AP Networking Practice Test

Redundancy and high availability in networks come from having multiple paths and the ability to share load across links. Spanning Tree Protocol prevents switching loops by electing a root and blocking some redundant links, then re-enabling them if an active path fails. This creates an alternate path so connectivity isn’t lost. Link Aggregation Control Protocol groups several physical links into one logical path, which increases total bandwidth and lets traffic continue on the remaining links if one member fails. In short, STP provides safe, alternate routing to stay connected, while LACP enables bandwidth sharing and resilience across multiple links. The other options involve services and application protocols rather than the mechanisms that ensure network path redundancy and link-level load balancing.