350-501 MPLS and Segment Routing Practice Question
A service provider is designing a greenfield MPLS core and wants to minimize control-plane complexity while still supporting traffic engineering. They plan to use Segment Routing with MPLS. Which statement about Segment Routing in this context is accurate?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the misconception that Segment Routing requires a separate label distribution protocol like LDP or RSVP-TE, when in fact it uses IGP extensions (IS-IS or OSPF) to distribute labels, reducing protocol complexity.
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
✓
Segment Routing reduces the number of protocols required in the core.
Segment Routing (SR-MPLS) eliminates the need for a separate label distribution protocol like LDP or RSVP-TE. The MPLS labels are derived directly from the IGP (IS-IS or OSPF) extensions, reducing control-plane complexity while still enabling traffic engineering via SR-TE policies and flexible path computation.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Segment Routing only works with IPv6 data plane.
Why it's wrong here
Segment Routing can operate with both MPLS and IPv6 data planes; SR-MPLS uses MPLS encapsulation.
- ✗
Segment Routing uses RSVP-TE for label distribution.
Why it's wrong here
Segment Routing relies on IGP to distribute segment IDs, not RSVP-TE.
- ✓
Segment Routing reduces the number of protocols required in the core.
Why this is correct
SR eliminates LDP and RSVP-TE, relying only on an IGP with SR extensions, thus reducing protocol complexity.
- ✗
Segment Routing requires TI-LFA to be enabled for traffic engineering.
Why it's wrong here
TI-LFA is a fast-reroute mechanism that can be used with SR but is not a requirement for traffic engineering.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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