300-410 Layer 3 Technologies Practice Question
A network engineer is implementing policy-based routing (PBR) on a Cisco router. The goal is to forward traffic from a specific subnet to a next-hop IP address that is not directly connected, but reachable via a recursive lookup. The engineer configures a route-map with 'set ip next-hop recursive <IP>'. However, traffic is not being forwarded as expected. Which of the following is the most likely reason?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that 'set ip next-hop recursive' can resolve any IP address, even if it is not in the routing table, when in fact it requires a RIB entry.
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 next-hop IP address is not resolvable via a route in the RIB.
For 'set ip next-hop recursive' to work, the specified next-hop address must be resolvable via a route in the routing table. If no such route exists, the recursive lookup fails, and the PBR policy is skipped. The router then uses the normal routing table. Therefore, the absence of a route to the next-hop is the most likely cause of the failure.
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 'set ip next-hop recursive' command is not supported in PBR.
Why it's wrong here
Cisco IOS supports 'set ip next-hop recursive' in route-maps for PBR. It allows the router to recursively look up the next-hop address. Therefore, this option is factually incorrect. The command is valid and commonly used when the next-hop is not directly connected but reachable via another route. So lack of support is not the reason for failure.
- ✗
The next-hop IP address is reachable via the default route only.
Why it's wrong here
If the next-hop is reachable via the default route, the recursive lookup will succeed because the default route is in the RIB. However, using a default route for recursive next-hop can lead to suboptimal routing or loops, but it would not cause PBR to fail entirely. In fact, it would work, though it might not be desired. Therefore, this is not the most likely reason for traffic not being forwarded as expected.
- ✗
The route-map is not applied to the correct interface.
Why it's wrong here
If the route-map were not applied to the correct interface, PBR would not take effect at all, and all traffic would follow the normal routing table. However, the question implies that PBR is configured and the engineer expects it to work, but it is not. The specific use of 'recursive' suggests the issue is with the recursive lookup. While incorrect application is possible, it is not the most likely reason given the scenario's focus on recursive next-hop.
- ✓
The next-hop IP address is not resolvable via a route in the RIB.
Why this is correct
The 'set ip next-hop recursive' command requires that the specified next-hop IP address be resolvable through a route in the routing table (RIB). If there is no route to that next-hop, the recursive lookup fails, and the PBR policy is not applied. The router will then fall back to normal destination-based routing. Thus, the most likely reason is that the next-hop address is not present in the RIB.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Cisco exam blueprint
This 300-410 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 300-410 exam.