Question 1,338 of 2,152

NAT and PAT →mediumMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped

Troubleshooting NAT When Show IP NAT Statistics Shows Zero Hits

This 300-410 practice question tests your understanding of nat and pat. Examine the command output carefully: the correct answer depends on what the output actually shows, not on general recall alone. 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.

A network engineer runs the following command on Router R1:

R1# show ip nat translations

Pro Inside global Inside local Outside local Outside global --- 192.0.2.10 10.0.0.10 --- --- --- 192.0.2.11 10.0.0.11 --- ---

R1# show ip nat statistics

Total active translations: 2 (0 static, 2 dynamic; 0 extended) Outside interfaces: GigabitEthernet0/1 Inside interfaces: GigabitEthernet0/0 Hits: 0 Misses: 10 CEF Translated packets: 0, CEF Punted packets: 0 Expired translations: 0 Dynamic mappings: -- Inside Source

[Id] ip nat pool POOL1 192.0.2.10 192.0.2.20 netmask 255.255.255.240

refcount 2 map-id 1

[Id] ip nat inside source list ACL1 pool POOL1

refcount 2

Based on this output, what is the problem?

A
NAT translations exist but no packets are being translated (0 hits), indicating a possible routing or ACL issue.
The 0 hits with 10 misses suggest that translations are created but no successful data flow; packets are missing or not returning.
B
The NAT pool is exhausted.
Why wrong: Only 2 translations exist out of 16 addresses.
C
PAT is enabled but not working.
Why wrong: The mapping does not include 'overload', so PAT is not configured.
D
The inside and outside interfaces are reversed.
Why wrong: The statistics show correct interface assignment.

Full breakdown with real-world context →

Quick Answer

The answer is a routing or ACL misconfiguration preventing return traffic from reaching the NAT translations. The output shows two dynamic translations exist but zero hits and ten misses, meaning packets are arriving that don’t match existing translations, forcing new ones to be created without any successful data flow. In the Cisco CCNP ENARSI 300-410 exam, this scenario tests your ability to differentiate between translation creation and actual packet forwarding—a common trap is assuming translations equal success. The misses indicate packets are hitting the router but failing to match the translation table, often due to an ACL blocking return traffic or asymmetric routing where replies take a different path. Remember the key indicator: hits count translated packets, misses count packets that require new translations; zero hits with rising misses means traffic is arriving but not being translated correctly. A useful memory tip is “Hits are happy, misses are misery”—if hits stay at zero while misses climb, check your routing and ACLs first.

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

✓

NAT translations exist but no packets are being translated (0 hits), indicating a possible routing or ACL issue.

The output shows two dynamic NAT translations (192.0.2.10→10.0.0.10 and 192.0.2.11→10.0.0.11) but zero hits, meaning no packets have been translated. The misses counter is 10, indicating that packets arrived but failed to match the translation. This typically occurs when the access control list (ACL1) does not permit the source traffic, or the routing path does not direct traffic through the NAT inside interface, preventing the translation from being used.

Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.

Answer analysis

Option-by-option breakdown

For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.

✓
NAT translations exist but no packets are being translated (0 hits), indicating a possible routing or ACL issue.
Why this is correct
The 0 hits with 10 misses suggest that translations are created but no successful data flow; packets are missing or not returning.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
The NAT pool is exhausted.
Why it's wrong here
Only 2 translations exist out of 16 addresses.
✗
PAT is enabled but not working.
Why it's wrong here
The mapping does not include 'overload', so PAT is not configured.
✗
The inside and outside interfaces are reversed.
Why it's wrong here
The statistics show correct interface assignment.

Common exam traps

Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword

Cisco often tests the distinction between 'Hits' and 'Misses' in NAT statistics — the trap here is that candidates see existing translations and assume NAT is working, but the zero hits indicate no actual traffic has been translated, pointing to an ACL or routing problem rather than pool exhaustion or interface reversal.

Trap categories for this question

Command / output trap
The statistics show correct interface assignment.

