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Exam objectives

CompTIA Network+ (N10-009) exam objectives

RTJ is an IT certification platform that starts with CompTIA A+, Network+ and Security+.

The CompTIA Network+ (N10-009) exam objectives list what the exam covers, in 5 domains. RTJ covers 25 objectives below, each with RTJ's short label, a plain summary, and links to a lesson, flashcards, practice questions and any hands-on lab.

Where is the official CompTIA Network+ objectives list?

CompTIA publishes the official N10-009 objectives, in its own wording, on the official CompTIA Network+ page. That is the source to follow for what the exam covers. The objective labels on this page are RTJ's short names, and the summaries are RTJ's own. The domain names and weights below are CompTIA's, from that page.

Domains, weights and exam facts checked against CompTIA's official exam page on 2 November 2026.

CompTIA Network+ exam quick facts

Questions
Up to 90
Time
90 minutes
Passing score
720 on a scale of 100-900

CompTIA's figures, from the official CompTIA Network+ page.

Domain 1.0: Networking concepts (23% of the exam)

1.1 The OSI Model

You should be able to name the seven OSI layers in order (both directions), state the PDU at each layer, identify which device or protocol operates at which layer, and use the model to triage a real ticket. This is foundational vocabulary for describing how protocols, devices, and failures relate to one another.

1.2 Network Appliances and Applications

You should be able to walk through a server closet, name each appliance on the rack, state which OSI (Open Systems Interconnection) layer it operates at, and know which problem it solves. This is also the objective that introduces IDS (Intrusion Detection System) versus IPS (Intrusion Prevention System), which the security domain reuses.

1.3 The Cloud

You should be able to name the three cloud service models (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS), the four deployment models (public, private, hybrid, community), the five core cloud characteristics, the four common ways an office connects to a cloud provider, and what a VPC (Virtual Private Cloud) is.

1.4 Ports and Protocols

You should know the well-known ports inherited from CompTIA A+ (HTTP, HTTPS, SSH, DNS, DHCP, SMTP, POP3, IMAP, SMB, RDP), plus the new CompTIA Network+ protocols: routing (BGP, OSPF, EIGRP, RIP), management (SNMP, syslog, NTP), discovery (LLDP, CDP), and voice (SIP, RTP). You should know which use TCP and which use UDP, and which secure variants replace which plaintext predecessors.

1.5 Transmission Media

You should be able to identify twisted pair categories (Cat 5e through Cat 8), distinguish UTP (Unshielded Twisted Pair) from STP (Shielded Twisted Pair), tell single-mode fiber (SMF) from multi-mode fiber (MMF), name the major fiber connectors (LC, SC, ST, MTRJ, MPO), and pick the right transceiver form factor (SFP, SFP+, QSFP, QSFP+, QSFP28, GBIC) for a target speed. This objective builds on CompTIA A+ Core 1 cabling but goes deeper into fiber, jacket ratings, and transceivers used in data centers and modern enterprise networks.

1.6 Network Topologies

You should be able to identify the four physical topologies (star, mesh, ring, bus) plus the common hybrid and point-to-point variants, tell physical topology from logical topology, name the major network architectures (SOHO flat, collapsed core, three-tier, two-tier spine-leaf), pick the right network type for a scope, and recognize special-purpose segments (DMZ, guest, honeypot, honeynet). North-south and east-west traffic patterns are also included.

1.7 IPv4 Addressing

You should be able to identify an IPv4 address as private (RFC 1918), loopback, APIPA, or public, convert subnet masks between dotted decimal and CIDR (Classless Inter-Domain Routing) notation, split a network into subnets, and read an IPv6 address including the leading-zero and double-colon abbreviation rules.

1.8 Network Environments

You should be able to define and explain SDN (Software-Defined Networking), SD-WAN (Software-Defined Wide Area Network), and IaC (Infrastructure as Code). You should be able to define and explain zero trust networking, microservices, NFV (Network Function Virtualization), SASE (Secure Access Service Edge), ZTNA (Zero Trust Network Access), and VXLAN (Virtual Extensible LAN). You should be able to define and explain edge computing, 5G as a network option, cloud-native networking constructs (VPCs, security groups, transit gateways), and the impact of IoT on network design.

