Question 1IPv4 addressing
A /24 network is divided into equal /27 subnets. How many subnets result, and how many usable hosts does each have?
Is Network+ hard?
It is a broad exam more than a deep one. Most people find three things hard: subnetting under time pressure, remembering ports and protocols, and the troubleshooting scenarios, which carry the most weight.
| Exam | N10-009 (V9) |
|---|---|
| Questions | A maximum of 90, multiple choice and performance-based |
| Time | 90 minutes |
| Passing score | 720 on a scale of 100 to 900 |
| Recommended experience | A+ certification and 9 to 12 months in a junior network role |
What makes it hard
- Breadth: five domains, from the OSI model and cabling to cloud, wireless, disaster recovery and attacks.
- Subnetting: you work out masks, ranges and host counts by hand, and quickly.
- Ports and protocols: a long list that the exam expects you to know without looking up.
- Troubleshooting carries 24%, the most of any domain, and its questions are scenarios with command output.
- Performance-based questions ask you to configure, sort or read output, not only pick an answer.
What makes it easier
The objectives are public and the domains are weighted, so you know where the marks are. Subnetting and ports reward short daily drills more than long reading sessions, and the troubleshooting method is the same seven steps every time.
How long to study
CompTIA does not publish study hours for the exam itself. Start with the free diagnostic: your score in each domain shows how much ground there is to cover, and the weakest domain is the place to begin.
Try 3 questions
Question 2Ports and protocols
A help desk technician needs to open a graphical remote session to a Windows server. A firewall rule for TCP 3389 has just been added. Which protocol does this rule allow?
Question 3Troubleshooting methodology
A technician found that a firmware update stopped PoE on an access switch. She rolled the firmware back in a maintenance window, confirmed that every phone, camera and access point on the switch powers up and passes traffic, and blocked further updates until the vendor issues a fix. What should she do next?
Next step
Questions people ask
Is Network+ harder than A+?
It goes deeper on networking, which is one part of A+. CompTIA recommends A+ certification before Network+, so it is meant as the next step.
Is Network+ harder than Security+?
They test different things. CompTIA recommends Network+ before Security+, because Security+ assumes the networking Network+ covers.
What is the hardest part of Network+?
For most candidates, subnetting at speed and the troubleshooting scenarios. Troubleshooting is the heaviest domain at 24% of the exam.