This VCP-DCV practice question tests your understanding of configure and manage vsphere storage. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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.
A company is designing a vSphere environment for a critical database application. The storage array supports both Fibre Channel (FC) and iSCSI. The application requires low latency and high IOPS. Which storage protocol and path policy should be recommended?
FC with Fixed path policy.
Why wrong: Fixed path policy does not load balance across paths.
FC with Most Recently Used (MRU) path policy.
Why wrong: MRU does not provide load balancing.
iSCSI with Round Robin path policy.
Why wrong: iSCSI has higher latency than FC for critical apps.
FC with Round Robin path policy.
FC is low latency; Round Robin balances I/O across paths.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
FC with Round Robin path policy.
FC provides lower latency and higher IOPS than iSCSI due to dedicated hardware and lower protocol overhead, making it ideal for critical database workloads. The Round Robin path policy is recommended for FC with active-active storage arrays because it distributes I/O across all available paths, maximizing throughput and load balancing, which aligns with the requirement for high IOPS.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
FC with Fixed path policy.
Why it's wrong here
Fixed path policy does not load balance across paths.
FC with Most Recently Used (MRU) path policy.
Why it's wrong here
MRU does not provide load balancing.
iSCSI with Round Robin path policy.
Why it's wrong here
iSCSI has higher latency than FC for critical apps.
FC with Round Robin path policy.
Why this is correct
FC is low latency; Round Robin balances I/O across paths.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often assume MRU is the default for FC or that Fixed is sufficient, but the VCP-DCV exam tests the understanding that Round Robin is the recommended path policy for active-active arrays to achieve load balancing and high IOPS, especially for performance-sensitive workloads like databases.
Detailed technical explanation
FC uses a dedicated fabric with minimal protocol overhead (e.g., no TCP/IP stack), achieving sub-millisecond latency and predictable performance. The Round Robin path policy in vSphere sends I/O commands down each available path in a rotating sequence, effectively utilizing all paths for active-active arrays; this is configured via the `esxcli storage nmp psp roundrobin` command and can be tuned with the `iops` limit to control path switching frequency. In real-world scenarios, a database with high transaction rates benefits from this setup by avoiding path saturation and reducing queuing delays.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A small business has 20 workstations on the 192.168.1.0/24 network and one public IP from its ISP. The router uses PAT (NAT overload) so all 20 devices share one public address using different source ports. NAT questions test whether you understand the four address terms and which direction each translation applies.
What to study next
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FAQ
Configure and Manage vSphere Storage — This question tests Configure and Manage vSphere Storage — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: FC with Round Robin path policy. — FC provides lower latency and higher IOPS than iSCSI due to dedicated hardware and lower protocol overhead, making it ideal for critical database workloads. The Round Robin path policy is recommended for FC with active-active storage arrays because it distributes I/O across all available paths, maximizing throughput and load balancing, which aligns with the requirement for high IOPS.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This VCP-DCV practice question is part of Courseiva's free VMware 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 VCP-DCV exam.
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