Designing Cisco Enterprise Wireless Networks (ENWLSD) — Question 114

An engineer must assess an existing company WLAN to determine the possibility for future IEEE 802.11ac Wave 2 wireless deployment. The existing WLAN is IEEE 802.11a/n and has IEEE 802.11n and 802. 11a clients. The engineer must advise the customer about support for these older clients on the new APs. What happens with client compatibility?

Answer options

• A. 802.11ac is backward compatible with 802.11n but not with 802.11a.
• B. 802.11ac is backward compatible with 802.11a but not with 802.11n.
• C. 802.11ac is backward compatible with 802.11a and 802.11n.
• D. 802.11ac is not backward compatible with 802.11a or 802.11n.

Correct answer: C

Explanation

The correct answer is C because 802.11ac is designed to be backward compatible with both 802.11a and 802.11n, allowing older clients to connect to the newer access points. Options A and B are incorrect because they incorrectly state the compatibility of 802.11ac with either 802.11n or 802.11a. Option D is also wrong as it claims there is no backward compatibility with both standards, which is not true.