The correct answer is that the static route will be installed because it has the lowest administrative distance of 1, beating eBGP at 20, OSPF at 110, and RIP at 120. This is the core of administrative distance route selection: when a router learns the same prefix from multiple routing sources, it compares the administrative distance first, and the route with the lowest AD wins, regardless of metric. On the CCNA 200-301 v2 exam, this concept is frequently tested in scenario-based questions where you must identify which route enters the routing table, often with a trap that tries to trick you into comparing metrics across different protocols. Remember, metrics are only compared within the same routing protocol; AD is the tiebreaker between protocols. A common memory tip is to think of administrative distance as a "trustworthiness score" where lower is better—your directly connected routes (AD 0) are most trusted, while static routes (AD 1) are next, and dynamic protocols like OSPF (110) are far less trusted than eBGP (20).
CCNA IP Routing Practice Question
This 200-301 practice question tests your understanding of ip routing. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. A key principle to apply: the router selects the route with the lowest administrative distance to install in the routing table when multiple sources advertise the same prefix.. 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.
Exhibit
R1# show ip route 192.168.50.0
Routing entry for 192.168.50.0/24
Known via "static", distance 1, metric 0
Routing Descriptor Blocks:
* 10.1.1.2
Candidate sources seen on R1:
- static via 10.1.1.2
- eBGP via 10.2.2.2 metric 0
- OSPF via 10.3.3.3 metric 20
- RIP via 10.4.4.4 metric 2
Exhibit: R1 learns 192.168.50.0/24 from multiple sources. Which two statements are correct about the route that will be installed in the routing table?
R1# show ip route 192.168.50.0
Routing entry for 192.168.50.0/24
Known via "static", distance 1, metric 0
Routing Descriptor Blocks:
* 10.1.1.2
Candidate sources seen on R1:
- static via 10.1.1.2
- eBGP via 10.2.2.2 metric 0
- OSPF via 10.3.3.3 metric 20
- RIP via 10.4.4.4 metric 2
A
The static route is preferred because its administrative distance is lowest
Administrative distance is compared before metric across different routing sources.
B
The OSPF route is preferred because cost 20 is lower than RIP metric 2
Why wrong: Metrics from different routing protocols are not compared directly.
C
The eBGP route would win over the static route because BGP is more dynamic
Why wrong: Dynamic versus static is not the decision rule here.
D
If the static route were removed, the eBGP route would beat OSPF and RIP
Among the remaining choices, eBGP AD 20 is lower than OSPF 110 and RIP 120.
E
RIP would be chosen before OSPF because hop count is simpler
Why wrong: Simplicity is irrelevant; AD decides first.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The static route is preferred because its administrative distance is lowest
The router chooses the route with the lowest administrative distance first. If administrative distance ties, it then compares the metric within that routing source. In this case the static route wins because AD 1 beats eBGP 20, OSPF 110, and RIP 120.
Key principle: The router selects the route with the lowest administrative distance to install in the routing table when multiple sources advertise the same prefix.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✓
The static route is preferred because its administrative distance is lowest
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 static route is preferred because its administrative distance is lowestCorrect answer▾
Why this is correct
Administrative distance is compared before metric across different routing sources.
✗The OSPF route is preferred because cost 20 is lower than RIP metric 2Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Metrics from different routing protocols are not comparable; OSPF uses cost (based on bandwidth) while RIP uses hop count. The decision between routes from different protocols is made by administrative distance, not metric. OSPF has AD 110, RIP has AD 120, so OSPF would be preferred if both were present, but not because of cost vs. hop count.
Why candidates choose this
Students often mistakenly compare metrics directly across protocols, especially when one metric value (20) is numerically lower than another (2). They may overlook that metrics are only compared within the same protocol.
✗The eBGP route would win over the static route because BGP is more dynamicWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The decision between a static route and a dynamic route is based on administrative distance, not on whether the protocol is dynamic or static. Static routes have AD 1, which is lower than eBGP's AD 20, so the static route is preferred regardless of BGP being dynamic.
Why candidates choose this
Test-takers may think that dynamic protocols are always preferred over static routes because they adapt to network changes, but the routing table uses AD to determine the best path, and static routes have a very low AD.
✗RIP would be chosen before OSPF because hop count is simplerWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The routing table decision is based on administrative distance first, not on simplicity or metric type. RIP uses hop count, but OSPF has a lower AD (110 vs. 120), so OSPF would be preferred over RIP regardless of metric simplicity.
