350-501 Services Practice Question
A service provider is configuring VRF-lite between two CE routers connected to the same PE. The CE routers are in different VRFs. Which command allows the PE router to forward traffic between the VRFs?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between VRF-lite static inter-VRF routes and MPLS L3VPN route-target commands, trapping candidates who confuse the simple static route approach with the BGP-based route-target import/export mechanism.
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
✓
ip route vrf RED 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 vrf BLUE
The command `ip route vrf RED 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 vrf BLUE` creates a static inter-VRF route on the PE router, allowing traffic from VRF RED to be forwarded to VRF BLUE without requiring MPLS or BGP. This is the standard method for VRF-lite inter-VRF communication on the same PE, using a static route that points to the next-hop VRF instead of an IP address.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
vrf forward RED
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. 'vrf forward' is not a valid Cisco IOS command.
- ✗
route-target export RED:100 import BLUE:100
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. Route-target is used for MPLS VPN route distribution, not for local inter-VRF routing.
- ✗
ip route vrf RED 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 10.1.1.1 global
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. The 'global' keyword points to the global routing table, not another VRF.
- ✓
ip route vrf RED 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 vrf BLUE
Why this is correct
Correct. This command uses the 'vrf' keyword to route between VRFs.
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