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.

Technical deep dive

How to think about this question

Routing decisions in Cisco routers rely on the longest prefix match rule, which means the router selects the route with the most specific subnet mask that matches the destination IP address. In this scenario, R1 has three routes: an OSPF-learned route for 10.10.10.0/24, a static route for 10.10.10.128/25, and a default static route 0.0.0.0/0. The destination IP 10.10.10.200 falls within the 10.10.10.128/25 subnet, making the static route the most specific match. This specificity ensures the packet is forwarded via the static route's next-hop address 198.51.100.2. The router uses administrative distance and prefix length to select the best route. Although OSPF routes have a default administrative distance of 110 and static routes have 1, the longest prefix match takes precedence in forwarding decisions. The static route with a /25 mask is more specific than the OSPF /24 route, so it is preferred regardless of the routing protocol. The default route is only used if no other more specific routes match the destination IP. A common exam trap is misunderstanding overlapping routes and assuming that routing protocols cannot coexist with static routes for overlapping subnets. Cisco routers allow overlapping routes and always choose the most specific prefix. Practically, this behavior enables network engineers to override dynamic routes with static routes for certain subnets, providing granular control over traffic paths and redundancy strategies.

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