Which activity aims to discern the topology of the target network by drawing a network map?

• A. Network Sweeping
• B. Network Tracing
• C. Nickerson, Chris
• D. Nikto: Web Server Vuln Scanner

Answer: (A)

Discerning the layout of a target network by drawing a map comes from network discovery and topology understanding. Sweeping a subnet means probing a range of IP addresses to identify which hosts are alive, what services they offer, and how they are connected. Collecting this broad set of responses lets you infer subnets, devices, and the paths between them, which you can translate into a network map. This makes it the best fit for producing a topology diagram of the target network.

The other terms don’t fit the goal as well. Tracing focuses on the route from your machine to a single destination, showing hops along that path rather than building a whole network map. The remaining two items are not techniques for topology discovery at all: one is a person’s name, and the other is a tool for scanning web servers for vulnerabilities, not mapping network structure.