CompTIA Network+ (N10-009)Network OperationsMedium
A network administrator wants a switch to immediately notify the monitoring server whenever an interface goes down, rather than waiting for the next scheduled query. Which SNMP mechanism accomplishes this?
- ASNMP WALK
- BSNMP trap
- CMIB polling
- DSNMP GET request
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: B. SNMP trap
An SNMP trap is an unsolicited message sent from the managed device to the manager the moment a defined event occurs, enabling near real-time notification instead of waiting for the manager's next poll.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. WALK is a sequence of GET-NEXT requests used to traverse a MIB tree, still manager-initiated.
- C. Polling is the manager periodically querying devices, which introduces delay.
- D. GET is a request the manager sends to pull data on demand; it does not push alerts.
SNMP Trap
An unsolicited SNMP message sent from a managed device (agent) to the management station to report an event as it happens, without waiting for a poll.
- Push-based, event-driven notification
- Contrasts with polling (pull-based)
- Reduces detection latency for critical events
Memory trick: Traps trigger themselves; polling waits to be asked.