Media Access Control (MAC): A Comprehensive Guide for Computer Networks

Question 1

Primary function of MAC layer is:

Accepted Answer

Controlling access to the physical medium

Answer

Error-free data delivery

Answer

IP address allocation

Answer

Establishing network connections

Question 2

Standard size of a MAC address is:

Accepted Answer

48 bits

Answer

32 bits

Answer

64 bits

Answer

128 bits

Question 3

TTL field is present in:

Accepted Answer

IP header

Answer

TCP header

Answer

Ethernet frame

Answer

ARP packet

Question 4

Primary media access control protocol in Ethernet:

Accepted Answer

CSMA/CD

Answer

CSMA/CA

Answer

TDMA

Answer

FDMA

Question 5

CSMA/CD prevents data collisions by:

Accepted Answer

Detecting collisions and retransmitting

Answer

Assigning time slots for access

Answer

Using a central control mechanism

Answer

Limiting network devices

Question 6

CSMA/CA advantage over CSMA/CD:

Accepted Answer

Reduced collisions in wireless networks

Answer

Increased Ethernet throughput

Answer

Improved security in wired networks

Answer

Lower latency in real-time applications

Question 7

MAC address filter in a switch is used to:

Accepted Answer

Forward frames to intended recipients only

Answer

Block malicious traffic

Answer

Translate IP addresses to MAC addresses

Answer

Store MAC address information for management

Question 8

In a CSMA/CD network, when a station detects a collision during transmission, what should it do?

Accepted Answer

Stop transmitting and wait a random time before trying again

Answer

Continue transmitting until the message is complete

Answer

Send a jamming signal immediately

Question 9

Which field is a crucial part of an Ethernet frame?

Accepted Answer

MAC Destination Address

Answer

IP Source Address

Answer

TCP Port Number

Answer

UDP Checksum

Question 10

Which field is NOT included in the Ethernet frame header as per the IEEE 802.3 standard?

Accepted Answer

Time to live

Answer

Destination MAC address

Answer

Source MAC address

Answer

Frame type

Question 11

What is the primary purpose of a MAC address?

Accepted Answer

To identify a specific device on a network

Answer

To store network configuration data

Answer

To facilitate routing between networks

Answer

To provide a secure connection

Question 12

Which media access control protocol uses a centralized arbitrator to control medium access?

Accepted Answer

Token Ring

Answer

CSMA/CD

Answer

CSMA/CA

Answer

FDDI

Question 13

What is the backoff algorithm employed by CSMA/CA?

Accepted Answer

Binary exponential backoff

Answer

Linear backoff

Answer

Round-robin

Answer

Priority-based

Question 14

Which of the following is NOT a potential source of MAC address spoofing?

Accepted Answer

IP filtering

Answer

Malware

Answer

Misconfigured network devices

Answer

ARP poisoning

Question 15

What is the main objective of media access control?

Accepted Answer

To regulate network access and prevent collisions

Answer

To provide secure data transmission

Answer

To route data between networks

Answer

To manage network performance

Question 16

Which method is commonly used to allocate bandwidth fairly in a CSMA/CA network?

Accepted Answer

Weighted fair queuing

Answer

Round-robin scheduling

Answer

Priority-based access

Answer

First-in, first-out (FIFO)

Question 17

Explain the difference between unicast and broadcast MAC addresses.

Accepted Answer

Unicast addresses target specific devices, while broadcast addresses are sent to all devices on a network

Answer

Unicast addresses are temporary, while broadcast addresses are permanent

Answer

Unicast addresses are used for data transmission, while broadcast addresses are used for address resolution

Answer

Unicast addresses are assigned to network devices, while broadcast addresses are assigned to network segments

Question 18

The primary function of the Media Access Control (MAC) layer in computer networks is to:

Accepted Answer

Control access to the shared transmission medium

Answer

Maintain network connections

Answer

Provide error detection and correction

Answer

Route data packets across different networks

Question 19

Standard size of an Ethernet frame is:

Accepted Answer

1500 bytes

Answer

2000 bytes

Answer

2500 bytes

Answer

3000 bytes

Question 20

Wired Ethernet networks utilize which media access control protocol?

Accepted Answer

CSMA/CD

Answer

CSMA/CA

Answer

TDMA

Answer

FDMA

Question 21

The preamble field in an Ethernet frame serves to:

Accepted Answer

Alert receiving devices to the incoming frame

Answer

Provide error detection and correction

Answer

Specify the destination MAC address

Answer

Contain the payload data

Question 22

MAC addresses function primarily to:

Accepted Answer

Identify individual devices on the network

Answer

Assign IP addresses to devices

Answer

Determine the route for data packets

Answer

Provide encryption for data transmission

Question 23

CSMA/CD differs from CSMA/CA primarily in that CSMA/CD:

Accepted Answer

Detects collisions, while CSMA/CA avoids collisions

Answer

Is used in wireless networks, while CSMA/CA is used in wired networks

Answer

Uses a centralized arbitrator, while CSMA/CA uses a distributed approach

Answer

There is no difference between CSMA/CD and CSMA/CA

Question 24

What is the primary purpose of a MAC address in a computer network?

Accepted Answer

To uniquely identify individual network devices

Answer

To provide a secure channel for data transmission

Answer

To facilitate routing of data packets across networks

Answer

To control access to shared network resources

Question 25

What is the size of the header in an Ethernet frame?

Accepted Answer

14 bytes

Answer

16 bytes

Answer

18 bytes

Answer

20 bytes

Question 26

Which MAC protocol is commonly used in wired Ethernet networks?

