350-501 Networking Practice Question
An engineer is troubleshooting BGP convergence. The router has multiple paths for a prefix, but it selects a path with a lower local preference over a path with a higher local preference. The higher local preference path is from an EBGP peer. What could cause this?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the BGP path selection order by presenting a scenario where a lower-priority attribute (like local preference) is overridden by a higher-priority attribute (like weight), and candidates mistakenly assume that local preference is always the deciding factor because it is the first global attribute in the algorithm.
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
✓
The path with lower local preference has a higher weight.
B is correct because BGP selects the path with the highest weight first, before considering local preference. Weight is a Cisco-proprietary attribute that is local to the router and takes precedence over all other BGP attributes. Therefore, a path with a lower local preference but a higher weight will be preferred over a path with a higher local preference but a lower weight, even if the higher local preference path comes from an EBGP peer.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The router is configured with 'bgp deterministic-med'.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. This affects MED comparison order.
- ✓
The path with lower local preference has a higher weight.
Why this is correct
Correct. Weight is checked before local preference.
- ✗
The path with lower local preference has a higher router ID.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. Router ID is compared later if all else equal.
- ✗
The path with lower local preference has a lower MED.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. MED is compared after local preference.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 350-501 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Cisco certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the 350-501 exam.