- A
Normal
Why wrong: ARP is considered critical because it is required for basic connectivity.
- B
Critical
ARP is classified as critical to ensure that address resolution is not starved by CoPP.
- C
Management
Why wrong: Management traffic includes protocols like SSH and SNMP, not ARP.
- D
Best-effort
Why wrong: Best-effort is for non-critical traffic; ARP is critical for network operation.
Question 1,183 of 2,152
CoPP ARP Classification
This 300-410 practice question tests your understanding of control plane policing (copp). Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
What is the default CoPP classification for ARP packets on a Cisco IOS-XE device?
Quick Answer
The answer is Critical. On Cisco IOS-XE devices, the default CoPP classification for ARP packets is critical because ARP is fundamental to Layer 2 connectivity, and misclassification could allow ARP spoofing or flooding to disrupt network operations. Control Plane Policing (CoPP) uses this classification to ensure that ARP packets receive priority treatment, protecting the control plane from excessive or malicious traffic while still allowing legitimate ARP resolution. On the CCNP ENARSI 300-410 exam, this topic tests your understanding of CoPP class maps and default policy assignments—a common trap is assuming ARP is classified as normal or medium, since it is a Layer 2 protocol, but Cisco explicitly assigns it to the critical class due to its role in adjacency maintenance. A useful memory tip: think of ARP as the network’s address book—if you lose it, you cannot reach anyone, so it must be treated as critical.
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
✓
Critical
B is correct because on Cisco IOS-XE devices, ARP packets are classified under the 'Critical' control plane class by default. This ensures that ARP processing receives high priority to maintain Layer 2 connectivity and avoid adjacency timeouts, which could lead to network instability.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Normal
Why it's wrong here
ARP is considered critical because it is required for basic connectivity.
- ✓
Critical
Why this is correct
ARP is classified as critical to ensure that address resolution is not starved by CoPP.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Management
- ✗
Best-effort
Why it's wrong here
Best-effort is for non-critical traffic; ARP is critical for network operation.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Cisco often tests the misconception that ARP is treated as 'Normal' because it is a Layer 2 protocol, but the default CoPP classification explicitly places it in 'Critical' to prevent adjacency loss and ensure network stability.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, the default CoPP policy on IOS-XE uses the 'control-plane' configuration with a 'service-policy' that maps ARP to the 'Critical' class via the 'class-map type control-plane match-any CoPP-Critical' which includes 'match protocol arp'. In real-world scenarios, if ARP is inadvertently reclassified to a lower priority (e.g., 'Normal'), a sudden flood of ARP requests during an attack or misconfiguration could cause ARP starvation, leading to widespread reachability failures across VLANs or subnets.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A network engineer at a university connects two campus buildings via a fibre link. Both routers run OSPF, but no adjacency forms — even though both routers can ping each other. The engineer finds one router is in area 0 and the other in area 1. OSPF adjacency requires matching area numbers, hello/dead timers, and network type. IP reachability alone is not enough.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this 300-410 question test?
Control Plane Policing (CoPP) — This question tests Control Plane Policing (CoPP) — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Critical — B is correct because on Cisco IOS-XE devices, ARP packets are classified under the 'Critical' control plane class by default. This ensures that ARP processing receives high priority to maintain Layer 2 connectivity and avoid adjacency timeouts, which could lead to network instability.
What should I do if I get this 300-410 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
This 300-410 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Cisco 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 300-410 exam.
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