300-410 Layer 3 Technologies Practice Question
A network engineer is implementing policy-based routing (PBR) on a Cisco IOS router. The engineer wants to route traffic from the 10.1.1.0/24 subnet to a next-hop of 192.168.1.1, while all other traffic uses the default routing table. Which configuration correctly implements this?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse set ip next-hop with set ip default next-hop; the latter only applies when there is no explicit route in the routing table.
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
✓
route-map PBR permit 10 match ip address 10 set ip next-hop 192.168.1.1 ! interface GigabitEthernet0/0 ip policy route-map PBR ! access-list 10 permit 10.1.1.0 0.0.0.255
Policy-based routing (PBR) allows you to override the normal routing table based on criteria such as source IP address. The correct configuration uses a route map with a match statement for the source subnet and a set statement to define the next-hop. The route map is then applied to the interface with the ip policy route-map command. The set ip next-hop command ensures that matched traffic is forwarded to the specified next-hop, while other traffic uses the default routing table.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
route-map PBR permit 10 match ip address 10 set ip next-hop 192.168.1.1 ! interface GigabitEthernet0/0 ip policy route-map PBR ! access-list 10 permit 10.1.1.0 0.0.0.255
Why this is correct
This configuration creates a route map that matches traffic from the 10.1.1.0/24 subnet (via access list 10) and sets the next-hop to 192.168.1.1. The route map is applied to the interface with the ip policy route-map command. This correctly implements policy-based routing for the specified subnet, while other traffic will follow the normal routing table.
- ✗
route-map PBR permit 10 match ip address 10 set ip default next-hop 192.168.1.1 ! interface GigabitEthernet0/0 ip policy route-map PBR ! access-list 10 permit 10.1.1.0 0.0.0.255
Why it's wrong here
The set ip default next-hop command is used to specify a next-hop that is only used if there is no explicit route in the routing table for the destination. In this scenario, the requirement is to route traffic from the subnet to the next-hop regardless of the routing table, so set ip next-hop is correct. Using set ip default next-hop would only apply when there is no route, which is not the intended behavior.
- ✗
route-map PBR permit 10 match ip address 10 set ip next-hop 192.168.1.1 ! interface GigabitEthernet0/0 ip route-cache policy ! access-list 10 permit 10.1.1.0 0.0.0.255
Why it's wrong here
The ip route-cache policy command is used to enable fast switching for policy routing, but it is not the command to apply a route map to an interface. The correct command is ip policy route-map. Additionally, ip route-cache policy is often not needed on modern routers. This configuration would not apply the route map to the interface, so PBR would not take effect.
- ✗
route-map PBR permit 10 match ip address 10 set interface GigabitEthernet0/1 ! interface GigabitEthernet0/0 ip policy route-map PBR ! access-list 10 permit 10.1.1.0 0.0.0.255
Why it's wrong here
The set interface command is used to specify an output interface for the matched traffic. While this can be used in PBR, the requirement explicitly states that the next-hop should be 192.168.1.1. Using set interface would not specify the next-hop IP address, and it might not be the intended configuration. The correct command to set a next-hop IP is set ip next-hop.
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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.