hardMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
FC0-U71 Practice Question: A small business has 20 employees using a mix of…
A small business has 20 employees using a mix of wired and wireless devices. The network uses a single router with built-in 4-port switch and Wi-Fi. Recently, employees have reported intermittent connectivity drops, especially during peak hours. The technician notices that the router's CPU usage is consistently at 90% or higher. The business cannot afford to replace the router immediately. Which of the following actions would BEST improve the situation without purchasing new hardware?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates think disabling QoS or switching to wired-only will reduce CPU load, but they overlook that VLAN segmentation directly reduces broadcast processing overhead, which is the primary CPU consumer in a mixed wired/wireless environment.
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
✓
Configure VLANs to separate wired and wireless traffic
Configuring VLANs separates wired and wireless traffic into distinct broadcast domains, reducing the amount of broadcast traffic and collisions that the router's CPU must process. This lowers CPU overhead, which directly addresses the 90% CPU usage causing intermittent drops, without requiring new hardware.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Disable Quality of Service (QoS) settings
Why it's wrong here
Disabling QoS does not reduce CPU usage significantly.
- ✗
Disable the Wi-Fi network and require all devices to connect via Ethernet
Why it's wrong here
This would prevent wireless devices from connecting, causing disruption.
- ✗
Assign static IP addresses to all devices
Why it's wrong here
Static IPs do not reduce router CPU usage.
- ✓
Configure VLANs to separate wired and wireless traffic
Why this is correct
VLANs reduce broadcast domains and can lower CPU load.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This FC0-U71 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 FC0-U71 exam.