200-901 Network Fundamentals Practice Question
A network engineer is troubleshooting a connectivity issue between two subnets. The engineer uses the traceroute command and observes that packets are reaching the destination but with high latency. Which of the following is the most likely cause of the high latency?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is attributing high latency to routing loops or misconfigurations, which would typically cause packet loss or unreachability rather than just increased latency.
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
✓
Network congestion causing packets to be queued at intermediate devices.
Network congestion causes packets to be queued at intermediate devices, increasing latency. Traceroute would show higher round-trip times at the congested hop, but packets still reach the destination. This is a common cause of high latency without packet loss.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Network congestion causing packets to be queued at intermediate devices.
Why this is correct
Network congestion occurs when the volume of traffic exceeds the capacity of a link or device, causing packets to be buffered and delayed. This results in increased latency without necessarily causing packet loss. Traceroute would show increased round-trip times at the congested hop, while packets still reach the destination.
- ✗
Incorrect subnet mask configuration on the source device.
Why it's wrong here
An incorrect subnet mask would likely cause the source device to misroute packets, potentially sending them to the wrong gateway or failing to reach the destination. However, if packets are reaching the destination, the subnet mask is probably correct. High latency is more indicative of congestion or a slow path.
- ✗
A routing loop causing packets to traverse multiple hops repeatedly.
Why it's wrong here
A routing loop would cause packets to never reach the destination or to be dropped due to TTL expiration. In this scenario, packets are reaching the destination, so a routing loop is unlikely. High latency without packet loss suggests a different issue, such as network congestion or a slow link.
- ✗
A firewall blocking ICMP packets, causing retransmissions.
Why it's wrong here
If a firewall were blocking ICMP, traceroute would show asterisks for those hops, and the trace might not complete. However, the scenario states that packets are reaching the destination, so ICMP is not being blocked. High latency is not typically caused by ICMP blocking alone.
Visual reference
About these practice questions
This 200-901 question is part of Courseiva's 975-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. 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.