hardMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
220-1201 Practice Question: A technician is configuring a network printer for…
A technician is configuring a network printer for secure printing using IPsec. After enabling IPsec on the printer and the print server, print jobs fail to reach the printer. The technician can ping the printer from the server. Which protocol negotiation step is most likely failing?
⚠ Common exam trap
CompTIA A+ exams often test the distinction between basic connectivity (ping working) and protocol-specific negotiation (IKE for IPsec), trapping candidates who assume ping success guarantees all higher-layer services will work.
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
✓
The IPsec security association (SA) is not being established due to IKE failure.
IPsec requires the Internet Key Exchange (IKE) protocol to negotiate and establish a security association (SA) between the printer and the print server. Since the technician can ping the printer, basic network connectivity (including ARP and IP routing) is working, but the print jobs fail because the IPsec SA is not established. An IKE failure—often due to mismatched pre-shared keys, authentication methods, or IKE phase parameters—prevents the encrypted tunnel from forming, causing all IPsec-protected traffic to be dropped.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The printer is not responding to ARP requests.
Why it's wrong here
ARP works at layer 2; if pings work, ARP is functioning correctly.
- ✓
The IPsec security association (SA) is not being established due to IKE failure.
Why this is correct
IKE negotiates SAs; failure here prevents IPsec from securing traffic, causing print jobs to fail.
- ✗
The printer's TCP/IP stack is misconfigured.
Why it's wrong here
If TCP/IP were misconfigured, pings would likely fail; since they work, this is not the issue.
- ✗
The print server is using the wrong port number.
Why it's wrong here
Wrong port numbers would cause connection failures even without IPsec, but pings work, so port numbers are likely correct.
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
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 220-1201 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA 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 220-1201 exam.