Domain 2.0: Network implementation (20% of the exam)

2.1 Routing Technologies

You should be able to interpret common routing-table fields such as destination prefix, next hop, route preference or metric, and outgoing interface; explain the default route; choose between static and dynamic routing; compare common route-source preferences; tell distance vector from link state from path vector from hybrid protocols; tell IGP (Interior Gateway Protocol) from EGP (Exterior Gateway Protocol); explain DSCP (Differentiated Services Code Point), shaping, and policing; compare common NAT behaviors; and recognize FHRPs (First Hop Redundancy Protocols).

2.2 Switching Technologies

You should be able to recognize how a switch forwards Ethernet frames and design and configure VLANs (Virtual LANs) with 802.1Q tagging. You should also be able to tell access ports from trunk ports, explain Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) and its protection features, and bundle links with LACP (Link Aggregation Control Protocol). The remaining ideas are the common Layer 2 security and convenience features: port security, DHCP snooping, dynamic ARP inspection, PoE tiers, and jumbo frames. Apply the material by picking the right switching feature for a scenario and reading a switch port configuration.

2.3 Wireless Devices

You should be able to translate between the 802.11 standards and their Wi-Fi marketing names, pick the right band (2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz) and a non-overlapping channel plan, choose between controller-based and standalone access points, pick omnidirectional vs directional antennas, choose the right site survey type, and recall the security and roaming features that modern wireless networks rely on (SSID, BSSID, ESSID, WPA2, WPA3, MIMO, MU-MIMO, OFDMA).

2.4 Physical Installations

You should be able to identify and describe major physical components of a network installation. These include MDF (Main Distribution Frame), IDF (Intermediate Distribution Frame), demarc (demarcation point), 66 / 110 / Krone punch-down blocks, patch panels, cable management, server racks, PDUs (Power Distribution Units), single-phase vs three-phase power, redundant power supplies, UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply), and generators. They also include KVM (Keyboard Video Mouse) switches, out-of-band management, environmental controls, fire suppression, and common installation records.

Domain 3.0: Network operations (19% of the exam)

3.1 Processes and Procedures

You should be able to identify the documentation set a network team keeps: logical diagram, physical diagram, topology, wiring schematic, configuration baseline, inventory, IPAM plan, site survey, and audit report. You should be able to tell standard, normal, and emergency changes apart, place the steps of a change request in order, and write a rollback plan. You should also be able to recognize how HIPAA, PCI DSS, GDPR, SOC 2, and NIST CSF shape network operations. You should be able to apply asset lifecycle and cost management concepts: EOL, EOS, OpEx, and CapEx.

3.2 Network Monitoring

You should be able to compare common monitoring data sources such as SNMP, syslog, flow data, and packet capture; interpret syslog severity levels 0 through 7; tell flow summaries from packet capture; use performance metrics and interface counters; set a baseline; distinguish threshold-based from anomaly-based alerting; recognize alert fatigue; and use NTP (Network Time Protocol) to support cross-device log correlation.

3.3 Disaster Recovery

You should be able to read an availability target in the "five nines" language and define and use MTBF (Mean Time Between Failures), MTTR (Mean Time To Repair or Recovery), and SLA (Service Level Agreement).

3.4 IP Services

You should be able to walk the DNS recursive resolution flow (client to recursive resolver to root to TLD to authoritative), name the common DNS record types and what each is for, contrast authoritative versus recursive versus caching name servers, explain forward and reverse lookups, describe DNS security features (DNSSEC, DoH, DoT, sinkhole), and apply IPAM concepts (reservation versus lease versus static, subnet utilization, audit trail, conflict detection) including advanced DHCP options.

