Which statement differentiates a baseline from a standard configuration?

• A. Baseline is an approved configuration; standard is observed performance.
• B. Baseline is a maintenance window; standard is incident response.
• C. Baseline is observed normal performance measurements; a standard is an approved configuration or policy that should be followed.
• D. Baseline is backup strategy; standard is disaster recovery.

Answer: (C)

Think of a baseline as the actual, observed state of a system during normal operation. It’s the measurements you collect—like typical CPU usage, memory, throughput, latency—that show what normal looks like. You use that baseline to spot deviations that might signal problems or security incidents.

A standard configuration, by contrast, is the approved set of settings and policies that should be applied to systems. It’s the documented blueprint you follow to configure and secure devices, not something you measure after the fact.

So the statement that matches is that a baseline is observed normal performance measurements, while a standard is an approved configuration or policy that should be followed.

(For reference, baselines aren’t about maintenance windows or incident response, and standards aren’t defined by observed performance or disaster recovery.)