracefully. Which BGP feature should be used?

Clue words in this question

Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.

Clue: "minimum / minimize"
Why it matters: Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.

A
BGP Route Refresh
Why wrong: Route refresh is for soft reconfiguration.
B
BGP Multipath
Why wrong: Multipath is for load balancing.
C
BGP GSHUT
GSHUT community signals graceful shutdown.
D
BGP Fast External Failover
Why wrong: This speeds up failure detection, not graceful draining.

Full breakdown with real-world context →

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

✓

BGP GSHUT

BGP Graceful Shutdown (GSHUT) uses a well-known community (GRACEFUL_SHUTDOWN) to inform peers to lower the local preference, draining traffic before session termination.

Key principle: OSPF neighbour adjacency depends on matching area, hello/dead timers, network type, and authentication — IP reachability alone is not enough.

Answer analysis

Option-by-option breakdown

For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.

✗
BGP Route Refresh
Why it's wrong here
Route refresh is for soft reconfiguration.
✗
BGP Multipath
Why it's wrong here
Multipath is for load balancing.
✓
BGP GSHUT
Why this is correct
GSHUT community signals graceful shutdown.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "minimum / minimize" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
OSPF neighbours must agree on key parameters.
✗
BGP Fast External Failover
Why it's wrong here
This speeds up failure detection, not graceful draining.

Common exam traps

Common exam trap: OSPF can fail even when IP connectivity looks correct

OSPF neighbour formation depends on matching areas, timers, network type, authentication and passive-interface behaviour. Do not choose an answer only because the devices can ping.

Detailed technical explanation

How to think about this question

OSPF questions usually test the details that control adjacency and route selection. Read the neighbour state, area, router ID and interface configuration before deciding what is wrong.

KKey Concepts to Remember

OSPF neighbours must agree on key parameters.
Router ID selection can affect neighbour relationships and LSDB output.
OSPF cost influences the preferred path.
A route can appear in OSPF information but not become the installed route.

TExam Day Tips

Check area mismatch first when OSPF adjacency fails.
Review passive interfaces when a network is advertised but no neighbour forms.
Use show ip ospf neighbor and show ip route clues carefully.

Key takeaway

OSPF neighbour adjacency depends on matching area, hello/dead timers, network type, and authentication — IP reachability alone is not enough.

Real-world example

How this comes up in practice

A network engineer at a university connects two campus buildings via a fibre link. Both routers run OSPF, but no adjacency forms — even though both routers can ping each other. The engineer finds one router is in area 0 and the other in area 1. OSPF adjacency requires matching area numbers, hello/dead timers, and network type. IP reachability alone is not enough.

What to study next

Got this wrong? Here's your next step.

Review OSPF neighbour requirements — matching area type, hello and dead timers, network type, stub flags, and authentication. Study show ip ospf neighbor states (INIT, 2-WAY, FULL). Then practise related 350-501 OSPF questions on adjacency and route selection.

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FAQ

Questions learners often ask

What does this 350-501 question test?

Security and Services — This question tests Security and Services — OSPF neighbours must agree on key parameters..

What is the correct answer to this question?

The correct answer is: BGP GSHUT — BGP Graceful Shutdown (GSHUT) uses a well-known community (GRACEFUL_SHUTDOWN) to inform peers to lower the local preference, draining traffic before session termination.

What should I do if I get this 350-501 question wrong?

Are there clue words in this question I should notice?

Yes — watch for: "minimum / minimize". Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.

What is the key concept behind this question?

OSPF neighbours must agree on key parameters.

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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026

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