VCP-DCV vSphere Performance and Scaling Practice Question
An administrator observes that a VM with 4 vCPUs running on a host with hyperthreading enabled shows high %CSTP (co-stop) values in esxtop. What is a likely cause?
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
✓
The VM has CPU affinity configured forcing vCPUs to specific pCPUs.
Co-stop occurs when the hypervisor is unable to schedule all vCPUs of a VM simultaneously because the pCPUs are not all available at the same time. This is often due to CPU affinity settings or physical CPU contention. C-state issues and memory pressure do not directly cause co-stop.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
The VM has CPU affinity configured forcing vCPUs to specific pCPUs.
Why this is correct
CPU affinity can restrict scheduling and cause co-stop when pCPUs are not all available.
- ✗
The VM's memory reservation is too high.
Why it's wrong here
Memory reservation does not affect CPU co-stop.
- ✗
The host has deep C-states enabled causing CPU idle savings.
Why it's wrong here
C-states affect power management, not co-stop directly.
- ✗
The host memory is overcommitted causing swapping.
Why it's wrong here
Memory swapping does not cause co-stop, which is CPU-related.
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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.