This 200-901 practice question tests your understanding of network fundamentals. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A network engineer is troubleshooting a connectivity issue between two hosts in different VLANs on the same switch. The hosts are in VLAN 10 and VLAN 20, respectively. The switch has an SVI for each VLAN and IP routing is enabled. Which command should be used to verify that the switch is forwarding traffic between the VLANs?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "which command"
Why it matters: Tests specific CLI syntax. Recall the exact command and its required context — near-synonyms and partial matches are common distractors.
show interfaces trunk
Why wrong: Shows trunking status, not routing.
show vlan
Why wrong: Shows VLAN membership, not routing table.
show ip route
Displays the routing table, confirming inter-VLAN routing.
show mac address-table
Why wrong: Shows MAC address table, not routing.
Answer choices
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
Option C is correct because 'show ip route' displays the switch's routing table, which contains the directly connected subnets for VLAN 10 and VLAN 20 (via their SVIs) and any learned routes. Since IP routing is enabled, the switch uses this table to make forwarding decisions between VLANs. Verifying that both VLAN subnets appear in the routing table confirms that the switch can route traffic between them.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
show interfaces trunk
Why it's wrong here
Shows trunking status, not routing.
show vlan
Why it's wrong here
Shows VLAN membership, not routing table.
show ip route
Why this is correct
Displays the routing table, confirming inter-VLAN routing.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "which command" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
show mac address-table
Why it's wrong here
Shows MAC address table, not routing.
Common exam traps
Cisco often tests the misconception that 'show vlan' or 'show interfaces trunk' can verify inter-VLAN routing, when in fact those commands only confirm Layer 2 connectivity and VLAN membership, not the Layer 3 routing table.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
Shows trunking status, not routing.
Detailed technical explanation
When IP routing is enabled on a multilayer switch, each SVI acts as a virtual routed interface with its own IP address and subnet. The switch builds a routing table using directly connected routes (the SVI subnets) and any dynamic or static routes. For inter-VLAN traffic, the switch performs a Layer 3 lookup in the routing table to determine the next-hop, then rewrites the MAC addresses and forwards the packet out the appropriate SVI. A common real-world scenario is verifying that a static route or a default gateway is correctly configured when hosts in different VLANs cannot communicate despite SVIs being up.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A help-desk technician troubleshoots why a newly connected PC cannot reach shared printers on the same floor. The cable is good, the switch port is active, but the PC is in VLAN 20 and the printers are in VLAN 10. The uplink trunk only allows VLAN 10. A trunk being up does not mean every VLAN crosses it.
What to study next
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FAQ
Network Fundamentals — This question tests Network Fundamentals — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: show ip route — Option C is correct because 'show ip route' displays the switch's routing table, which contains the directly connected subnets for VLAN 10 and VLAN 20 (via their SVIs) and any learned routes. Since IP routing is enabled, the switch uses this table to make forwarding decisions between VLANs. Verifying that both VLAN subnets appear in the routing table confirms that the switch can route traffic between them.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Yes — watch for: "which command". Tests specific CLI syntax. Recall the exact command and its required context — near-synonyms and partial matches are common distractors.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
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