Question 1hardmultiple choice
Full question →hardmultiple choiceObjective-mapped
A router has both an OSPF route and a static route to the same destination. The static route has an administrative distance of 200. What is the expected behavior while the OSPF route remains available?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Good practice is not just finding the correct option. The wrong answers often show the exact trap the exam wants you to fall into.
A
Best answer
The static route remains a backup and is used only if the OSPF route is lost.
This is correct because the static route’s administrative distance is higher than OSPF’s, so it floats in reserve.
B
Distractor review
The static route overrides OSPF immediately because static routes always win.
This is wrong because route preference depends on administrative distance, not simply on whether a route is static.
C
Distractor review
Both routes must be installed simultaneously because they point to the same destination.
This is wrong because routes from different sources are not automatically installed together unless specific conditions support that behavior.
D
Distractor review
The router removes the OSPF route because the static route has a manually configured distance.
This is wrong because the manually configured distance is higher, so OSPF remains preferred.
Common exam trap
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
A frequent exam trap is believing that static routes always override dynamic routes simply because they are static. Many candidates assume static routes have inherent priority, but the router actually compares administrative distances to decide which route to use. If the static route’s administrative distance is higher, it will not be preferred and remains inactive unless the dynamic route fails. Misunderstanding this can lead to incorrect answers about route selection and failover behavior, especially when static routes are configured with non-default administrative distances to act as floating backups.
Technical deep dive
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 has a default AD of 110, while static routes default to 1 but can be manually configured to any value, including higher values like 200 to create floating static routes. When multiple routes to the same destination exist, the router installs the route with the lowest AD into the routing table. In this scenario, the static route has an AD of 200, which is higher than OSPF's 110. This means the router prefers the OSPF route and installs it in the routing table as long as it is available. The static route acts as a floating backup route, remaining in the configuration but not used unless the OSPF route fails or is withdrawn. This behavior ensures seamless failover without manual intervention. A common exam trap is assuming that static routes always override dynamic routes regardless of AD. In reality, the router compares AD values and prefers the route with the lowest AD. Configuring a static route with a higher AD intentionally creates a backup route that only activates when the primary dynamic route is lost. This design is practical for network redundancy and is a frequent topic in CCNA exams to test understanding of routing preferences and administrative distance.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Administrative distance determines the trustworthiness of routing sources, with lower values preferred over higher ones.
- OSPF routes have a default administrative distance of 110, which is lower than a static route configured with an AD of 200.
- A static route with a higher administrative distance than a dynamic route acts as a floating backup route.
- The router installs the route with the lowest administrative distance into the routing table and uses it for forwarding.
- Floating static routes remain in the configuration but are inactive unless the preferred dynamic route becomes unavailable.
- Manually increasing the administrative distance of a static route is a common technique to create backup routes.
- Routing preference is based on administrative distance, not on whether a route is static or dynamic by default.
- The router does not remove a dynamic route if a static route with a higher administrative distance exists.
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.
Related practice questions
Related 200-301 practice-question pages
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
CCNA subnetting practice questions
Practise IPv4 subnetting, CIDR, masks, host ranges and subnet selection.
CCNA OSPF practice questions
Practise OSPF neighbours, router IDs, metrics, areas and routing-table interpretation.
CCNA VLAN practice questions
Practise VLANs, access ports, trunks, allowed VLANs and switching scenarios.
CCNA STP practice questions
Practise spanning tree, root bridge election, port roles and STP troubleshooting.
CCNA EtherChannel practice questions
Practise LACP, PAgP, port-channel behaviour and bundle requirements.
CCNA ACL practice questions
Practise standard and extended ACLs, permit/deny logic and traffic filtering.
CCNA NAT practice questions
Practise static NAT, dynamic NAT, PAT and inside/outside address translation.
CCNA DHCP practice questions
Practise DHCP scopes, relay, leases and troubleshooting.
CCNA show ip route practice questions
Practise routing-table output, longest-prefix match, AD and route selection.
CCNA show interfaces trunk practice questions
Practise trunk verification and VLAN forwarding across switches.
CCNA wireless security practice questions
Practise WLAN security, authentication and wireless architecture concepts.
CCNA IPv6 practice questions
Practise IPv6 addressing, routes, neighbour discovery and common IPv6 exam traps.
More questions from this exam
Keep practising from the same exam bank, or move into a focused topic page if this question exposed a weak area.
Question 1
A router learns the same prefix from both OSPF and EIGRP. Which route is installed by default?
Question 2
A router shows this output: R1#show ip ospf neighbor Neighbor ID Pri State Dead Time Address Interface 10.1.1.2 1 FULL/DR 00:00:34 192.168.12.2 GigabitEthernet0/0 10.1.1.3 1 2WAY/DROTHER 00:00:39 192.168.12.3 GigabitEthernet0/0 Which statement is correct?
Question 3
What is the OSPF metric called?
Question 4
A non-root switch has two uplinks toward the root bridge. One path has a lower total STP cost than the other. What role will the lower-cost uplink have?
Question 5
A router interface applies this ACL inbound: 10 deny tcp any any eq 80 20 permit ip any any A user reports that web browsing to a server by IP address fails, but ping works. Which statement best explains the behavior?
Question 6
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?
FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this 200-301 question test?
Administrative distance determines the trustworthiness of routing sources, with lower values preferred over higher ones.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The static route remains a backup and is used only if the OSPF route is lost. — The static route with an administrative distance of 200 behaves as a floating backup. In plain language, the router keeps it in reserve and prefers the OSPF route while OSPF is healthy, because OSPF’s default administrative distance of 110 is lower and therefore more trusted. The static route does not disappear from the configuration, but it stays out of the active routing table unless the better route is lost. This is a very common CCNA concept because it shows how routing preference works between different route sources. The higher-distance static route is not useless; it is intentionally configured so that it becomes active only during a failure. That design provides backup routing without interfering with the normal dynamic path. The correct answer is the one describing the static route as a standby or floating route rather than as the preferred path.
What should I do if I get this 200-301 question wrong?
Then try more questions from the same exam bank and focus on understanding why the wrong options are tempting.
Discussion
Loading comments…
Sign in to join the discussion.