LFCS Networking Practice Question
Which THREE statements about Linux network bonding modes are correct? (Choose three.)
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse 'balance-rr' with 'balance-xor' and assume round-robin distributes traffic based on a hash or packet type, when in fact it simply cycles through slaves without any flow-level awareness.
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
✓
Mode 0 (balance-rr) can cause out-of-order packet delivery.
Mode 0 (balance-rr) transmits packets in sequential order from the first available slave through the last, then starts over. This round-robin distribution can cause packets belonging to the same TCP session to take different physical paths, leading to out-of-order delivery at the receiver, which may trigger TCP retransmissions and degrade performance.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Mode 2 (balance-xor) distributes traffic based on packet type.
Why it's wrong here
It uses XOR of MAC addresses, not packet type.
- ✓
Mode 0 (balance-rr) can cause out-of-order packet delivery.
Why this is correct
Correct.
- ✗
Modes 5 and 6 (balance-tlb and balance-alb) require IEEE 802.3ad switch support.
Why it's wrong here
These do not require switch support.
- ✓
Mode 4 (802.3ad) requires the switch to support LACP.
Why this is correct
Correct.
- ✓
Mode 1 (active-backup) provides fault tolerance but only one link is active at a time.
Why this is correct
Correct.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This LFCS practice question is part of Courseiva's free Linux Foundation 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 LFCS exam.