Courseiva
RoutingPrivileged EXEC

show ip route

Displays the current IP routing table on a Cisco router, used to verify routes, check next-hop addresses, and troubleshoot connectivity issues.

Syntax·Privileged EXEC
show ip route

When to Use This Command

  • Verify that a specific route (e.g., default route) is present in the routing table after configuration.
  • Troubleshoot why traffic to a destination is not being forwarded correctly by checking for the correct route and next-hop.
  • Check the administrative distance and metric of routes to understand which path is preferred when multiple routing protocols are in use.
  • Monitor for routing loops or missing routes after network changes or link failures.

Command Examples

Basic show ip route output

show ip route
Codes: L - local, C - connected, S - static, R - RIP, M - mobile, B - BGP
       D - EIGRP, EX - EIGRP external, O - OSPF, IA - OSPF inter area
       N1 - OSPF NSSA external type 1, N2 - OSPF NSSA external type 2
       E1 - OSPF external type 1, E2 - OSPF external type 2
       i - IS-IS, su - IS-IS summary, L1 - IS-IS level-1, L2 - IS-IS level-2
       ia - IS-IS inter area, * - candidate default, U - per-user static route
       o - ODR, P - periodic downloaded static route, H - NHRP, l - LISP
       a - application route
       + - replicated route, % - next hop override, p - overrides from PfR

Gateway of last resort is 192.168.1.1 to network 0.0.0.0

S*    0.0.0.0/0 [1/0] via 192.168.1.1
      10.0.0.0/8 is variably subnetted, 3 subnets, 2 masks
C        10.0.0.0/24 is directly connected, GigabitEthernet0/0
L        10.0.0.1/32 is directly connected, GigabitEthernet0/0
O        10.0.1.0/24 [110/2] via 10.0.0.2, 00:00:15, GigabitEthernet0/0
      192.168.1.0/24 is variably subnetted, 2 subnets, 2 masks
C        192.168.1.0/24 is directly connected, GigabitEthernet0/1
L        192.168.1.1/32 is directly connected, GigabitEthernet0/1

Line 1: Legend explaining route source codes. 'S*' means a static default route (0.0.0.0/0) with administrative distance 1 and metric 0, via next-hop 192.168.1.1. 'C' indicates directly connected networks (10.0.0.0/24 and 192.168.1.0/24). 'L' shows local host routes for the router's own IP addresses. 'O' indicates an OSPF-learned route to 10.0.1.0/24 with AD 110, metric 2, via 10.0.0.2, age 15 seconds, out interface GigabitEthernet0/0.

Show ip route with specific network

show ip route 10.0.1.0
Routing entry for 10.0.1.0/24
  Known via "ospf 1", distance 110, metric 2, type intra area
  Last update from 10.0.0.2 on GigabitEthernet0/0, 00:01:23 ago
  Routing Descriptor Blocks:
  * 10.0.0.2, from 10.0.0.2, 00:01:23 ago, via GigabitEthernet0/0
      Route metric is 2, traffic share count is 1

This shows detailed information for a specific route. 'Known via' indicates the routing protocol (OSPF process 1). 'distance' is the administrative distance (110 for OSPF). 'metric' is the OSPF cost. 'type intra area' means the route is within the same OSPF area. 'Last update' shows when the route was last refreshed. The Routing Descriptor Block shows the next-hop IP (10.0.0.2), the advertising router (10.0.0.2), and the outgoing interface.

Understanding the Output

The 'show ip route' command displays the IP routing table. The first section is a legend of route source codes (e.g., C=connected, S=static, O=OSPF, D=EIGRP). Each route entry shows: the code (source), the destination network and prefix length, the administrative distance and metric in brackets [AD/metric], the next-hop IP address (or 'directly connected' for connected routes), and optionally the age of the route and outgoing interface. The 'Gateway of last resort' line indicates the default route if present. For directly connected networks, a 'C' entry shows the network, and an 'L' entry shows the router's own IP on that interface. A '*' next to the code indicates a candidate default route. When troubleshooting, look for missing routes, incorrect next-hops, or high metrics that might cause suboptimal routing. A missing default route (0.0.0.0/0) can cause traffic to unknown destinations to be dropped. High administrative distances (e.g., 170 for external EIGRP) may indicate less preferred routes. The age field helps identify stale routes in dynamic routing protocols.

CCNA Exam Tips

1.

Remember that the administrative distance (AD) is the first number in brackets; lower is more trusted. Common ADs: connected=0, static=1, EIGRP=90, OSPF=110, RIP=120.

2.

The 'L' entries (local routes) are for the router's own interface IPs and are a CCNA exam favorite—they appear only when IP routing is enabled.

3.

Know that a 'S*' entry indicates a static default route; the asterisk means it is a candidate default route.

4.

Be able to identify the best path: if two routes to the same network exist, the one with the lowest AD is chosen; if ADs are equal, the lowest metric is used.

Common Mistakes

Confusing the administrative distance with the metric: AD is trustworthiness of the route source, metric is the cost within that protocol.

Assuming a route is present just because a ping succeeds; the packet may be using a default route instead of a specific route.

Forgetting that connected routes have AD 0 and are always preferred over dynamic routes unless overridden by a static route with AD 1.

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