Accepted Answer

CSMA/CD

Answer

CSMA/CA

Answer

TDMA

Answer

FDMA

Question 27

What is the primary function of the backoff algorithm in CSMA/CD?

Accepted Answer

To reduce the probability of collisions between devices attempting to transmit data

Answer

To increase the throughput of the network

Answer

To ensure fair access to the shared medium

Answer

To detect and correct errors in data transmission

Question 28

Which of the following is NOT a commonly used medium for Ethernet networks?

Accepted Answer

Satellite link

Answer

Twisted pair cable

Answer

Coaxial cable

Answer

Fiber optic cable

Question 29

Which advantage does CSMA/CA offer in wireless networks compared to CSMA/CD?

Accepted Answer

Reduced collisions due to hidden terminal issues

Answer

Increased network capacity

Answer

Improved fairness in medium access

Answer

Extended range of wireless coverage

Question 30

What is a fundamental difference between centralized and distributed MAC protocols?

Accepted Answer

Centralized protocols rely on a single coordinator, while distributed protocols do not

Answer

Distributed protocols are more efficient than centralized protocols

Answer

Centralized protocols are more secure than distributed protocols

Answer

Distributed protocols are used exclusively in wireless networks

Question 31

What is the primary function of a bridge in a MAC layer network?

Accepted Answer

To filter and forward data frames based on MAC addresses

Answer

To connect multiple network segments

Answer

To provide routing functionality between different networks

Answer

To perform error correction on data transmissions

Question 32

In the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model, which layer is responsible for MAC addressing?

Accepted Answer

Data Link Layer

Answer

Network Layer

Answer

Transport Layer

Answer

Application Layer

Question 33

In Ethernet, the physical address of a network device is known as the:

Accepted Answer

MAC address

Answer

IP address

Answer

Subnet mask

Answer

Gateway address

Question 34

Which of the following is a characteristic of CSMA/CD (Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection)?

Accepted Answer

Detects collisions and resends data after a random delay

Answer

Allows multiple devices to transmit simultaneously without collisions

Answer

Uses a token for collision avoidance

Answer

Implements a priority scheme for data transmission

Question 35

The preamble field in an Ethernet frame serves which purpose?

Accepted Answer

Synchronization of receiving devices

Answer

Indication of the type of data being transmitted

Answer

Storage of the destination MAC address

Answer

Provision of error correction

Question 36

Which of the following is a primary function of the Media Access Control (MAC) sublayer?

Accepted Answer

Logical addressing

Answer

Error detection and correction

Answer

Packet routing between networks

Answer

Transmission of data across the physical medium

Question 37

Which of the following is NOT a type of wireless MAC protocol?

Accepted Answer

Ethernet

Answer

CSMA/CA

Answer

TDMA

Answer

FDMA

Question 38

The maximum transmission unit (MTU) refers to:

Accepted Answer

The largest size of a data frame that can be transmitted over a specific medium

Answer

The smallest size of a data frame that can be transmitted over a specific medium

Answer

The average size of a data frame that is typically transmitted over a specific medium

Answer

The maximum number of data frames that can be transmitted per second over a specific medium

Question 39

In a switched network, which device makes forwarding decisions based on destination MAC addresses?

Accepted Answer

Switch

Answer

Modem

Answer

Router

Answer

NIC

Question 40

What is a potential security risk associated with MAC address spoofing?

Accepted Answer

Unauthorized network access

Answer

Enhanced network performance

Answer

Improved data privacy

Answer

Increased network stability

Question 41

Which of the following is NOT a field in an Ethernet frame header?

Accepted Answer

Destination IP address

Answer

Type

Answer

Destination MAC address

Answer

Source MAC address

Question 42

Which MAC address indicates a broadcast frame in Ethernet networks?

Accepted Answer

FF:FF:FF:FF:FF:FF

Answer

AA:AA:AA:AA:AA:AA

Answer

10:00:00:00:00:00

Answer

00:00:00:00:00:00

Question 43

Which media access control protocol is used in wired Ethernet networks?

Accepted Answer

CSMA/CD

Answer

CSMA/CA

Answer

FDMA

Answer

TDMA

Question 44

What is the primary purpose of the preamble in an Ethernet frame?

Accepted Answer

To synchronize transmitting and receiving devices

Answer

To carry data

Answer

To identify the destination MAC address

Answer

To provide error checking

Question 45

Which type of MAC address is used to identify a specific network interface card (NIC)?

Accepted Answer

Unicast

Answer

Multicast

Answer

Broadcast

Answer

Anycast

Question 46

What is the maximum transmission unit (MTU) size for standard Ethernet frames?

Accepted Answer

1500 bytes

Answer

4096 bytes

Answer

2048 bytes

Answer

512 bytes

Question 47

Which of the following is a key characteristic of the CSMA/CA protocol?

Accepted Answer

Nodes sense the medium before transmitting data

Answer

Nodes transmit data without sensing the medium

Answer

Nodes use fixed time slots to transmit data

Question 48

What is the primary purpose of MAC addresses in network communication?

Accepted Answer

To identify the source and destination devices on the network

Answer

To provide error checking

Answer

To specify the destination IP address

Question 49

Which of the following is a potential disadvantage of using MAC addresses?

Accepted Answer

They can be spoofed

Answer

They can identify individual devices on a network

Answer

They can be used to filter network traffic

Answer

They are easier to remember than IP addresses

Question 50

What is the fundamental difference between unicast and broadcast MAC addresses?

Accepted Answer

Unicast addresses are used to send data to a specific device, while broadcast addresses are used to send data to all devices on the network

Answer

Unicast addresses are longer than broadcast addresses