Why candidates choose this
Students might think that a simpler metric like hop count is easier to understand and therefore might be preferred, but the routing protocol decision process is standardized and does not consider simplicity.
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 the routing protocol with the lowest metric always wins, regardless of administrative distance. For example, candidates might incorrectly believe that OSPF with a cost of 20 beats eBGP with an AD of 20 or that RIP’s hop count of 2 beats OSPF’s cost of 20. This mistake arises from confusing metrics with administrative distance. Metrics are only compared within the same routing protocol, while administrative distance is the primary factor when routes come from different sources. Ignoring this can lead to selecting incorrect answers about route preference.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Administrative distance (AD) is a fundamental concept in Cisco routing that determines the trustworthiness of a route source. Each routing protocol and route type is assigned a default AD value, with lower values indicating more reliable sources. For example, static routes have an AD of 1, eBGP routes have 20, OSPF routes have 110, and RIP routes have 120. When a router learns multiple routes to the same destination network, it compares their AD values first to decide which route to install in the routing table.
The decision process for route selection begins by comparing the administrative distances of all candidate routes to the same prefix. The route with the lowest AD is preferred and installed in the routing table. Only if multiple routes share the same AD does the router compare their metrics, such as OSPF cost or RIP hop count, to select the best path. This hierarchical decision ensures that the router always trusts the most reliable routing source before considering path efficiency.
A common exam trap is to confuse metric comparison across different routing protocols. Metrics like OSPF cost and RIP hop count are only comparable within the same routing protocol. Candidates often mistakenly believe that a lower OSPF cost automatically beats a higher RIP metric or that dynamic routing protocols always override static routes. In practice, the static route with AD 1 always takes precedence over dynamic routes with higher AD values, unless it is removed or unavailable. Understanding this behavior is crucial for both exam success and real-world network troubleshooting.
KKey Concepts to Remember
The router selects the route with the lowest administrative distance to install in the routing table when multiple sources advertise the same prefix.
Administrative distance is a trustworthiness value assigned to routing sources, with static routes having the lowest default AD of 1.
If multiple routes have the same administrative distance, the router compares their metrics to choose the best path within that routing protocol.
Metrics such as OSPF cost or RIP hop count are only comparable within the same routing protocol and are not cross-compared between different protocols.
eBGP routes have a default administrative distance of 20, which is lower than OSPF's 110 and RIP's 120, making eBGP preferred over these if static routes are absent.
Static routes override dynamic routing protocol routes due to their lower administrative distance, regardless of the dynamic protocol's metric values.
The routing table only installs one best route per destination prefix, determined first by administrative distance, then by metric if needed.
Removing a static route causes the router to select the next best route based on the lowest administrative distance among dynamic protocols.
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
The router selects the route with the lowest administrative distance to install in the routing table when multiple sources advertise the same prefix.
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 the router selects the route with the lowest administrative distance to install in the routing table when multiple sources advertise the same prefix., then practise related 200-301 questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
IP Routing — This question tests IP Routing — The router selects the route with the lowest administrative distance to install in the routing table when multiple sources advertise the same prefix..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The static route is preferred because its administrative distance is lowest — The router chooses the route with the lowest administrative distance first. If administrative distance ties, it then compares the metric within that routing source. In this case the static route wins because AD 1 beats eBGP 20, OSPF 110, and RIP 120.
What should I do if I get this 200-301 question wrong?
Review the router selects the route with the lowest administrative distance to install in the routing table when multiple sources advertise the same prefix., then practise related 200-301 questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
What is the key concept behind this question?
The router selects the route with the lowest administrative distance to install in the routing table when multiple sources advertise the same prefix.
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. Why is R1 not installing the floating static default route into the routing table?
hard
✓ A.Because the OSPF default route has a lower administrative distance than the floating static route.
B.Because static default routes can never be used when OSPF is enabled.
C.Because the static default route must use a /24 mask instead of 0.0.0.0.
D.Because the next hop of a floating route must be a loopback address.
Why A: The floating static default route is not installed because the primary default route is already present and has a lower administrative distance. In practical terms, a floating static route is meant to sit in reserve and appear only when the preferred route is unavailable. Since the OSPF default route is active and has a better administrative distance, the backup route is not used yet.
This is a classic route-preference question. The key idea is not just that a static route exists, but that a higher-distance static route is intentionally designed to lose until the primary path disappears.
Last reviewed: May 17, 2026
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