F5CAB4 Control Plane Administration Practice Question
An administrator observes that the BIG-IP system's management interface is experiencing high CPU utilization. Which process should the administrator investigate first to determine if control plane operations are impacting system performance?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often select 'tmm' because they associate high CPU with traffic. However, the question specifically asks about management interface and control plane operations, which are handled by mcpd.
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
✓
mcpd
The 'mcpd' (Master Configuration Program Daemon) is the central authority for all BIG-IP configuration. High CPU usage in mcpd typically indicates massive configuration changes, sync operations, or excessive API calls. Monitoring mcpd is essential because it manages the transition of configuration data to TMM; performance issues here suggest that the control plane is struggling to process administrative updates or communicate with the data plane components effectively.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
TMM
Why it's wrong here
TMM is the data plane process and is responsible for traffic processing. While high TMM CPU usage is a common concern, it relates to traffic throughput rather than control plane management operations. Investigating TMM would not identify issues stemming from the management plane, such as API or configuration database load.
- ✓
mcpd
Why this is correct
mcpd is the central control plane process that maintains the BIG-IP configuration. High CPU utilization here is the primary indicator of control plane stress, often caused by complex configuration syncs, heavy TMSH activity, or rapid-fire API requests, making it the primary target for investigating management interface performance degradation.
- ✗
sshd
Why it's wrong here
sshd handles secure shell connections. While a high number of SSH sessions could increase CPU, it is a symptom of user activity rather than the root cause of systemic control plane performance issues. Investigating sshd would only reveal active sessions, not the underlying health of the configuration management system.
- ✗
bigd
Why it's wrong here
bigd is the daemon responsible for health monitoring of pool members. It operates at the intersection of control and data planes, but it is not the primary process for managing the system's overall configuration or handling GUI/API-driven requests, making it an secondary diagnostic target for general management plane performance issues.
About these practice questions
This F5CAB4 question is part of Courseiva's 40-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official F5 exam blueprint
This F5CAB4 practice question is part of Courseiva's free F5 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 F5CAB4 exam.