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: oSPF advertises routes with an administrative distance (AD) of 110, which is lower than the default floating static route AD of 150, making OSPF routes preferred in routing decisions.. 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 | include 0.0.0.0
O*E2 0.0.0.0/0 [110/1] via 10.1.12.2
R1(config)# ip route 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 192.0.2.1 150
Exhibit: A router has both an OSPF-learned default route and a floating static default route. Which route is currently active?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The OSPF default route, because AD 110 beats the floating static AD 150
A floating static route only takes over when its administrative distance is set higher than the preferred route and the preferred route disappears. The routing table shows the OSPF default because AD 110 is lower than the floating static AD 150.
Key principle: OSPF advertises routes with an administrative distance (AD) of 110, which is lower than the default floating static route AD of 150, making OSPF routes preferred in routing decisions.
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, because static routes always override dynamic routes
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 default route, because AD 110 beats the floating static AD 150Correct answer▾
Why this is correct
That is exactly why the OSPF default is active.
✗The static route, because static routes always override dynamic routesWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Static routes do not always override dynamic routes; the route with the lowest administrative distance is preferred. Here, the OSPF route has AD 110, which is lower than the floating static route's AD 150, so the OSPF route is active.
Why candidates choose this
Students often remember that static routes are generally preferred over dynamic routes, but they forget that a floating static route is configured with a higher AD to serve as a backup, so it is not active when the dynamic route is available.
✗Both routes load-balance automaticallyWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Load balancing only occurs when multiple routes have the same administrative distance and metric. Here, the OSPF route (AD 110) and the floating static route (AD 150) have different administrative distances, so only the best route is installed in the routing table.
Why candidates choose this
Students may think that multiple default routes automatically load-balance traffic, but they overlook the importance of equal administrative distance and metric for load balancing to occur.
✗Neither route, because a default route cannot be learned by OSPFWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
OSPF can learn a default route through the 'default-information originate' command or by receiving a Type 5 LSA with a default route. This is a common practice to propagate a default route throughout an OSPF domain.
Why candidates choose this
Some students confuse OSPF with protocols like EIGRP, which require specific configuration to advertise a default route, or they mistakenly believe OSPF cannot carry default routes because it is a link-state protocol.
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 frequent exam trap is believing that static routes always override dynamic routes simply because they are manually configured. This misconception leads to selecting the static route as active regardless of administrative distance. In reality, Cisco routers use administrative distance to determine route preference, and a floating static route is deliberately configured with a higher AD to act as a backup. The router prefers the OSPF route with AD 110 over the floating static route with AD 150, so the static route is inactive unless the OSPF route fails. Misunderstanding this can cause incorrect answers about route selection in routing tables.
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 is assigned a default AD value, with lower values indicating more preferred routes. OSPF, a widely used Interior Gateway Protocol (IGP), has an AD of 110, which is more trusted than a floating static route typically configured with an AD of 150. This mechanism allows routers to prefer dynamic routing information over static routes unless the static route is explicitly made more preferred.
When a router has both an OSPF-learned default route and a floating static default route, it compares their AD values to decide which route to install in the routing table. Since OSPF’s AD (110) is lower than the floating static route’s AD (150), the router installs the OSPF default route as the active route. The floating static route acts as a backup and only becomes active if the OSPF route disappears, such as when the OSPF neighbor goes down or the route is withdrawn.
A common exam trap is assuming static routes always override dynamic routes because they are manually configured. However, this is only true if the static route has a lower AD than the dynamic route. Floating static routes intentionally have a higher AD to serve as backups, not primary routes. Understanding this distinction is crucial for correctly interpreting routing behavior and answering exam questions about route selection and administrative distance.
KKey Concepts to Remember
OSPF advertises routes with an administrative distance (AD) of 110, which is lower than the default floating static route AD of 150, making OSPF routes preferred in routing decisions.
A floating static route is configured with a higher AD than the primary route to act as a backup, only becoming active when the preferred route is unavailable.
The routing table always installs the route with the lowest administrative distance to ensure the most reliable and trusted path is used for packet forwarding.
OSPF can advertise a default route (0.0.0.0/0) into the network using the 'default-information originate' command, allowing routers to learn default routes dynamically.
Static routes have a default AD of 1, but when configured as floating static routes, their AD is increased above dynamic protocols to prevent them from overriding learned routes.
Routing protocols like OSPF use metrics and administrative distance to determine the best path, but administrative distance is the primary factor when multiple routes to the same destination exist.
A route learned via OSPF will override a floating static route because OSPF’s AD of 110 is lower than the floating static route’s AD of 150, ensuring dynamic routing preference.
The routing table does not load-balance between routes with different administrative distances; only equal-cost routes with the same AD are candidates for load balancing.
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
OSPF advertises routes with an administrative distance (AD) of 110, which is lower than the default floating static route AD of 150, making OSPF routes preferred in routing decisions.
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 oSPF advertises routes with an administrative distance (AD) of 110, which is lower than the default floating static route AD of 150, making OSPF routes preferred in routing decisions., then practise related 200-301 questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
IP Routing — This question tests IP Routing — OSPF advertises routes with an administrative distance (AD) of 110, which is lower than the default floating static route AD of 150, making OSPF routes preferred in routing decisions..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The OSPF default route, because AD 110 beats the floating static AD 150 — A floating static route only takes over when its administrative distance is set higher than the preferred route and the preferred route disappears. The routing table shows the OSPF default because AD 110 is lower than the floating static AD 150.
What should I do if I get this 200-301 question wrong?
Review oSPF advertises routes with an administrative distance (AD) of 110, which is lower than the default floating static route AD of 150, making OSPF routes preferred in routing decisions., then practise related 200-301 questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
What is the key concept behind this question?
OSPF advertises routes with an administrative distance (AD) of 110, which is lower than the default floating static route AD of 150, making OSPF routes preferred in routing decisions.
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