mediumMultiple Choice
350-401 Practice Question: Runs the following command on Switch SW1: SW1#…
A network engineer runs the following command on Switch SW1:
SW1# show vlan brief VLAN Name Status Ports
---- -------------------------------- --------- ------------------------------- 1 default active Gi0/1, Gi0/2, Gi0/3 10 Sales active Gi0/4, Gi0/5 20 Engineering active Gi0/6 1002 fddi-default act/unsup 1003 token-ring-default act/unsup 1004 fddinet-default act/unsup 1005 trnet-default act/unsup
Based on this output, what can be concluded?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the misconception that a VLAN must have multiple ports to be operational, or that the presence of VLANs 1002-1005 implies actual support for FDDI/Token Ring, when in fact they are unsupported defaults.
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
✓
Port Gi0/6 is an access port in VLAN 20.
The 'show vlan brief' output lists VLANs and their assigned ports. Port Gi0/6 is listed under VLAN 20, and since it is the only port in that VLAN, it must be an access port (or a trunk port that only allows VLAN 20, but the context of a single port in a VLAN typically indicates an access port). Access ports belong to a single VLAN and do not carry tags, so Gi0/6 is an access port in VLAN 20.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
VLAN 20 is not operational because it has only one port assigned.
Why it's wrong here
A VLAN's operational status is determined by its administrative state (active or suspended), not by the number of ports assigned to it. Even a VLAN with a single access port is fully operational and can forward traffic for that port. The 'active' status in the output explicitly confirms the VLAN is functioning, so having only one port does not make it non-operational.
- ✗
The switch supports FDDI and Token Ring VLANs.
Why it's wrong here
The status 'act/unsup' shown for VLANs 1002-1005 indicates that these VLANs exist in the database but are active and unsupported on this switch platform. Cisco switches support Ethernet VLANs by default, but FDDI and Token Ring VLANs are reserved legacy types that cannot be used on modern hardware. Thus, this output does not imply the switch supports them; rather, it shows they are present but not usable.
- ✓
Port Gi0/6 is an access port in VLAN 20.
Why this is correct
In the 'show vlan' output, a port listed under a specific VLAN without any trunking indicator is an access port. Gi0/6 appears in the VLAN 20 section, and there is no mention of 802.1Q encapsulation or trunk mode, so it belongs to only VLAN 20. An access port carries traffic for exactly one untagged VLAN, and this membership confirms that Gi0/6 is an access port in VLAN 20.
- ✗
VLAN 10 has more broadcast traffic than VLAN 20.
Why it's wrong here
The 'show vlan' command displays only static VLAN configuration, membership, and status—not dynamic traffic statistics. Broadcast traffic volume is a real-time metric that would require counters from 'show interface' or a network monitoring tool. The number of ports in a VLAN does not directly correlate with broadcast traffic, and no traffic data is provided, so any comparison between VLAN 10 and VLAN 20 is unsubstantiated and incorrect.
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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.