hardMultiple Select
300-410 Practice Question: Which TWO statements about IPsec site-to-site VPN…
Which TWO statements about IPsec site-to-site VPN troubleshooting using 'show crypto session' and 'show crypto ipsec sa' are correct? (Choose TWO.)
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between IKEv1 and IKEv2 commands, so the trap here is that candidates mistakenly use 'show crypto isakmp sa' for IKEv2 SAs, not realizing that IKEv2 has its own dedicated 'show crypto ikev2 sa' command.
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
✓
'show crypto session' displays the IKEv2 SA status and the IPsec SA status.
Option A is correct because 'show crypto session' reports both the IKE (IKEv2) SA state and the IPsec SA state for each peer, giving a quick view of whether the control-plane tunnel and data-plane SAs are up. Option B is correct because 'show crypto ipsec sa' includes per-SA counters such as '#pkts encaps' and '#pkts decaps', which reflect the number of packets encrypted (encapsulated) and decrypted (decapsulated). Option C is wrong because 'show crypto isakmp sa' displays ISAKMP/IKEv1 SAs, not IKEv2 SAs; IKEv2 SAs are viewed with 'show crypto ikev2 sa'. Option D is wrong because the 'pkts encaps' counter increments on the outbound SA as packets are encrypted, while inbound traffic increments the decapsulation counter. Option E is wrong because 'show crypto map' displays crypto map configuration and matching details, not per-SA packet counters.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
'show crypto session' displays the IKEv2 SA status and the IPsec SA status.
Why this is correct
'show crypto session' reports both IKEv2 SA and IPsec SA status per peer, letting you confirm Phase 1 and Phase 2 are up in one command. This satisfies the stem's requirement for troubleshooting site-to-site VPNs, since a down IKEv2 SA or missing IPsec SA immediately localises the failure to negotiation or traffic-selector mismatch.
- ✓
'show crypto ipsec sa' shows the number of packets that have been encrypted and decrypted.
Why this is correct
The IPsec SA table tracks per-SA counters, including encapsulated (encrypted) and decapsulated (decrypted) packet totals, so this output directly evidences whether traffic is actually traversing the tunnel — the specific troubleshooting data the stem requires.
- ✗
'show crypto isakmp sa' is the correct command to view IKEv2 SAs.
Why it's wrong here
IKEv2 SAs are viewed with 'show crypto ikev2 sa'; 'show crypto isakmp sa' reports IKEv1 phase-1 SAs only, so it returns nothing useful on an IKEv2 tunnel. It is tempting because that command was the standard IKEv1 verification tool, and remains correct on peers running IKEv1.
- ✗
The 'pkts encaps' counter in 'show crypto ipsec sa' increments on the inbound SA.
Why it's wrong here
'pkts encaps' counts packets encrypted and sent outbound, so it increments on the outbound SA; inbound traffic increments 'pkts decaps' on the inbound SA. The counters are easy to transpose because both appear side by side in the same SA output.
- ✗
'show crypto map' displays the current packet count for each IPsec SA.
Why it's wrong here
'show crypto map' lists map name, sequence, peers, ACL and SA lifetimes, but no per-SA packet counters. Those counters live in 'show crypto ipsec sa'. The confusion arises because the map defines the SAs, so it appears to be the natural place to read their statistics.
Quick reference
VPN Protocol Comparison
| Protocol | Port | Encryption | Authentication | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IKEv2 / IPsec | UDP 500 / 4500 | AES-256 | Certificates / PSK | Site-to-site & remote access |
| SSL / TLS VPN | TCP 443 | TLS 1.3 | Certificates / MFA | Clientless remote access |
| L2TP / IPsec | UDP 1701 | AES (IPsec) | PSK / Certificates | Legacy remote access |
| WireGuard | UDP 51820 | ChaCha20 | Public keys | Modern high-performance VPN |
| PPTP | TCP 1723 | MPPE (weak) | MS-CHAPv2 | Legacy — avoid in production |
PPTP is considered insecure. IKEv2/IPsec and SSL VPN are the current recommended options.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Site-to-Site VPN and IPSec
Key term
FlexVPN
FlexVPN is a Cisco VPN solution that combines multiple VPN technologies (site-to-site, remote access, and hub-and-spoke) under a single, modular framework based on IKEv2.
Key term
Site-to-Site VPN Troubleshooting
The process of identifying and fixing problems in a permanent encrypted tunnel that connects two separate office networks over the internet.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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