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350-401 Practice Question: Which three statements about the benefits and…
Which three statements about the benefits and challenges of NFV are true? (Choose three.)
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
✓
NFV reduces capital expenditure by allowing network functions to run on standard, off-the-shelf hardware.
NFV offers reduced hardware costs, faster service deployment, and operational agility. However, it introduces challenges such as performance overhead from virtualization and increased complexity in management. Option A is correct because NFV reduces CAPEX by using commodity hardware. Option B is correct because NFV enables rapid deployment of new services. Option C is correct because virtualization can introduce latency and throughput overhead. Option D is incorrect because NFV typically increases, not decreases, the attack surface. Option E is incorrect because NFV does not eliminate the need for physical cabling; it only virtualizes network functions.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
NFV reduces capital expenditure by allowing network functions to run on standard, off-the-shelf hardware.
Why this is correct
Correct because NFV replaces proprietary appliances with software on commodity servers, lowering hardware costs.
- ✓
NFV enables faster time-to-market for new services by decoupling software from hardware.
Why this is correct
Correct because new VNFs can be deployed quickly without waiting for hardware provisioning.
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One challenge of NFV is the potential performance overhead introduced by the virtualization layer.
Why this is correct
Correct because hypervisors or container runtimes can add latency and CPU overhead compared to bare-metal appliances.
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NFV reduces the overall security attack surface by consolidating multiple functions into a single physical device.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect because NFV can increase the attack surface due to shared infrastructure and hypervisor vulnerabilities.
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NFV eliminates the need for physical cabling in the data center.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect because NFV still requires physical network cabling for connectivity between servers and switches.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.