350-401 Network Assurance Practice Question
A network administrator is using Cisco DNA Center Assurance to monitor a campus network. The administrator notices that the health score for a particular building has dropped significantly. Which feature of Cisco DNA Center Assurance should the administrator use to identify the root cause of the issue by analyzing network events and device performance metrics over time?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse the high-level health dashboard with deep analytics; the dashboard shows symptoms, while AI Network Analytics provides the machine learning-driven root cause analysis needed to understand why a health score dropped.
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
✓
AI Network Analytics
AI Network Analytics leverages machine learning to process large volumes of historical data, including device performance metrics and network events, to identify the root cause of health score degradation. Unlike dashboards or path trace tools that provide current state or connectivity views, AI Network Analytics correlates past and present data to uncover underlying issues, making it the correct choice for deep root cause analysis.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
AI Network Analytics
Why this is correct
AI Network Analytics in Cisco DNA Center uses machine learning to analyze historical network data, including device performance metrics and events, to identify anomalies and root causes. It can correlate data over time, detect trends, and provide insights into why a health score dropped, making it the appropriate tool for this scenario.
- ✗
Assurance Issues
Why it's wrong here
Assurance Issues lists current problems detected by Cisco DNA Center, such as device unreachability or configuration drift. While it helps identify active issues, it does not provide in-depth analysis of performance metrics over time or correlate events to determine root cause. It is more of an alerting mechanism than a root cause analysis tool.
- ✗
Network Health Dashboard
Why it's wrong here
The Network Health Dashboard provides a high-level overview of network health, including overall health scores and top issues, but it does not offer deep-dive analysis of historical events or device performance metrics. It is more of a summary view, and while it can indicate problems, it lacks the granularity needed to pinpoint root causes over time.
- ✗
Path Trace
Why it's wrong here
Path Trace is used to visualize the path of traffic between two endpoints, showing devices and interfaces along the way. While useful for connectivity troubleshooting, it does not analyze historical performance metrics or events to determine root cause. It is a point-in-time tool and does not provide the temporal analysis required for this scenario.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
SDN Controllers and Cisco ACI
Key term
Cisco DNA Center Assurance
Cisco DNA Center Assurance is a network monitoring and analytics tool within Cisco's DNA Center platform that provides real-time visibility, proactive alerts, and historical insights into network health, performance, and user experience.
Key term
Cisco DNA Center
A centralized network management and automation platform from Cisco that provides intent-based networking for easier configuration, monitoring, and troubleshooting of Cisco devices.
About these practice questions
This 350-401 question is part of Courseiva's 1,923-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 350-401 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 350-401 exam.