The OSPF route is the correct choice because its default administrative distance of 110 is lower than the static route’s configured administrative distance of 200. Administrative distance is the primary mechanism routers use for route selection when multiple routing sources provide the same destination prefix, and the route with the lowest distance value is always installed in the routing table. In this scenario, the static route acts as a floating static backup—it remains in the configuration but only becomes active if the OSPF-learned route fails. On the CCNA 200-301 v2 exam, this concept tests your understanding of how administrative distance governs route selection between dynamic and static routes, and the common trap is assuming a static route always wins over a dynamic one. Remember: lower distance wins the routing table seat, and a static route with a high distance is just a standby. A useful memory tip is “lowest distance, highest trust”—the smaller the number, the more the router trusts that source.
CCNA IP Routing Practice Question
This 200-301 practice question tests your understanding of ip routing. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. A key principle to apply: administrative distance determines the trustworthiness of routing information sources and influences route selection in Cisco routers.. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A router learns 192.168.30.0/24 from OSPF and also has a static route to 192.168.30.0/24 with administrative distance 200. Which route is installed in the routing table while both are available?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The OSPF route
The OSPF route is installed because its default administrative distance of 110 is lower than the static route’s configured administrative distance of 200. In practical terms, the static route has been intentionally made a backup. It is present in the configuration, but it does not become active while the lower-distance OSPF route is healthy.
This is a classic floating-static design question. The important point is that route-source preference depends on administrative distance when the prefix length is the same.
Key principle: Administrative distance determines the trustworthiness of routing information sources and influences route selection in Cisco routers.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
In a different scenario where the static route to 192.168.30.0/24 has an administrative distance lower than OSPF (e.g., 90), the static route would be installed in the routing table instead of the OSPF route.
✗
Both routes equally for load balancing
Why it's wrong here
This is wrong because equal installation is not expected with these differing distances.
When this WOULD be correct
In a different scenario where both routes have the same administrative distance and the router is configured to allow equal-cost multi-path (ECMP) routing, both routes could be installed for load balancing. For example, if both routes had an administrative distance of 110, the router would use both for traffic distribution.
✗
Neither route, because they conflict
Why it's wrong here
This is wrong because routers can choose one preferred source for the same prefix.
When this WOULD be correct
In a different scenario where both routes have the same administrative distance, and the router cannot determine a preferred route due to a configuration error or miscommunication, the question could state that neither route is installed due to a conflict in routing protocols.
Option-by-option analysis
Why each answer is right or wrong
Understanding why wrong answers are wrong — and when they would be correct — is what separates a 750 score from a 900. The 200-301 exam frequently reuses these exact scenarios with slightly different constraints.
✓The OSPF routeCorrect answer▾
Why this is correct
This is correct because OSPF's administrative distance is lower than 200.
✗The static routeWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The static route has an administrative distance of 200, which is higher than OSPF's default AD of 110. Since the router prefers routes with lower AD, the static route is not installed while the OSPF route is available. This configuration is often used for backup routes, but in this scenario, the OSPF route is active.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
In a different scenario where the static route to 192.168.30.0/24 has an administrative distance lower than OSPF (e.g., 90), the static route would be installed in the routing table instead of the OSPF route.
Why candidates choose this
Students may think that static routes always take precedence over dynamic routes, but that is only true when the static route uses the default AD of 1. Here, the static route's AD is explicitly set to 200, making it less preferred.
✗Both routes equally for load balancingWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Load balancing requires equal administrative distance and equal metric for the same prefix. OSPF's AD is 110, while the static route's AD is 200, so they are not equal. Additionally, OSPF and static routes have different metrics, so they cannot be used for load balancing.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
In a different scenario where both routes have the same administrative distance and the router is configured to allow equal-cost multi-path (ECMP) routing, both routes could be installed for load balancing. For example, if both routes had an administrative distance of 110, the router would use both for traffic distribution.
Why candidates choose this
Students might confuse this with equal-cost multipath (ECMP) where multiple routes with the same AD and metric are used for load balancing. However, here the AD values differ, so ECMP does not apply.
✗Neither route, because they conflictWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Routers do not discard routes simply because they conflict; they select the route with the lowest administrative distance. The OSPF route is chosen, and the static route is kept as a backup but not installed in the routing table. There is no conflict that prevents installation.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
In a different scenario where both routes have the same administrative distance, and the router cannot determine a preferred route due to a configuration error or miscommunication, the question could state that neither route is installed due to a conflict in routing protocols.
Why candidates choose this
Students may think that having two routes to the same network causes a conflict or error, but routing protocols handle this by preferring the route with the lower AD. The router does not reject both routes.
Analysis generated from the official 200-301blueprint and verified against question context. The “when correct” sections are what AI assistants cite when candidates ask “what’s the difference between these options?”
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
A common exam trap is assuming that static routes always take precedence over dynamic routes because their default administrative distance is 1. In this question, the static route’s administrative distance is manually set to 200, which is higher than OSPF’s default 110. Many candidates mistakenly select the static route, overlooking that a higher administrative distance means lower preference. This trap tests your understanding that administrative distance values can be adjusted to create floating static routes that serve as backups rather than primary routes.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Administrative distance (AD) is a key concept in Cisco routing that determines the trustworthiness of a route source. Each routing protocol and route type has a default AD value, with lower values indicating more preferred routes. OSPF, a dynamic routing protocol, has a default AD of 110, while static routes have a default AD of 1 unless manually configured otherwise. In this scenario, the static route has been assigned an AD of 200, which is higher than OSPF’s AD, making it less preferred.
