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Troubleshooting and Networking Flashcards

6 cards from real ACSP practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

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  1. What is the macOS 'Network Diagnostics' assistant and when does it automatically appear?

    Answer: Network Diagnostics automatically launches when Safari or other apps detect a network connectivity failure; it guides users through systematic connectivity checks and attempts automatic resolution

    Network Diagnostics (/System/Library/CoreServices/Network Diagnostics.app) automatically launches when macOS detects connectivity problems — such as when Safari can't load a page. It runs through diagnostic steps (ISP, server, network, wireless) and suggests fixes.

  2. What is 'nslookup' and how does a technician use it to diagnose DNS issues on macOS?

    Answer: nslookup queries DNS servers interactively or in batch mode to resolve hostnames to IPs or reverse-resolve IPs to hostnames, helping diagnose DNS misconfiguration or server failures

    'nslookup hostname' queries the default DNS server to resolve a domain. 'nslookup hostname 8.8.8.8' queries a specific DNS server. If the default DNS fails but 8.8.8.8 succeeds, the default DNS server is the problem. Useful for isolating DNS issues.

  3. What is the purpose of the macOS Firewall and how does it differ from a network router firewall?

    Answer: The macOS Firewall controls incoming connections to the Mac from the network per-application, blocking unauthorized services; a router firewall protects the entire local network from external threats

    The macOS application firewall (System Settings > Network > Firewall) blocks inbound connections to specific applications, protecting the Mac even on untrusted networks. A router firewall protects the whole network perimeter. Both are complementary layers of defense.

  4. When a Mac shows 'Connection Refused' versus 'Connection Timed Out' when connecting to a network service, what does each mean?

    Answer: 'Connection Refused' means a host is reachable but actively rejected the connection (no service listening on that port); 'Timed Out' means the host or network is unreachable (packets not returned)

    'Connection Refused' (TCP RST received) means the destination host is reachable and responding, but no service is listening on that port — the connection was actively rejected. 'Connection Timed Out' means no response at all — the host is unreachable, offline, or a firewall is silently dropping packets.

  5. What is the macOS 'hosts' file and how can it be used to troubleshoot DNS issues?

    Answer: The /etc/hosts file contains static hostname-to-IP mappings checked before DNS queries; adding an entry here forces a specific resolution regardless of DNS, useful for testing or overriding DNS

    /etc/hosts is a static lookup table mapping hostnames to IP addresses. macOS checks it before querying DNS — an entry here overrides DNS. Useful for testing web server changes before DNS propagation, or blocking domains by mapping them to 127.0.0.1.

  6. What information does the macOS 'ifconfig' command provide and what are common troubleshooting uses?

    Answer: ifconfig shows network interface configuration including IP addresses, subnet masks, MAC addresses, interface status (UP/DOWN), and network flags — useful for verifying IP configuration and diagnosing connectivity

    'ifconfig' displays all network interface configuration including Ethernet (en0, en1), loopback (lo0), Wi-Fi, VPN, and virtual interfaces — showing their IP addresses, subnet masks, broadcast addresses, hardware (MAC) addresses, and current status flags.