A water-utility edge switch must run a small monitoring app on the network device itself. Which framework provides that on-box application hosting?
Select an answer to reveal the explanation.
Short Explanation
IOx is the guest apartment on the switch—apps live there through the CAF hosting framework, not as an RPM bolted onto IOS itself or a laptop Docker build.
Full Explanation
On-box application hosting for a small monitoring app on a water-utility edge switch uses Cisco IOx—the application-hosting and CAF framework on the device. IOx provides the lifecycle and runtime so apps run local to the network device rather than only in a distant VM, which is what DEVCOR 5.5 emphasizes for municipal edge observability helpers and local automation.
Installing an RPM directly on the supervisor IOS process space as the hosting model bypasses the supported IOx/CAF approach and risks stability of the control plane that should stay focused on switching. Docker Desktop on a laptop under Domain 4 topics is an off-box developer environment, not on-device hosting. Spanning Tree tuning so the app “hosts” inside the control plane confuses Layer-2 loop prevention features with application hosting frameworks.
Exam caveat: Guest Shell is a special IOx-packaged Linux environment; general container apps still ride IOx. Platform support varies—Catalyst 9000 is a named host class in the blueprint materials candidates should recognize on sight.
Operational check: on a supported lab switch, enable IOx, confirm CAF services are up, and deploy a tiny package or Guest Shell rather than side-loading RPMs onto IOS process space.