350-501 MPLS and Segment Routing Practice Question
A service provider is troubleshooting an MPLS L3VPN issue where a CE router is receiving the VPN route from the PE but cannot ping the remote CE's loopback. The PE shows that the VPN label is assigned but cannot route the packets. Which command would help determine if the remote PE is correctly resolving the BGP next-hop via IGP?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between VRF-specific commands and global routing table commands; the trap here is that candidates assume 'show ip route vrf CUST' will show the next-hop reachability, but it only shows the VPN route itself, not the underlying IGP route required for recursive forwarding.
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
✓
show ip route bgp
'show ip route bgp', is correct because the issue is that the remote PE cannot route packets to the BGP next-hop of the VPN route. The CE receives the route, but the PE cannot forward packets, indicating a missing or incorrect IGP route to the next-hop address. This command displays BGP routes in the global routing table, allowing you to verify if the next-hop is reachable via IGP (e.g., OSPF or IS-IS) and if the recursive routing is successful.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
show ip route bgp
Why this is correct
Shows the BGP route and its next-hop reachability (via IGP).
- ✗
show mpls ldp neighbor
Why it's wrong here
Shows LDP session status, not the BGP next-hop.
- ✗
show ip route vrf CUST
Why it's wrong here
Shows VRF routes but not the underlying IGP path to the BGP next-hop.
- ✗
show mpls forwarding-table vrf CUST
Why it's wrong here
Shows label forwarding, not IGP reachability.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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