These questions present the output of IOS show commands — show ip route, show interfaces, show ip ospf neighbor, show vlan brief — and ask you to interpret what they reveal about the network state. Reading IOS output accurately is one of the highest-value skills on the CCNA.
Start Scenario PracticeA network engineer runs the following command on Router R1: R1# show ip eigrp interfaces EIGRP-IPv4 Interfaces for AS(100) Interface Peers Xmit Queue Mean Pacing Time Multicast Pending Un/Reliable SRTT Un/Reliable Flow Timer Routes Gi0/0 1 0/0 12 0/10 50 0 Gi0/1 1 0/0 15 0/10 55 0 Based on this output, what can be concluded?
Explanation: The 'Mean SRTT' (Smooth Round-Trip Time) column shows the average time in milliseconds for EIGRP packets to reach a neighbor and receive an acknowledgment. Gi0/1 has an SRTT of 15 ms, while Gi0/0 has an SRTT of 12 ms, indicating higher latency on Gi0/1. This directly correlates to the path's delay, which EIGRP uses in its composite metric calculation.
A network engineer runs the following command on Switch SW1: SW1# show spanning-tree vlan 10 VLAN0010 Spanning tree enabled protocol ieee Root ID Priority 32778 Address 0011.2233.4455 This bridge is the root Hello Time 2 sec Max Age 20 sec Forward Delay 15 sec Bridge ID Priority 32778 (priority 32768 sys-id-ext 10) Address 0011.2233.4455 Hello Time 2 sec Max Age 20 sec Forward Delay 15 sec Aging Time 300 sec Interface Role Sts Cost Prio.Nbr Type ---------------- ---- --- --------- -------- -------------------------------- Gi0/1 Desg FWD 4 128.1 P2p Gi0/2 Desg FWD 4 128.2 P2p Gi0/3 Desg FWD 4 128.3 P2p Based on this output, what can be concluded?
Explanation: The output explicitly states 'This bridge is the root' for VLAN 10, and the Root ID and Bridge ID are identical (same priority 32778 and address 0011.2233.4455), confirming SW1 is the root bridge for VLAN 10. All interfaces are in the Designated (Desg) role and Forwarding (FWD) state, which is expected for a root bridge because root bridges have no root ports.
A network engineer runs the following command on Switch SW2: SW2# show spanning-tree vlan 20 VLAN0020 Spanning tree enabled protocol ieee Root ID Priority 24596 Address aabb.cc00.0200 Cost 4 Port 1 (GigabitEthernet0/1) Hello Time 2 sec Max Age 20 sec Forward Delay 15 sec Bridge ID Priority 32778 (priority 32768 sys-id-ext 20) Address aabb.cc00.0300 Hello Time 2 sec Max Age 20 sec Forward Delay 15 sec Aging Time 300 sec Interface Role Sts Cost Prio.Nbr Type ------------------- ---- --- --------- -------- ------------------------------ Gi0/1 Root FWD 4 128.1 P2p Gi0/2 Desg FWD 4 128.2 P2p Gi0/3 Altn BLK 4 128.3 P2p Based on this output, what can be concluded?
Explanation: SW2 is not the root bridge (its bridge priority 32778 is higher than root priority 24596). Gi0/1 is the root port (cost 4 to root), Gi0/2 is a designated port, and Gi0/3 is an alternate port in blocking state. The root bridge is at MAC aabb.cc00.0200.
A network engineer runs the following command on Switch SW5: SW5# show spanning-tree vlan 50 VLAN0050 Spanning tree enabled protocol ieee Root ID Priority 24626 Address aabb.cc00.0800 Cost 4 Port 1 (GigabitEthernet0/1) Hello Time 2 sec Max Age 20 sec Forward Delay 15 sec Bridge ID Priority 32768 (priority 32768 sys-id-ext 50) Address aabb.cc00.0900 Hello Time 2 sec Max Age 20 sec Forward Delay 15 sec Aging Time 300 sec Interface Role Sts Cost Prio.Nbr Type ------------------- ---- --- --------- -------- ------------------------------ Gi0/1 Root FWD 4 128.1 P2p Gi0/2 Desg FWD 4 128.2 P2p Gi0/3 Desg FWD 4 128.3 P2p Gi0/4 Altn BLK 4 128.4 P2p Based on this output, how many ports are in the Forwarding state?
Explanation: The output shows three ports in Forwarding state: Gi0/1 (Root FWD), Gi0/2 (Desg FWD), and Gi0/3 (Desg FWD). Gi0/4 is in Blocking state (Altn BLK).
A network engineer runs the following command on Switch SW3: SW3# show spanning-tree vlan 30 VLAN0030 Spanning tree enabled protocol ieee Root ID Priority 24606 Address aabb.cc00.0400 Cost 12 Port 2 (GigabitEthernet0/2) Hello Time 2 sec Max Age 20 sec Forward Delay 15 sec Bridge ID Priority 32798 (priority 32768 sys-id-ext 30) Address aabb.cc00.0500 Hello Time 2 sec Max Age 20 sec Forward Delay 15 sec Aging Time 300 sec Interface Role Sts Cost Prio.Nbr Type ------------------- ---- --- --------- -------- ------------------------------ Gi0/1 Desg FWD 4 128.1 P2p Gi0/2 Root FWD 12 128.2 P2p Gi0/3 Desg FWD 4 128.3 P2p Based on this output, what is the root path cost from SW3 to the root bridge for VLAN 30?
Explanation: The root path cost is the cost of the path from this switch to the root bridge. It is shown in the Root ID section as 'Cost 12'. This is the cumulative cost via the root port (Gi0/2, which has a cost of 12).
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Practice all Show Command Output QuestionsThese questions present the output of IOS show commands — show ip route, show interfaces, show ip ospf neighbor, show vlan brief — and ask you to interpret what they reveal about the network state. Reading IOS output accurately is one of the highest-value skills on the CCNA. These appear throughout the 350-401 and require you to apply your knowledge, not just recall facts.
Cisco doesn't publish an exact breakdown, but scenario-based questions (especially exhibit and command-output formats) make up a significant portion of the 350-401. Practicing each scenario type ensures you're ready for any format.
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