VCP-DCV Configure and Manage vSphere Storage Practice Question
This VCP-DCV practice question tests your understanding of configure and manage vsphere storage. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 uses vSphere 7.0 with two ESXi hosts in a cluster. All virtual machines (VMs) are stored on a VMFS6 datastore backed by a single LUN from a mid-range SAN. The LUN is presented to both hosts and both hosts have identical multipathing configuration. Recently, an administrator noticed that one host shows the datastore as "Inactive" while the other host can access it normally. The administrator verifies that both hosts have connectivity to the SAN, the LUN is visible to both hosts, and the storage array reports the LUN as online. The administrator wants to restore access to the datastore on the affected host without disrupting VMs running on the other host. Which action should the administrator take?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Perform a storage rescan on the affected host.
The datastore showing as 'Inactive' on one host while remaining accessible on the other indicates a path failure or a transient storage connectivity issue at the host level, not a permanent problem with the LUN or array. Performing a storage rescan on the affected host forces the ESXi host to re-evaluate all storage paths and re-register the datastore, restoring access without impacting VMs on the other host. This is the safest and least disruptive action because it does not require a reboot, multipathing policy change, or unmounting the datastore.
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.
✓
Perform a storage rescan on the affected host.
Why this is correct
Rescanning refreshes the list of paths and resolves transient path issues.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Reboot the affected ESXi host.
Why it's wrong here
Rebooting is unnecessary and disruptive.
✗
Change the multipathing policy on the affected host to Round Robin.
Why it's wrong here
The issue is path availability, not policy.
✗
Unmount the datastore from the affected host and then remount it.
Why it's wrong here
Unmounting may cause issues with VMs on that host and is not needed.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may assume an 'Inactive' datastore requires a disruptive action like a reboot or unmount, when in fact a simple storage rescan is the standard VMware-recommended first step to re-establish path connectivity without affecting running VMs.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
When an ESXi host marks a VMFS datastore as 'Inactive', it means the host has lost all active paths to the LUN, often due to a transient SAN fabric issue, a zoning change, or a storage adapter reset. The `esxcli storage core adapter rescan` command or the vSphere Client rescan triggers the host to re-scan the SCSI bus, re-discover LUNs, and re-establish path claims using the existing multipathing plugin (NMP). In a real-world scenario, this can occur after a storage controller failover or a fiber channel link flap, and a rescan resolves it without requiring a host reboot or datastore unmount.
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 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
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Configure and Manage vSphere Storage — This question tests Configure and Manage vSphere Storage — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Perform a storage rescan on the affected host. — The datastore showing as 'Inactive' on one host while remaining accessible on the other indicates a path failure or a transient storage connectivity issue at the host level, not a permanent problem with the LUN or array. Performing a storage rescan on the affected host forces the ESXi host to re-evaluate all storage paths and re-register the datastore, restoring access without impacting VMs on the other host. This is the safest and least disruptive action because it does not require a reboot, multipathing policy change, or unmounting the datastore.
What should I do if I get this VCP-DCV 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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Question Discussion
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