When a router learns multiple routes to the same destination prefix, it compares their administrative distances to decide which route to install in the routing table. The route with the lowest AD is selected as the primary path. Here, the OSPF route with AD 110 is preferred over the static route with AD 200. The static route acts as a floating static route, serving as a backup that only becomes active if the OSPF route fails or is withdrawn.
A common exam trap is assuming that static routes always override dynamic routes due to their default AD of 1. However, when a static route’s AD is manually increased above that of a dynamic route, it becomes a backup route. This design is intentional for redundancy. Practically, the router installs only the route with the lowest AD, and the higher-AD static route remains in the configuration but inactive unless the preferred route disappears.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Administrative distance determines the trustworthiness of routing information sources and influences route selection in Cisco routers.
OSPF uses a default administrative distance of 110, which is lower than a manually configured static route with an administrative distance of 200.
When multiple routes to the same prefix exist, the router installs the route with the lowest administrative distance into the routing table.
A static route with a higher administrative distance than a dynamic route acts as a floating static route, providing backup routing.
Cisco routers do not install multiple routes with different administrative distances to the same prefix simultaneously for load balancing.
Manually increasing the administrative distance of a static route allows network engineers to control route preference and failover behavior.
The routing table always reflects the most preferred route based on administrative distance, regardless of route type or source.
Understanding administrative distance is critical to designing reliable routing failover and avoiding unintended route selection.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Administrative distance determines the trustworthiness of routing information sources and influences route selection in Cisco routers.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A network engineer at a university connects two campus buildings via a fibre link. Both routers run OSPF, but no adjacency forms — even though both routers can ping each other. The engineer finds one router is in area 0 and the other in area 1. OSPF adjacency requires matching area numbers, hello/dead timers, and network type. IP reachability alone is not enough.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this 200-301 question in full detail.
Review administrative distance determines the trustworthiness of routing information sources and influences route selection in Cisco routers., then practise related 200-301 questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
IP Routing — This question tests IP Routing — Administrative distance determines the trustworthiness of routing information sources and influences route selection in Cisco routers..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The OSPF route — The OSPF route is installed because its default administrative distance of 110 is lower than the static route’s configured administrative distance of 200. In practical terms, the static route has been intentionally made a backup. It is present in the configuration, but it does not become active while the lower-distance OSPF route is healthy.
This is a classic floating-static design question. The important point is that route-source preference depends on administrative distance when the prefix length is the same.
What should I do if I get this 200-301 question wrong?
Review administrative distance determines the trustworthiness of routing information sources and influences route selection in Cisco routers., then practise related 200-301 questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Administrative distance determines the trustworthiness of routing information sources and influences route selection in Cisco routers.
About these practice questions
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These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. Exhibit: R1 has the static route 'ip route 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 192.0.2.2 200' and also learns a default route from OSPF. Which default route will be installed while the OSPF route is present?
hard
A.The static default route
✓ B.The OSPF default route
C.Both default routes with per-packet load balancing
D.Neither route because floating statics suppress dynamic defaults
Why B: The OSPF external default route wins because its administrative distance is 110, which is lower than the floating static route's distance of 200. The static route is intentionally given a higher AD so it is used only as a backup.
Variation 2. Exhibit: R1 has learned 10.50.0.0/24 through OSPF and also has a floating static route to the same prefix with administrative distance 130. Which route is installed while OSPF is healthy?
medium
A.The static route because static routes always win over dynamic routes
✓ B.The OSPF route because its administrative distance is lower than the floating static route
C.Both routes because the prefix length matches
D.Neither route until equal-cost load balancing is configured
Why B: A floating static route is meant to stay out of the table until the preferred route disappears. OSPF has administrative distance 110, which is lower than the static route AD 130, so the OSPF route is installed while the OSPF path is still present.
Variation 3. A router learns 172.16.40.0/24 from OSPF with AD 110 and metric 20. It also learns the same prefix from EIGRP with AD 90 and feasible distance 30720. Which route is installed?
medium
A.The OSPF route because metric 20 is lower than 30720
✓ B.The EIGRP route because its administrative distance is lower
C.Both routes because ECMP is automatic across different protocols
D.Neither route until one is redistributed into the other protocol
Why B: When the same prefix is learned from different routing protocols, the router compares administrative distance first. EIGRP internal routes have AD 90, which beats OSPF AD 110, so the EIGRP path goes into the table.
Variation 4. A router learns route 198.51.100.0/24 from OSPF with AD 110 and also has a static route to the same prefix configured with AD 150. Which route is installed?
hard
A.The static route, because static routes always win
✓ B.The OSPF route, because 110 is lower than 150
C.Both routes, because administrative distances are different
D.Neither route, because the static route is floating
Why B: The route with the lower administrative distance is installed. A static route configured with a higher AD becomes a floating static route and remains as a backup until the preferred route disappears.
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