PCPP2 Network Programming Practice Question
What is the effect of setting a socket to non-blocking mode using socket.setblocking(False)?
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
✓
It raises an exception if an operation would block.
Non-blocking sockets cause operations like recv() and connect() to raise an exception if they cannot be completed immediately.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
It makes the socket perform asynchronous DNS lookups.
Why it's wrong here
DNS lookups are separate from socket blocking state.
- ✗
It increases the throughput of the connection.
Why it's wrong here
It changes the I/O behavior, not the performance throughput.
- ✗
It automatically closes the socket if it is idle.
Why it's wrong here
Non-blocking does not manage timeouts or closure.
- ✓
It raises an exception if an operation would block.
Why this is correct
Operations that cannot complete immediately throw a BlockingIOError.
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every PCPP2 question from scratch — 194 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 August 2026 · checked against the official Python Institute exam blueprint
This PCPP2 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Python Institute 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 PCPP2 exam.