CompTIA Network+ Practice Test

What key feature does Nmap offer for understanding device configurations?

1. Service scan

2. Load balancing

3. Packet inspection

4. Bandwidth monitoring

The correct answer is: Service scan

Nmap, a powerful network scanning tool, is widely recognized for its ability to perform a service scan. This feature allows users to identify what services are running on networked devices and the specific versions of those services. Understanding which services are active on devices is crucial for network administrators and security professionals because it helps in assessing the security posture of a network, uncovering potential vulnerabilities, and ensuring proper configuration management. When Nmap conducts a service scan, it probes the open ports on a device and attempts to determine the service running on each port. This information can inform decisions about necessary updates, patches, or configuration changes required to mitigate risks. Additionally, recognizing the type of services in use helps with compliance audits and network diagnostics. The other options like load balancing, packet inspection, and bandwidth monitoring do not directly relate to the core functionality of Nmap as a scanning tool. While they are important network functions, they serve different purposes and do not provide the same insights into device configurations as a service scan does.