This 300-410 practice question tests your understanding of nat and pat. 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.
Router R1 is configured with ip nat inside source list 100 interface GigabitEthernet0/1 overload. Internal hosts can access the internet, but traffic to a specific external server at 203.0.113.200 is being dropped. Router R1 shows: show ip nat statistics: Total active translations: 1000. Debug ip nat: NAT: s=192.168.1.1->203.0.113.1, d=203.0.113.200 [0]. The external server shows no received packets. What is the root cause?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The router does not have a route to 203.0.113.200; configure a default route or specific route.
The debug shows successful NAT translation, but the packet is still dropped. This could be due to a route issue: the router may not have a route to 203.0.113.200, or the next-hop is unreachable. The correct fix is to check the routing table for the destination.
Key principle: NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
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 does not have a route to 203.0.113.200; configure a default route or specific route.
The NAT translation is failing due to port exhaustion.
Why it's wrong here
The debug shows a successful translation, and statistics show only 1000 active translations.
✗
The external server is blocking the source IP.
Why it's wrong here
The server shows no received packets, indicating the packet never arrived.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
The debug shows a successful translation, and statistics show only 1000 active translations.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
→Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
→Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
→Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Key takeaway
NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A small business has 20 workstations on the 192.168.1.0/24 network and one public IP from its ISP. The router uses PAT (NAT overload) so all 20 devices share one public address using different source ports. NAT questions test whether you understand the four address terms and which direction each translation applies.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this 300-410 question in full detail.
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related 300-410 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
NAT and PAT — This question tests NAT and PAT — Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The router does not have a route to 203.0.113.200; configure a default route or specific route. — The debug shows successful NAT translation, but the packet is still dropped. This could be due to a route issue: the router may not have a route to 203.0.113.200, or the next-hop is unreachable. The correct fix is to check the routing table for the destination.
What should I do if I get this 300-410 question wrong?
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related 300-410 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
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Question Discussion
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