220-1101 Networking Practice Question
A technician is configuring a small office network with a managed switch. A new employee's workstation is connected to port 12 on the switch. The workstation receives an IP address from the DHCP server and can ping the default gateway (192.168.1.1), but it cannot ping the file server at 192.168.1.50. Other workstations on the same subnet can ping the file server. The technician checks the switch configuration and sees that port 12 is assigned to VLAN 10, while all other workstations and the file server are on VLAN 1. Which of the following is the MOST likely reason the workstation cannot reach the file server?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is that candidates see the workstation can ping the gateway and assume Layer 3 connectivity is fully functional, overlooking that VLANs isolate Layer 2 traffic and require explicit routing to cross VLAN boundaries.
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 switch port is configured as an access port in the wrong VLAN
The workstation is on VLAN 10 while the file server and other workstations are on VLAN 1. By default, VLANs segment broadcast domains and isolate Layer 2 traffic; a device on VLAN 10 cannot communicate with a device on VLAN 1 unless a Layer 3 device (router or Layer 3 switch) routes between them. Since the switch port is configured as an access port in VLAN 10, it is the wrong VLAN assignment that prevents the workstation from reaching the file server.
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 workstation's subnet mask is incorrect
Why it's wrong here
An incorrect subnet mask would change the workstation's calculation of which destinations are on its local subnet. Since the workstation can successfully ping its default gateway, the IPv4 address and mask must be consistent enough to place the gateway on the same directly connected network; otherwise, the ping would be sent to the gateway as a next-hop route and likely fail if the mask misclassified it as remote. Moreover, a wrong mask usually disrupts DHCP-supplied addressing validity, leading to a completely different symptom—failure to reach any off-subnet host, including the gateway itself.
- ✓
The switch port is configured as an access port in the wrong VLAN
Why this is correct
The switch port is set to VLAN 10, isolating the workstation from VLAN 1 where the file server resides. Without inter-VLAN routing, Layer 2 traffic stays within the VLAN, so the workstation cannot communicate with devices in other VLANs.
- ✗
The workstation's firewall is blocking traffic
Why it's wrong here
While a firewall could block pings, the scenario says the workstation can ping the gateway (which is on a different subnet). If the firewall were blocking all traffic, it would likely block the gateway ping as well. The consistent symptom of reaching only the gateway points to VLAN isolation.
- ✗
The DHCP server assigned an IP from a different scope
Why it's wrong here
The workstation received an IP that allows it to ping the gateway, meaning the DHCP scope is valid for that VLAN. If it had a different scope IP, the subnet would be different and pinging the gateway would likely fail.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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