NSE7 Advanced Networking and SD-WAN Practice Question
A FortiGate is configured with two SD-WAN members (port1 and port2). The administrator sets an SD-WAN rule with 'set load-balance-mode source-dst-ip' for all internal traffic. The source IP is 10.0.0.1 and destination IP is 172.16.0.1. Which factor determines the outgoing interface for this traffic?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse 'source-dst-ip' with 'source-ip' or 'destination-ip' modes, or incorrectly assume that SD-WAN load balancing always considers real-time link utilization, which is only true for 'spillover' or 'lowest-cost' strategies, not hash-based modes.
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 combination of source IP and destination IP hashed to select an interface
With 'set load-balance-mode source-dst-ip', the FortiGate performs a hash of both the source IP and destination IP to deterministically select an outgoing SD-WAN member. This ensures that all packets belonging to the same source-destination pair are consistently forwarded over the same interface, preserving flow symmetry without relying on per-packet metrics.
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 destination IP only
Why it's wrong here
Source-dst-ip mode uses both source and destination IPs.
- ✓
The combination of source IP and destination IP hashed to select an interface
Why this is correct
source-dst-ip mode uses a hash of both source and destination IPs to consistently select the same interface for the same flow.
- ✗
The source IP only
Why it's wrong here
Source-dst-ip mode uses both source and destination IPs.
- ✗
The interface with the lowest current utilization
Why it's wrong here
That describes volume or session-based load balancing, not source-dst-ip.
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