200-901 Software Development and Design Practice Question
This 200-901 practice question tests your understanding of software development and design. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 CI/CD pipeline for network automation includes a stage that runs Ansible playbooks against a staging environment. The pipeline is triggered by Git commits. After a commit, the pipeline fails because the Ansible inventory file is missing. What is the most likely reason?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The inventory file is listed in .gitignore
Files that are not tracked by Git will not be available in the CI environment. The inventory file must be committed; ignoring it with .gitignore excludes it.
Key principle: NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✓
The inventory file is listed in .gitignore
Why this is correct
If the inventory file is ignored by Git, it won't be in the repository, so the pipeline cannot find it.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
✗
The pipeline script has a typo in the inventory path
Why it's wrong here
A typo would cause a file not found error, but the most common reason in a pipeline is that the file is not in the repository.
✗
The Ansible version in the pipeline is incompatible
Why it's wrong here
Version incompatibility would cause a different error (syntax or module missing).
✗
The staging environment is not reachable
Why it's wrong here
Network unreachability would cause an Ansible connection error, not a missing file error.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
→Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
→Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
→Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Key takeaway
NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A small business has 20 workstations on the 192.168.1.0/24 network and one public IP from its ISP. The router uses PAT (NAT overload) so all 20 devices share one public address using different source ports. NAT questions test whether you understand the four address terms and which direction each translation applies.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related 200-901 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Software Development and Design — This question tests Software Development and Design — Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The inventory file is listed in .gitignore — Files that are not tracked by Git will not be available in the CI environment. The inventory file must be committed; ignoring it with .gitignore excludes it.
What should I do if I get this 200-901 question wrong?
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related 200-901 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
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