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Hybrid Topology

5 minutes 5 Questions

Hybrid Topology is a combination of two or more different types of network topologies, such as ring, star, mesh, bus, or tree topologies. This topology is formed when an organization uses different types of topologies for different departments or sections, which are interconnected using a backbone …

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CompTIA Network+ - Hybrid Topology Example Questions

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Question 1

A small business has a network consisting of a star topology connected to a ring topology. They plan to add an office that requires a high degree of redundancy. What hybrid topology should the company implement for the new office?

Correct Answer: Mesh-star hybrid topology.

The mesh-star hybrid topology is the best choice for a high degree of redundancy. This topology merges the advantages of both star and mesh topologies. In a mesh topology, every device is interconnected which provides a high degree of redundancy. In case of any node or connection failure, data can be transferred via another route. This combination with the star topology will allow for individual node failures without disrupting the entire network. A star-bus hybrid topology will not offer the same redundancy, because if the central hub fails the entire network fails. The ring-bus does not provide as much redundancy either. While the ring topology can manage a single node failure, multiple failures can disrupt the entire network. And lastly, a peer-to-peer topology does not provide a high degree of redundancy compared to a mesh-star hybrid topology, because it is highly dependent on individual nodes.

Question 2

A company utilizing a star-bus hybrid topology experiences network issues in one department. The responsible technician discovers that the issue is due to a faulty network switch. What should the technician do to resolve the issue while minimizing impact on other departments?

Correct Answer: Replace the faulty switch.

The best course of action is to 'Replace the faulty switch.' The star-bus hybrid topology design allows isolation of faulty components without affecting the rest of the network, thus replacing the faulty switch will resolve the issue in that department, while minimizing impact on other departments. 'Replacing all network switches' is not necessary as only one switch is faulty, hence, this would lead to unnecessary costs and may cause network downtime in the areas that are currently functioning properly. 'Replacing the entire bus backbone' is wrong because the issue is within a single department, not with the entire network. Lastly, 'Switching to a full mesh topology' is an excessive solution for a single faulty switch and would require a considerable investment of time and resources.

Question 3

A network technician is asked to design a hybrid topology for an organization with limited financial resources. The organization wants to ensure easy scalability and simple network expansion. What hybrid topology should the technician recommend?

Correct Answer: Star-bus hybrid topology.

The best choice for an organization with limited financial resources that wants to ensure easy scalability and simple network expansion is the Star-Bus Hybrid topology. This topology combines the features of star and bus topologies. Devices are directly linked to a central hub (star topology), which helps in managing the network efficiently. The hub is, on the other hand, connected to a common backbone (bus topology) which facilitates network expansion. Furthermore, if the central hub fails, it doesn't affect the entire network as the backbone maintains connectivity among the devices. The other options like Mesh-Star, Ring-Bus, and Mesh-Ring are typically more complex and costly to implement due to the requirement for more devices and connections.

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