200-901 Cisco Platforms and Development Practice Question
A developer is automating a Cisco IOS XE device with NETCONF over SSH. The developer must retrieve only the running configuration's hostname without pulling the entire configuration datastore. Which NETCONF operation should the developer use?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming the generic get operation is the right way to read configuration, when get-config is the operation designed for pulling filtered configuration from a named datastore.
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
✓
<get-config> with a source of <running/> and a subtree filter selecting the native hostname node
Reading a targeted piece of configuration from a NETCONF-capable device requires the read-oriented get-config operation, an explicit source datastore, and a filter that narrows the reply. Selecting the running datastore with a subtree filter that matches the IOS XE native hostname leaf returns exactly that value and nothing else, keeping the payload small and the device state unchanged.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
<copy-config> copying <running/> into <startup/> and then reading the response body
Why it's wrong here
The copy-config operation replaces the contents of a target datastore with a source datastore. Copying running into startup performs a write action and returns only an ok or rpc-error, not the hostname value, so it neither reads the desired leaf nor avoids changing device state.
- ✗
<get> with an empty filter, which returns operational and configuration state together
Why it's wrong here
The get operation returns both state data and configuration data from the running datastore, and an empty filter retrieves everything the device exposes. That would return far more than the hostname and would mix operational values with configuration, so it does not satisfy the requirement to pull only the configured hostname.
- ✗
<edit-config> targeting <candidate/> with a merge operation on the hostname leaf
Why it's wrong here
The edit-config operation is used to load configuration changes into a target datastore, not to read values back. Using merge on the hostname leaf would attempt to modify configuration rather than retrieve it, and it would also fail on platforms that do not expose a candidate datastore, so it is the wrong operation for a read.
- ✓
<get-config> with a source of <running/> and a subtree filter selecting the native hostname node
Why this is correct
The get-config operation retrieves configuration data from a specified datastore, and the source element must name that datastore. Pairing <running/> with a subtree filter that matches the Cisco IOS XE native hostname leaf returns only that fragment instead of the whole running configuration, which is exactly what the scenario requires.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Cisco exam blueprint
This 200-901 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 200-901 exam.