Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE) Practice Test

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What role does keepalives serve in the context of an IPsec tunnel?

Maintaining the VPN session if idle
Providing encryption for data packets
Establishing a fallback protocol
Ensuring reliability during packet transmission

The correct answer is: Maintaining the VPN session if idle

Keepalives play a crucial role in maintaining the state of an IPsec tunnel, particularly during periods of inactivity. They are periodic messages sent over the tunnel to ensure that the connection remains active, even when there is no data being transmitted. This is essential for maintaining the VPN session, as it prevents the tunnel from timing out or being dropped by network devices due to perceived idleness. By sending these keepalive messages, the endpoints of the tunnel can confirm that the connection is still viable and that both sides are still reachable. This is particularly important in scenarios where network conditions may fluctuate, or where there are security measures in place that result in idle sessions being closed after a certain period. Therefore, the correct function of keepalives is to sustain the VPN session by preventing it from being terminated during idle times.