3.5 Network Access

You should be able to choose between site-to-site VPN (Virtual Private Network) and client-to-site VPN and compare protocols such as IPsec, TLS-based VPNs, OpenVPN, WireGuard, and legacy PPTP. You should also be able to tell split tunnel from full tunnel and configure RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol) and VNC (Virtual Network Computing) safely. You should be able to plan out-of-band management and explain how ZTNA (Zero Trust Network Access) can reduce broad network access.

Domain 4.0: Network security (14% of the exam)

4.1 Network Security Concepts

You should be able to name the CIA triad, contrast perimeter security with zero trust, pick the right segmentation method (VLAN, subnet plus ACL, microsegmentation, air gap, DMZ), tell the four access control models apart (DAC, MAC, RBAC, ABAC), describe 802.1X authentication paired with EAP and RADIUS, define NAC posture assessment, name common encryption-in-transit and at-rest protocols, and walk PKI (CA, certificates, CRL, OCSP) at a working level.

4.2 Attack Types

You should be able to identify reconnaissance, DoS (Denial of Service) and DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service), on-path attacks, spoofing, wireless attacks, switching attacks, routing attacks, password attacks, malware types, physical and social engineering attacks, insider threats, and supply chain attacks. You should also be able to connect evidence from logs, flows, packet captures, and wireless tools to the mechanism being investigated.

4.3 Network Security Features

You should be able to select hardening controls for switches, routers, firewalls, and wireless access points and explain which attack mechanism each control addresses. You should also be able to use 802.1X and RADIUS where authenticated port access is required. You should also be able to account for patching, physical security, and logging as parts of the overall posture.

Domain 5.0: Network troubleshooting (24% of the exam)

5.1 Troubleshooting

You should be able to walk a network problem through CompTIA's seven-step troubleshooting methodology in the correct order and select top-to-bottom, bottom-to-top, or divide-and-conquer based on the evidence. This includes identifying which step comes next, choosing an approach that fits a symptom, and recognizing when a failed theory should lead to a new theory or escalation.

5.2 Physical Issues

You should be able to name common cable and physical-interface faults, select a tool that can test the suspected property, and interpret the result without treating one passing test as proof of the entire channel. This includes tool-to-fault matching, T568A versus T568B, the 100 meter balanced-copper channel limit, applicable cable ratings, and copper versus fiber fault isolation.

5.3 Troubleshooting Network Services

You should be able to translate symptoms and device output into a testable theory about switching, routing, or addressing. A familiar symptom is a clue rather than proof of a single root cause.

5.4 Performance Issues

You should be able to separate insufficient bandwidth from low throughput, locate a bottleneck, and interpret latency, loss, jitter, utilization, queue, and wireless measurements together. For wireless cases, read RSSI and SNR as vendor- and design-dependent evidence, identify interference or coverage problems, and use controller and client logs to evaluate disassociation and roaming.

5.5 Tools and Protocols

You should be able to choose the right software command for a network problem and read its output. Match ping to reachability; traceroute to path; nslookup or dig to DNS; netstat or ss to sockets; ipconfig, ip a, or ifconfig to addressing; nmap or arp-scan to discovery; tcpdump or Wireshark to capture; and iperf3 to throughput. Account for Windows, Linux, and macOS flags, and use the right sequence for common workflows such as a user who cannot reach an internal app.

Other CompTIA exam objectives

Questions

Are these CompTIA's official CompTIA Network+ objective titles?

No. The objective labels on this page are RTJ's short names for each objective, and the summaries are RTJ's own. The domain names and weights are CompTIA's. CompTIA publishes the official N10-009 objectives on its own site.

Is the practice on this page free?

The lessons, flashcards and practice questions open in RTJ's study mode. Free labs need no account. The other labs are included with Academy, Lifetime, and the teacher and school plans.

Does working through every objective mean I will pass?

No. Covering the objectives is preparation, not a prediction. RTJ does not predict exam results.

Where can I get the official CompTIA Network+ exam objectives?

From CompTIA, on its official CompTIA Network+ exam page (https://www.comptia.org/en-us/certifications/network/).

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