Detailed technical explanation

How to think about this question

The 'Hits' counter increments each time a packet successfully uses an existing NAT translation, while 'Misses' increments when a packet triggers a new translation attempt but fails (e.g., due to ACL denial or pool exhaustion). In this case, the 10 misses without any hits suggest that the ACL (ACL1) is not matching the source traffic, or the traffic is not arriving on the inside interface. A common real-world scenario is misconfigured ACL entries that deny the inside local addresses, causing the router to drop the packets before NAT can apply.

KKey Concepts to Remember

Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.

TExam Day Tips

Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.

Key takeaway

Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.

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.

Visual reference

What to study next

Got this wrong? Here's your next step.

Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.

Related 300-410 practice-question pages

Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.

Layer 3 Technologies practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to Layer 3 Technologies.

EIGRP Troubleshooting practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to EIGRP Troubleshooting.

OSPF Troubleshooting (v2/v3) practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to OSPF Troubleshooting (v2/v3).

BGP Troubleshooting practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to BGP Troubleshooting.

Route Redistribution practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to Route Redistribution.

Policy-Based Routing (PBR) practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to Policy-Based Routing (PBR).

VRF-Lite practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to VRF-Lite.

Route Maps and Route Filtering practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to Route Maps and Route Filtering.

Administrative Distance practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to Administrative Distance.

Route Summarization practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to Route Summarization.

Bidirectional Forwarding Detection (BFD) practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to Bidirectional Forwarding Detection (BFD).

VPN Technologies practice questions

Practise 300-410 questions linked to VPN Technologies.

Practice this exam

Start a free 300-410 practice session

Short sessions build daily habit. Longer sessions build exam-day stamina. Try a timed session to simulate real conditions.

10 questions 20 questions 30 questions 50 questions Timed 30

300-410 practice-test guide →Study guide →Browse all practice tests

FAQ

Questions learners often ask

What does this 300-410 question test?

NAT and PAT — This question tests NAT and PAT — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..

What is the correct answer to this question?

The correct answer is: NAT translations exist but no packets are being translated (0 hits), indicating a possible routing or ACL issue. — The output shows two dynamic NAT translations (192.0.2.10→10.0.0.10 and 192.0.2.11→10.0.0.11) but zero hits, meaning no packets have been translated. The misses counter is 10, indicating that packets arrived but failed to match the translation. This typically occurs when the access control list (ACL1) does not permit the source traffic, or the routing path does not direct traffic through the NAT inside interface, preventing the translation from being used.

What should I do if I get this 300-410 question wrong?

Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.

What is the key concept behind this question?

Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.

About these practice questions

Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →

How Courseiva writes practice questions · Editorial policy

Same concept, more angles

1 more ways this is tested on 300-410

These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.

Variation 1. A network engineer runs the following command on Router R1: R1# show ip nat translations Pro Inside global Inside local Outside local Outside global --- 192.0.2.10 10.0.0.10 --- --- R1# show ip nat statistics Total active translations: 1 (0 static, 1 dynamic; 0 extended) Outside interfaces: GigabitEthernet0/1 Inside interfaces: GigabitEthernet0/0 Hits: 0 Misses: 0 CEF Translated packets: 0, CEF Punted packets: 0 Expired translations: 0 Dynamic mappings: -- Inside Source [Id] ip nat pool POOL1 192.0.2.10 192.0.2.20 netmask 255.255.255.240 refcount 1 map-id 1 [Id] ip nat inside source list ACL1 pool POOL1 refcount 1 Based on this output, what is the problem?

medium

✓ A.The NAT translation exists but no traffic is being translated (0 hits, 0 misses), indicating a possible idle translation or no matching traffic.
B.The NAT pool is exhausted.
C.PAT is misconfigured.
D.The inside and outside interfaces are reversed.

Why A: The output shows a single dynamic NAT translation with zero hits and zero misses, meaning no traffic has attempted to traverse the NAT process. This indicates the translation entry exists (likely from a previous or idle session) but no packets have matched the access list or triggered translation since the counters were cleared. The problem is that the NAT configuration is in place but not actively translating any traffic.

Keep practising

Question Discussion

Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.

Loading comments…

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.