This 350-401 practice question tests your understanding of virtual machines and hypervisors. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
What is the default OSPF hello interval on a broadcast multi-access network (e.g., Ethernet)?
10 seconds
Correct. The default hello interval on broadcast networks is 10 seconds.
30 seconds
Why wrong: Incorrect. 30 seconds is the default for NBMA networks.
5 seconds
Why wrong: Incorrect. 5 seconds is not a default OSPF hello interval.
40 seconds
Why wrong: Incorrect. 40 seconds is the default dead interval on broadcast networks.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
10 seconds
On a broadcast multi-access network like Ethernet, OSPF defaults to a hello interval of 10 seconds. This is defined in RFC 2328 and is used to quickly detect neighbor failures while keeping control traffic overhead manageable. The corresponding dead interval is 40 seconds (4 times the hello interval).
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
10 seconds
Why this is correct
Correct. The default hello interval on broadcast networks is 10 seconds.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
30 seconds
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. 30 seconds is the default for NBMA networks.
5 seconds
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. 5 seconds is not a default OSPF hello interval.
40 seconds
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. 40 seconds is the default dead interval on broadcast networks.
Common exam traps
Cisco often tests the distinction between hello and dead intervals, and candidates confuse the 40-second dead interval with the hello interval, or incorrectly recall the NBMA hello interval of 30 seconds.
Detailed technical explanation
The hello interval is sent in the OSPF Hello packet's 'HelloInterval' field and must match between neighbors for adjacency formation. On broadcast networks, OSPF uses multicast address 224.0.0.5 for hellos, and the 10-second interval ensures sub-second convergence when combined with the dead interval. In real-world scenarios, engineers may adjust these timers (e.g., to 1 second for fast convergence) but must ensure consistency across all routers in the segment.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A network engineer at a university connects two campus buildings via a fibre link. Both routers run OSPF, but no adjacency forms — even though both routers can ping each other. The engineer finds one router is in area 0 and the other in area 1. OSPF adjacency requires matching area numbers, hello/dead timers, and network type. IP reachability alone is not enough.
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FAQ
Virtual Machines and Hypervisors — This question tests Virtual Machines and Hypervisors — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: 10 seconds — On a broadcast multi-access network like Ethernet, OSPF defaults to a hello interval of 10 seconds. This is defined in RFC 2328 and is used to quickly detect neighbor failures while keeping control traffic overhead manageable. The corresponding dead interval is 40 seconds (4 times the hello interval).
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
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