A hospital is deploying a new network core using two Aruba CX 8360 switches configured for VSX. To ensure maximum resilience for critical life-support systems, the network architect has mandated that the failure of a single VSX member switch must not interrupt traffic forwarding for connected servers, which are using LACP bonds. Which feature is essential to meet this requirement?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
VSX Active Forwarding is the key feature that allows both VSX member switches to actively forward traffic. When servers are connected via LACP to both switches in a multi-chassis link aggregation group (MC-LAG), this active-active forwarding plane ensures that if one switch fails, the other continues to forward traffic without any interruption or need for a failover protocol like VRRP to change the active gateway.
Question 2
A network administrator is troubleshooting an OSPFv2 adjacency issue between two Aruba CX switches. The show ip ospf neighbor command output is empty. Both switches are in the same subnet, can ping each other's interface IPs, and are configured for Area 0. Which of the following configuration mismatches is the most likely cause for the adjacency failure?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: C
OSPF requires that the MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit) on neighboring interfaces match. If there is an MTU mismatch, the OSPF database description (DBD) packet exchange will fail, and the neighbors will get stuck in an EXSTART/EXCHANGE state, preventing a full adjacency. This is a common and often overlooked cause of OSPF failures.
Question 3
A systems administrator needs to programmatically retrieve the running configuration from an Aruba CX 6300 switch and verify its compliance against a 'golden' template. The administrator prefers using standard, web-based protocols. Which AOS-CX feature should be used to accomplish this task?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: B
The AOS-CX REST API provides a modern, programmatic interface for managing the switch using standard HTTPS methods. An administrator can use a GET request to a specific URI to retrieve the full running configuration in a structured JSON format, which is ideal for automated comparison against a template.
Question 4
A university campus is upgrading its network. The design requires a highly available core with two switches that can be managed as a single logical entity from the perspective of downstream access layer switches using MC-LAG. The solution must support independent control planes for resilience and allow for in-service software upgrades. Which Aruba technology should be selected for the core switches?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: C
VSX (Virtual Switching eXtension) is specifically designed for data center and campus cores. It meets all requirements: it enables two switches to act as a single logical device for MC-LAG, maintains independent control planes for high resilience, and supports in-service software upgrades (ISSU).
Question 5
Multiple answers
An administrator is configuring an Aruba CX switch for Dynamic Segmentation. The goal is to assign network access policies based on user roles defined in Aruba ClearPass. Which of the following components are required on the switch to achieve this? (Select TWO)
Answer and explanation
Correct answers: A, C
The switch must be configured as a RADIUS client to communicate with the ClearPass server. ClearPass uses the RADIUS protocol to send authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) information, including the user role.
The switch ports must be configured as 802.1X authenticators. This enables the port to challenge clients (supplicants) for credentials, which are then passed to the RADIUS server (ClearPass) for validation and role assignment.
Question 6
True or False: In an ArubaOS-CX VSX configuration, the active-gateway command provides Layer 3 gateway redundancy using a shared virtual MAC and IP address, eliminating the need for VRRP.
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
This statement is true. The active-gateway feature in VSX is a built-in, active-active first-hop redundancy protocol (FHRP). It allows both VSX switches to simultaneously route traffic for their VLANs using a shared virtual IP and MAC address, which is more efficient than the active-standby nature of VRRP.
Question 7
Case Study: Global Retail Inc.
Company Background: Global Retail Inc. is a multinational corporation with over 500 retail stores. Each store has a small network of Aruba CX 6200 switches for POS terminals, IP phones, and guest Wi-Fi. The corporate IT team is small and needs a centralized, scalable way to manage, monitor, and update the firmware of all store switches without requiring on-site technical staff.
Current Situation: Currently, new switches are manually configured before being shipped to stores, a process that is slow and error-prone. Firmware updates require manual intervention, leading to inconsistent software versions across the estate. The team struggles to get a unified view of the health and performance of the store networks, making troubleshooting difficult and reactive.
Requirements:
Implement a zero-touch provisioning (ZTP) solution for new store deployments.
Centralize configuration management using templates to ensure consistency.
Establish a unified dashboard for monitoring the health of all switches.
Automate and schedule firmware upgrades for all stores during non-business hours.
Question: Which HPE Aruba Networking solution best meets all of Global Retail Inc.'s requirements for managing their distributed switching infrastructure?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: C
Aruba Central is a cloud-based management platform designed specifically for these requirements. It provides native ZTP through integration with Aruba Activate, powerful template-based configuration for groups of devices, a comprehensive monitoring dashboard, and automated, scheduled firmware management capabilities, making it the ideal solution for a distributed enterprise like Global Retail Inc.
Question 8
A network engineer observes that an Aruba CX switch in a VSF stack has rebooted unexpectedly. To investigate the cause of the reboot, the engineer should use the show ______ command.
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: B
The show reboot-history command is the correct and most direct way to view a log of the switch's past reboots, including the time, date, and reason for the reboot (e.g., user-initiated, power cycle, software crash).
Question 9
A network is experiencing intermittent Layer 2 loops. The administrator suspects an issue with the MSTP configuration. The show spanning-tree command on a non-root switch reveals that one of its ports is alternating between the Root and Designated roles for a specific MSTI. What is the most likely cause of this behavior?
The Spanning Tree Protocol determines port roles based on the superiority of received Bridge Protocol Data Units (BPDUs). If a port is intermittently receiving BPDUs that are superior to what it expects from the current root bridge, it will attempt to change its role to Root. When those superior BPDUs stop, it reverts to Designated. This flapping indicates an unstable or misconfigured upstream device periodically sending better BPDUs.
Question 10
A financial firm is deploying a campus fabric using EVPN-VXLAN. Which statement accurately describes the roles of the underlay and overlay networks in this architecture?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: B
This is the correct description. The underlay network's sole purpose is to provide robust IP connectivity between the VXLAN Tunnel Endpoints (VTEPs), typically using a routing protocol like OSPF or BGP. The overlay network is the virtual network built on top, where BGP EVPN is used as the control plane to advertise endpoint (MAC/IP) reachability across the VXLAN tunnels.
