Study for the BICSI OSP Design Test. Prepare using multiple choice questions, with hints and explanations to enhance understanding. Succeed in your exam journey!

Multiple Choice

In hierarchical star topology, the second-level backbone is connected via what?

In a hierarchical star, the backbone between levels must be driven by active network devices. Switches (and routers where needed) provide the necessary forwarding, learning of addresses, traffic management, and fault tolerance. The second-level backbone isn’t just a passive cable run; it needs these active components to move data efficiently, segment collision domains, support multiple devices, and enable redundancy across the network. Passive cabling alone can’t forward frames or manage traffic, so it wouldn’t support the backbone’s role. A wireless bridge isn’t the standard method for backbone links in this topology, and isolated segments would break the backbone’s purpose by leaving parts of the network disconnected.

In a hierarchical star, the backbone between levels must be driven by active network devices. Switches (and routers where needed) provide the necessary forwarding, learning of addresses, traffic management, and fault tolerance. The second-level backbone isn’t just a passive cable run; it needs these active components to move data efficiently, segment collision domains, support multiple devices, and enable redundancy across the network.

Passive cabling alone can’t forward frames or manage traffic, so it wouldn’t support the backbone’s role. A wireless bridge isn’t the standard method for backbone links in this topology, and isolated segments would break the backbone’s purpose by leaving parts of the network disconnected.