Question 1mediummatching
Full question →Match each routing concept to its most accurate meaning.
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mediummatchingObjective-mapped
Match each routing concept to its most accurate meaning.
Common exam trap
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
A common exam trap is confusing administrative distance with metric. Candidates often think metric compares routes across different routing protocols, but metric only compares paths within the same protocol. Administrative distance, not metric, compares trustworthiness between different routing sources. Another trap is misunderstanding prefix length: some may assume the default route is preferred over more specific routes, but routers always prefer the longest prefix match first. Misapplying these concepts can lead to incorrect answers about route selection in Cisco routing tables.
Technical deep dive
How to think about this question
Administrative distance (AD) is a fundamental routing concept used by Cisco routers to determine the trustworthiness of routing information received from different routing protocols or sources. Each routing protocol has a default AD value, with lower values indicating more trusted sources. For example, directly connected routes have an AD of 0, static routes default to 1, EIGRP has 90, OSPF 110, and RIP 120. When multiple routing protocols provide routes to the same destination, the router uses AD to select which route to install in the routing table. The metric is a value calculated within a single routing protocol to compare multiple candidate paths to the same destination network. Metrics vary by protocol: OSPF uses cost based on bandwidth, EIGRP uses a composite metric including bandwidth and delay, and RIP uses hop count. The route with the lowest metric is preferred within that protocol. After the best route per protocol is determined, administrative distance is used to compare routes from different protocols. Prefix length defines the specificity of a route by indicating how many bits of the network address are fixed in the subnet mask. Longer prefix lengths (more bits fixed) mean more specific routes. When multiple routes to the same destination exist, the router prefers the route with the longest prefix match. The default route (0.0.0.0/0) has the shortest prefix length and is used only when no more specific route matches the destination IP address. This layered decision process—prefix length, metric, then administrative distance—ensures efficient and predictable routing behavior in Cisco networks.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Administrative distance compares routing sources and selects the most trustworthy route when multiple protocols provide routes to the same destination.
- Metric compares candidate paths within a single routing protocol and selects the best path based on protocol-specific criteria like bandwidth or hop count.
- Prefix length determines route specificity by indicating how many bits of the network address are fixed, with longer prefixes preferred.
- The default route acts as a fallback route and is used only when no more specific route matches the destination address.
- Cisco routers first select routes based on the longest prefix match before considering metric or administrative distance.
- Administrative distance values are fixed per routing protocol and cannot be changed by the metric calculation within the protocol.
- Routing decisions follow a hierarchy: longest prefix match, then lowest metric within the protocol, then lowest administrative distance across protocols.
- A route with a longer prefix length but higher administrative distance can be preferred over a less specific route with a lower administrative distance.
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.
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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 compares routing sources and selects the most trustworthy route when multiple protocols provide routes to the same destination.
What exam trap should I watch out for?
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword: A common exam trap is confusing administrative distance with metric. Candidates often think metric compares routes across different routing protocols, but metric only compares paths within the same protocol. Administrative distance, not metric, compares trustworthiness between different routing sources. Another trap is misunderstanding prefix length: some may assume the default route is preferred over more specific routes, but routers always prefer the longest prefix match first. Misapplying these concepts can lead to incorrect answers about route selection in Cisco routing tables.
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.
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