VCP-DCV vSphere Performance and Scaling Practice Question
An administrator is deploying a latency-sensitive application in a vSphere environment. The application requires consistent low-latency network access. Which configuration would be the best practice to minimize network latency for this VM?
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
✓
Use a dedicated physical NIC for the VM using direct path I/O (passthrough).
Direct path I/O (PCI passthrough) allows the VM to access the physical NIC directly, bypassing the hypervisor network stack and reducing latency. Option A is correct. Option C (Load-Based Teaming) is for load balancing, not latency reduction. Option B (disabling TSO) increases CPU overhead and does not reduce latency. Option D (e1000 emulation) is slower than VMXNET3 and adds overhead.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Use a dedicated physical NIC for the VM using direct path I/O (passthrough).
Why this is correct
PCI passthrough eliminates virtualization overhead, reducing latency.
- ✗
Disable TCP segmentation offload on the VM.
Why it's wrong here
Disabling offload increases CPU overhead, potentially increasing latency.
- ✗
Use a distributed virtual switch with Load-Based Teaming.
Why it's wrong here
LBT balances traffic but does not minimize latency.
- ✗
Enable the VM's network adapter to use e1000 emulation.
Why it's wrong here
e1000 emulation has higher overhead than VMXNET3, increasing latency.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.