Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) Practice Exam

What types of addresses does IPv6 utilize?

1. Unicast, Broadcast, Multicast

2. Unicast, Anycast, Multicast

3. Unicast, Anycast, Broadcast

4. Multicast, Broadcast, Broadcast

The correct answer is: Unicast, Anycast, Multicast

IPv6 utilizes three primary types of addresses: unicast, anycast, and multicast. Unicast addresses are used for one-to-one communication, where data is sent from a single sender to a single recipient. This is the most common type of addressing in IP communications. Anycast addresses are designed for one-to-nearest communication. When a packet is sent to an anycast address, it is delivered to the nearest interface that is assigned that address, which is useful for load balancing and ensuring efficiency in routing. Multicast addresses are utilized for one-to-many communication, where data is sent from one sender to multiple recipients simultaneously. This is essential for applications such as streaming media, where multiple users need to receive the same data concurrently. Overall, these three types of addresses provide flexibility and efficiency in addressing schemes within IPv6, enhancing network performance and scalability. Other options incorrectly refer to broadcast addressing, which is not used in IPv6. Instead, IPv6 deliberately omits broadcast to avoid the inefficiencies associated with broadcasting, thereby relying on multicast and other addressing methods for effective communication.