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CCNA IP Routing Practice Question
Drag and drop the following steps into the correct order to configure HSRP on a Cisco IOS-XE router, including priority, preempt, virtual IP, and then verify the active/standby election and failover process.
⚠ Common exam trap
The exam trap is that candidates often confuse the order of priority and preempt, or try to configure HSRP parameters before the interface is ready. Remember: interface first, then virtual IP, then priority, then preempt. Verification and testing come last.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
1. Configure the interface with an IP address. 2. Set the HSRP virtual IP address. 3. Configure the HSRP priority. 4. Enable HSRP preempt. 5. Verify HSRP status. 6. Test failover.
First, the interface is configured. Then the virtual IP is set, followed by priority and preempt. Verification confirms the election, and failover testing demonstrates the preempt mechanism works.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
1. Configure the interface with an IP address. 2. Set the HSRP virtual IP address. 3. Configure the HSRP priority. 4. Enable HSRP preempt. 5. Verify HSRP status. 6. Test failover.
Why this is correct
The correct HSRP configuration sequence must begin by placing a primary IP address on the interface, because HSRP runs on that interface and the virtual IP address will be tied to it. Only after that should you define the HSRP virtual IP address under the same interface, since the standby process cannot start without knowing the virtual address it represents. Priority is then configured to influence which router becomes active, and preempt must follow priority so that a higher-priority router that comes online later can reclaim the active role. Finally, you verify HSRP operation and deliberately test failover to confirm that the redundancy mechanism behaves as designed.
- ✗
1. Configure the interface with an IP address. 2. Set the HSRP virtual IP address. 3. Enable HSRP preempt. 4. Configure the HSRP priority. 5. Verify HSRP status. 6. Test failover.
Why it's wrong here
This sequence is wrong because it enables HSRP preempt before configuring the HSRP priority, which defeats the purpose of preemption. In HSRP, preempt allows a router to become the active router if it has a higher priority than the current active router, but if priority is still at its default value (100) when preempt is enabled, the router may not actually take over when it should. The priority value must be set first, and then preempt enabled, so the router's eligibility to preempt is based on an intentional priority value rather than the default. Only after both priority and preempt are correctly ordered can you proceed to verification and failover testing.
- ✗
1. Configure the interface with an IP address. 2. Configure the HSRP priority. 3. Set the HSRP virtual IP address. 4. Enable HSRP preempt. 5. Verify HSRP status. 6. Test failover.
Why it's wrong here
This order is incorrect because the virtual IP must be set before priority and preempt. HSRP priority and preempt are configured under the HSRP configuration mode, which requires the virtual IP to be defined first.
- ✗
1. Configure the HSRP virtual IP address. 2. Configure the interface with an IP address. 3. Configure the HSRP priority. 4. Enable HSRP preempt. 5. Verify HSRP status. 6. Test failover.
Why it's wrong here
This order is incorrect because the interface must be configured with an IP address before HSRP can be enabled. HSRP is configured on the interface, so the interface must exist and have an IP address first.
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.
✓1. Configure the interface with an IP address. 2. Set the HSRP virtual IP address. 3. Configure the HSRP priority. 4. Enable HSRP preempt. 5. Verify HSRP status. 6. Test failover.Correct answer▾
Why this is correct
The correct HSRP configuration sequence must begin by placing a primary IP address on the interface, because HSRP runs on that interface and the virtual IP address will be tied to it. Only after that should you define the HSRP virtual IP address under the same interface, since the standby process cannot start without knowing the virtual address it represents. Priority is then configured to influence which router becomes active, and preempt must follow priority so that a higher-priority router that comes online later can reclaim the active role. Finally, you verify HSRP operation and deliberately test failover to confirm that the redundancy mechanism behaves as designed.
✗1. Configure the interface with an IP address. 2. Set the HSRP virtual IP address. 3. Enable HSRP preempt. 4. Configure the HSRP priority. 5. Verify HSRP status. 6. Test failover.Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The specific factual error is that preempt is enabled before priority is configured, which can cause unexpected election behavior.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates might think preempt is a standalone feature that can be enabled at any time, not realizing it depends on priority values.
✗1. Configure the interface with an IP address. 2. Configure the HSRP priority. 3. Set the HSRP virtual IP address. 4. Enable HSRP preempt. 5. Verify HSRP status. 6. Test failover.Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The specific factual error is that priority is configured before the virtual IP, which is not allowed in Cisco IOS configuration sequence.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates might assume that priority is a global setting or can be set independently of the virtual IP, but it must be configured within the HSRP instance.
✗1. Configure the HSRP virtual IP address. 2. Configure the interface with an IP address. 3. Configure the HSRP priority. 4. Enable HSRP preempt. 5. Verify HSRP status. 6. Test failover.Wrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The specific factual error is that the virtual IP is set before the interface is configured, which is impossible because HSRP configuration is interface-specific.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates might think the virtual IP is a global parameter, but it is actually configured per interface and requires the interface to be operational.
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?”
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Interpreting HSRP and VRRP Operational Status
Key term
Hot Standby Router Protocol
Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP) is a Cisco-proprietary protocol that provides first-hop redundancy by allowing a backup router to automatically take over if the primary router fails.
Key term
Failover
Failover is the automatic switching to a backup system when the primary system fails, ensuring continuous operation and minimal downtime.
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Courseiva writes every 200-301 question from scratch — 1,389 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 200-301 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Cisco certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the 200-301 exam.