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PK0-005 Practice Question: Basics of IT Infrastructure and IT Project Management

A project to migrate on-premises email to a cloud-based service is nearing completion. After the final cutover, some users report that emails sent to certain domains are not being delivered. The project team checks the mail servers and finds no errors. The project manager reviews the DNS records and discovers that the MX records were not updated to point to the new service. What should the team do first?

⚠ Common exam trap

A common mix-up: candidates assume a server-side configuration error (like SMTP relay or forwarding) is needed, but the question explicitly states no server errors exist, so the correct first action is to fix the DNS records rather than applying a workaround or reverting the project.

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

Update the DNS records and wait for propagation.

The root cause is that the MX records in DNS still point to the old on-premises mail server, so sending mail servers cannot route messages to the new cloud service. Updating the MX records to point to the new service and waiting for DNS propagation (typically 1–48 hours depending on TTL) is the correct first step because it restores proper email routing at the DNS level. No server-side errors exist, so the issue is purely a DNS configuration problem.

Answer analysis

Option-by-option breakdown

For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.

  • Configure manual email forwarding rules.

    Why it's wrong here

    Manual forwarding is not scalable and does not address the underlying DNS issue.

  • Set up an SMTP relay on the old server.

    Why it's wrong here

    A relay bypasses the proper mail flow and is a temporary fix that may cause other issues.

  • Update the DNS records and wait for propagation.

    Why this is correct

    Correcting the MX records ensures email routes to the new service; propagation typically completes within hours.

  • Revert the migration to the on-premises system.

    Why it's wrong here

    Reverting is unnecessary once DNS is corrected and would cause further disruption.

Visual reference

Client Recursive Resolver Root DNS (13 root servers) TLD DNS (.com, .org, …) Authoritative example.com query IP addr answer

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JA

Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security

Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva

This PK0-005 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 PK0-005 exam.