300-410 Layer 3 Technologies Practice Question
An engineer configures a Cisco IOS router with two static routes to the 10.10.0.0/16 network: one via 192.168.1.1 with administrative distance 1, and another via 192.168.2.1 with administrative distance 200. The route via 192.168.1.1 is installed in the routing table. Later, the interface to 192.168.1.1 goes down. Which statement describes the router's behavior?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is assuming that a higher administrative distance route is never used unless there is a failure, but forgetting that it will be used after the primary route is withdrawn.
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 router immediately installs the route via 192.168.2.1 in the routing table.
The primary static route via 192.168.1.1 with administrative distance 1 is preferred. When its interface goes down, the route is removed. The floating static route via 192.168.2.1, with administrative distance 200, becomes the best available path and is installed. This provides redundancy without dynamic routing protocols.
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 removes both static routes and sends an ICMP redirect to the source.
Why it's wrong here
The router does not remove both static routes; it only removes the failed primary route. ICMP redirects are used to inform a host of a better next hop on the same subnet, not to remove static routes. The backup route remains configured and will be used, so no redirect is generated in this scenario.
- ✗
The router keeps the route via 192.168.1.1 in the routing table but marks it as unreachable.
Why it's wrong here
Cisco IOS does not keep an unusable static route in the routing table with an 'unreachable' flag. If the outgoing interface is down, the static route is removed entirely. The router does not maintain stale entries for failed next hops; it withdraws the route, which then allows a less preferred path to be considered.
- ✗
The router load-balances traffic between the two next hops because both are configured.
Why it's wrong here
Load balancing occurs only when multiple routes to the same destination have equal administrative distance and metric. Here, the administrative distances differ (1 and 200), so only the lower-distance route is active. The router never installs both routes simultaneously for load sharing when their distances differ; that would violate the best-path selection process.
- ✓
The router immediately installs the route via 192.168.2.1 in the routing table.
Why this is correct
When the interface for the primary static route fails, the route is removed from the routing table. The router then evaluates the floating static route, which has a higher administrative distance (200) but becomes the best available path. It is installed in the routing table, allowing traffic to use the backup path. This is the intended design of a floating static route for redundancy.
Quick reference
Routing Protocol Comparison
| Protocol | Metric | Max Hops | Algorithm | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RIP v2 | Hop count | 15 | Bellman-Ford | Distance vector |
| OSPF | Cost (bandwidth) | Unlimited | Dijkstra (SPF) | Link state |
| EIGRP | Composite metric | Unlimited | DUAL | Hybrid |
| IS-IS | Cost | Unlimited | Dijkstra | Link state |
| BGP | Policy / attributes | Unlimited | Path vector | Path vector |
RIP's 15-hop limit makes it unsuitable for large networks. OSPF and EIGRP dominate modern enterprise deployments.
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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.