hardMultiple Choice
200-901 Practice Question: A network administrator is troubleshooting BGP…
A network administrator is troubleshooting BGP path selection for a route received from two different ISPs. The routes have the same local preference and AS-path length, but one route has a shorter MED value. Which route will be preferred?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the order of BGP path selection steps, and the trap here is that candidates may confuse MED with local preference or AS-path length, or incorrectly think that prefix length or bandwidth plays a role in BGP best-path selection.
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 route with the lower MED
In BGP path selection, when routes have the same local preference and AS-path length, the next tiebreaker is the Multi-Exit Discriminator (MED) value. A lower MED value is preferred because it indicates a more desirable entry point into the neighboring AS. Therefore, the route with the shorter MED will be selected.
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 route with the most specific prefix length
Why it's wrong here
Prefix length is compared only after MED, so a more specific prefix cannot win here; the shorter MED is evaluated first and takes precedence. It is tempting because longest-prefix match governs routing-table lookups, and it would be correct if the routes differed in prefix length rather than MED.
- ✗
The route from the ISP with the higher bandwidth
Why it's wrong here
BGP selects on MED, not ISP bandwidth; bandwidth is not a BGP path attribute and never enters the decision process. It is tempting because higher-capacity links are often preferred operationally, and it would be correct if the design used local preference or weight to steer traffic toward the faster ISP.
- ✓
The route with the lower MED
Why this is correct
Multi-Exit Discriminator is evaluated after local preference and AS-path length in BGP best-path selection, and a lower MED is preferred. Since both routes tie on the earlier attributes, the shorter MED wins, satisfying the stem's stated tie-breaking condition.
- ✗
The route with the higher local preference
Why it's wrong here
Local preference is compared before MED in BGP path selection, but the stem states both routes already share the same local preference, so this attribute cannot break the tie. Higher local preference is only decisive when values differ, which is not the case here.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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