1. What is a computer network?

Answer:
A computer network is a group of connected devices that communicate with each
other to share data, resources, and services.

For example, computers connected through a switch in an office form a local network.

2. What is an IP address?
Answer:
An IP address is a logical address assigned to a device on a network. It is used to
identify the device and enable communication.

Example:

[Link]

There are two major versions:

IPv4 — 32-bit address

IPv6 — 128-bit address
3. What is a MAC address?
Answer:
A MAC address is a unique hardware address associated with a network interface. It
operates mainly at Layer 2 of the OSI model.

Example:

00:1A:2B:3C:4D:5E

IP = logical address
MAC = hardware/data-link address

4. What is the difference between a switch and a router?

Answer:

A switch connects devices within the same network and primarily operates at Layer 2.

A router connects different networks and operates primarily at Layer 3.

For example:

PC → Switch → Router → Internet

5. What is the OSI model?

Answer:
The OSI model has 7 layers:

Physical
Data Link
Network
Transport
Session
Presentation
Application
A simple way to remember them is:

"Please Do Not Throw Sausage Pizza Away."

6. What happens when you enter [Link] in a browser?

Answer:
First, the computer needs to resolve [Link] to an IP address using DNS.

Then:

DNS resolves the domain name.

The computer determines where to send the packet.
ARP may be used to find the MAC address of the local gateway.
Packets travel through the router/network.
A TCP connection is established for HTTPS.
The browser sends the HTTP request.
The server sends the response back.
The browser displays the website.
7. What is DNS?
Answer:
DNS stands for Domain Name System.

It translates domain names into IP addresses.

For example:

[Link] → IP address

Without DNS, users would need to remember IP addresses instead of domain names.

8. What is DHCP?
Answer:
DHCP stands for Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol.

It automatically provides devices with network configuration such as:

IP address
Subnet mask
Default gateway
DNS server
The DHCP process is commonly remembered as DORA:

Discover → Offer → Request → Acknowledge

9. What is a default gateway?

Answer:
A default gateway is the device, usually a router, that forwards traffic from a local
network to other networks.

For example:

PC: [Link]
Gateway: [Link]

If the PC wants to communicate outside its local network, it sends the traffic to the
default gateway.

10. What is a subnet mask?

Answer:
A subnet mask determines which part of an IP address represents the network and
which part represents the host.

Example:

IP: [Link]
Subnet mask: [Link]

This is also commonly written as:

[Link]/24

11. What is the difference between TCP and UDP?

Answer:

TCP:

Connection-oriented
Reliable
Ensures packets arrive correctly
Uses acknowledgements
Slower than UDP
UDP:

Connectionless
Faster
Does not guarantee delivery
Commonly used where speed is important
Examples:

TCP → HTTPS, SSH

UDP → DNS, streaming, VoIP
12. What is a port number?
Answer:
A port number identifies a particular service or application running on a device.

Common ports:
Port Protocol/Service
22 SSH
23 Telnet
25 SMTP
53 DNS
80 HTTP
443 HTTPS
3389 RDP

13. What is HTTP vs HTTPS?

Answer:
HTTP is used for communication between a browser and web server.

HTTPS is HTTP secured using TLS encryption.

HTTPS protects data from being easily read or modified while it travels across the
network.

14. What is ARP?

Answer:
ARP stands for Address Resolution Protocol.

It is used in IPv4 networks to find the MAC address associated with an IP address on
the local network.

Example:

IP: [Link]
↓ ARP
MAC: AA:BB:CC:DD:EE:FF

15. What is a VLAN?

Answer:
VLAN stands for Virtual Local Area Network.

It logically separates devices into different networks even when they are connected to
the same physical switch.

For example:

VLAN 10 → HR
VLAN 20 → Finance
VLAN 30 → IT

VLANs improve security, organization, and network management.

Troubleshooting Questions
16. A user says, "My internet is not working." What will you do?
Answer:
I would troubleshoot step by step:

Check the physical cable/Wi-Fi connection.

