NSE7 Advanced Networking and SD-WAN Practice Question
An administrator is configuring an SD-WAN rule on a FortiGate. They want to load balance traffic across three WAN links based on the volume of traffic sent. Which load balancing algorithm should they use?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse session count with volume; session count balances the number of connections, while volume balances the actual data transferred.
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
✓
Volume
The volume load balancing algorithm in SD-WAN distributes traffic based on the measured volume of data sent through each link. It dynamically selects the link with the least volume, ensuring that the total traffic is balanced across available links. This is the only algorithm among the options that directly uses traffic volume as the metric, making it the correct choice for the scenario.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Source IP
Why it's wrong here
The source IP algorithm distributes traffic based on the source IP address, ensuring that sessions from the same source use the same link. It does not consider the volume of traffic sent. This method is useful for session persistence but does not achieve volume-based load balancing. Therefore, it does not meet the requirement of balancing based on traffic volume.
- ✗
Session count
Why it's wrong here
Session count load balancing distributes traffic based on the number of active sessions per link. While it can help balance the number of connections, it does not account for the volume of data transferred. A link with many small sessions might be chosen over a link with fewer large sessions, leading to imbalanced bandwidth usage. Thus, it is not suitable for volume-based balancing.
- ✓
Volume
Why this is correct
The volume algorithm distributes traffic based on the amount of data sent through each link. It monitors the volume of traffic and selects the link with the least volume, helping to balance the total data transferred across links. This directly addresses the requirement to load balance based on traffic volume, making it the correct choice.
- ✗
Weighted round robin
Why it's wrong here
Weighted round robin distributes sessions in a rotating manner according to configured weights. It does not dynamically measure traffic volume; it relies on static weights. While it can approximate load balancing, it does not adapt to actual volume sent. Therefore, it does not fulfill the requirement of balancing based on real-time volume.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every NSE7 question from scratch — 718 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or 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 Fortinet exam blueprint
This NSE7 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Fortinet 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 NSE7 exam.