NSE7 Advanced Networking and SD-WAN Practice Question
An administrator has configured BGP on a FortiGate with two upstream ISPs. They notice that traffic to a specific prefix is not load-balanced as expected; all traffic goes through ISP1 even though both paths are available. 'get router info bgp network' shows the prefix with two next hops. What is the MOST likely cause?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates assume BGP automatically load-balances across multiple equal-cost paths, but BGP requires explicit multi-path configuration to enable ECMP, unlike IGPs such as OSPF or EIGRP which do so by default.
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 BGP multi-path is disabled
BGP multi-path must be explicitly enabled to allow load balancing across multiple equal-cost paths. Even if both next hops are present in the BGP table, without the 'set multipath' or 'set multipath number' configuration under the BGP process, the FortiGate will select only the best path (lowest weight, local preference, AS-path length, etc.) and install that single route in the routing table. This is why all traffic uses ISP1 despite both paths being available.
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 prefix is being learned via an IGP with a lower administrative distance
Why it's wrong here
If an IGP route with lower AD exists, BGP routes would not be used at all, but both BGP routes are present.
- ✓
The BGP multi-path is disabled
Why this is correct
BGP load balancing requires multi-path to be enabled. Even with multiple paths, if multi-path is off, only the best path is installed.
- ✗
The administrative distance of BGP is higher than OSPF
Why it's wrong here
Administrative distance affects route selection between protocols, not load balancing within BGP.
- ✗
The eBGP multihop is not configured
Why it's wrong here
eBGP multihop is for non-directly connected peers; it does not affect load balancing.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This NSE7 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Fortinet 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 NSE7 exam.