200-901 Understanding and Using APIs Practice Question
A developer is building an application that needs to retrieve information from a REST API that uses cursor-based pagination. The response includes a 'next_cursor' field when more results are available. How should the developer structure the requests to retrieve all pages of data?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that pagination always uses page numbers or offsets, but this API uses an opaque cursor that must be passed exactly as provided.
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
✓
Send the first request without any pagination parameters, then use the 'next_cursor' value as a query parameter in subsequent requests until it is absent.
Cursor-based pagination requires using the cursor provided by the API to fetch the next set of results. The developer should start with a request without pagination parameters, then iteratively use the 'next_cursor' value as a parameter in subsequent requests until the cursor is no longer returned, ensuring all data is retrieved in order.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Send multiple requests in parallel, each with a different page number, until all pages are retrieved.
Why it's wrong here
Parallel requests with page numbers assume page-based pagination, which is not used here. Cursor-based pagination requires sequential requests because each cursor depends on the previous response. Parallelizing would be impossible without knowing all cursors in advance, and the API does not support page numbers, leading to errors or incomplete data.
- ✗
Increment an 'offset' parameter by a fixed page size until no more results are returned.
Why it's wrong here
Offset-based pagination is a different technique that uses a numeric offset and limit. It does not use cursors and can lead to inconsistent results if items are added or removed between requests. This API specifically uses cursor-based pagination, so using offset would not work and may cause errors or missing data.
- ✗
Use the 'Link' header from the response to find the URL for the next page and follow it.
Why it's wrong here
While Link headers are used in some pagination schemes, this API uses a 'next_cursor' field in the response body, not Link headers. Relying on Link headers would fail because they are not provided. The developer must parse the JSON body and use the cursor value as instructed.
- ✓
Send the first request without any pagination parameters, then use the 'next_cursor' value as a query parameter in subsequent requests until it is absent.
Why this is correct
Cursor-based pagination uses an opaque cursor to mark the current position. The first request typically returns the initial page and a next_cursor if more data exists. The client then includes that cursor in the next request, repeating until no next_cursor is returned. This method ensures consistent results even if data changes between requests.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
One of 975 original 200-901 practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
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.