Check the IP configuration.
Check whether the device has a valid IP address.
Ping the loopback address.
Ping the local gateway.
Ping an external IP such as [Link].
Test DNS using nslookup.
Check whether the issue is specific to the user's device or affects multiple users.
This helps identify whether the problem is with the device, LAN, gateway, DNS, or
ISP.

17. What is the purpose of ping?

Answer:
ping is used to test network connectivity between two devices and check whether the
destination is reachable.

Example:

ping [Link]

It can also show response time and packet loss.

18. What is traceroute?

Answer:
Traceroute shows the path packets take from the source device to the destination.

On Windows:

tracert [Link]

On Linux:

traceroute [Link]

It can help identify where connectivity problems occur along the path.

19. A user can ping [Link] but cannot access [Link]. What could be the
problem?
Answer:
Most likely DNS resolution is not working.

I would check:

nslookup [Link]

I would also check the configured DNS server and try another DNS server if
appropriate.
20. A computer has an IP address like 169.254.x.x. What does it mean?
Answer:
A 169.254.x.x address is an APIPA address.

It usually means the device couldn't obtain an IP address from the DHCP server.

I would check:

Network cable/Wi-Fi
DHCP server
VLAN configuration
DHCP scope
Switch connectivity
21. What is NAT?
Answer:
NAT stands for Network Address Translation.

It translates private IP addresses into public IP addresses and is commonly used when
devices on a private network access the Internet.

Example:

Private IP
[Link]
↓
NAT Router
↓
Public IP

22. What is a firewall?

Answer:
A firewall is a security system that controls network traffic based on predefined rules.

It can allow or block traffic based on things such as:

Source IP
Destination IP
Port
Protocol
For example, a firewall can allow HTTPS traffic on port 443 while blocking
unwanted traffic.

23. What is a VPN?

Answer:
VPN stands for Virtual Private Network.

It creates a secure connection over an untrusted network such as the Internet.

Companies commonly use VPNs to allow employees to securely access internal
resources remotely.

24. What is the difference between a hub and a switch?

Answer:

A hub sends incoming traffic to all connected ports.

A switch learns MAC addresses and forwards traffic to the appropriate port.

Therefore, switches are more efficient and are commonly used in modern networks.

25. What is routing?

Answer:
Routing is the process of determining the path that network packets should take from
a source network to a destination network.

Routers use routing tables to determine where packets should be forwarded.

Scenario Questions
26. A website is very slow. How would you troubleshoot it?
Answer:

I would check whether the issue affects one user or multiple users.

Then I would check:

Network connectivity
Latency using ping
Packet loss
DNS resolution
Bandwidth utilization
Traceroute
Browser/device performance
Whether the website's server is experiencing problems
I would then isolate whether the problem is on the client side, local network, Internet
path, or remote server.

27. How do you check the IP address on Windows?

Answer:

I can use:

ipconfig

For detailed information:

ipconfig /all

This shows information such as IP address, subnet mask, gateway, and DNS servers.
28. What commands do you use for network troubleshooting?
Answer:

Some common commands are:

ipconfig /all
ping
tracert
nslookup
arp -a
netstat
route print

On Linux:

ip addr
ip route
ping
traceroute
nslookup
dig
ss

29. What is OSPF?

Answer:
OSPF stands for Open Shortest Path First.

It is a dynamic routing protocol used to exchange routing information within an

organization.

It is a link-state routing protocol and uses the Shortest Path First (SPF) algorithm.

30. Why should we hire you for a networking role?

Answer:
You can answer something like:

"I have a strong interest in networking and understand the fundamentals such as IP
addressing, DNS, DHCP, TCP/IP, VLANs, routing and troubleshooting. I am
comfortable learning new technologies, and when troubleshooting an issue, I prefer to
work systematically and identify the root cause rather than just applying a temporary
fix. I believe I can learn quickly and contribute effectively to the team."