Quick Answer
The answer is MED, or Multi-Exit Discriminator, because it is the BGP attribute specifically designed to influence inbound traffic from Google Cloud to prefer a particular on-premises router when multiple paths exist. By setting a lower MED value on the on-premises router advertising the 10.1.0.0/16 route, the Cloud Router will select that path over others with higher MED values, making Google Cloud always prefer this route. On the Google Professional Cloud Network Engineer exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how BGP attributes control traffic flow across Dedicated Interconnect, often appearing in questions about path selection where you must distinguish MED from AS_PATH or Local Preference—a common trap is confusing MED (inbound influence) with Local Preference (outbound influence). Remember the memory tip: MED is the "Magnet for Entry Direction," pulling traffic toward the router with the lowest value.
This PCNE practice question tests your understanding of implementing hybrid interconnectivity. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 is configuring Cloud Router for Dedicated Interconnect. The on-premises router is advertising a route to 10.1.0.0/16. The engineer wants to ensure that Google Cloud always prefers this route over other routes learned from different on-premises routers. Which BGP attribute should be set on the on-premises router?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "always"
Why it matters: Absolute qualifier. An answer using 'always' is only correct if there are genuinely no exceptions — absolute statements are often wrong in networking.
NEXT_HOP
Why wrong: NEXT_HOP is used for reachability, not preference.
AS_PATH
Why wrong: Longer AS_PATH makes a route less preferred; it cannot be used to prefer a route.
LOCAL_PREF
Why wrong: LOCAL_PREF is used for outbound traffic from the AS, not inbound.
MED
Lower MED makes the route more preferred for inbound traffic from on-premises.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
MED
MED (Multi-Exit Discriminator) is the correct BGP attribute to influence inbound traffic from Google Cloud to prefer a specific on-premises router when multiple paths exist. By setting a lower MED value on the on-premises router, the Cloud Router will select that route over others with higher MED values, ensuring Google Cloud always prefers this path for traffic destined to 10.1.0.0/16.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
NEXT_HOP
Why it's wrong here
NEXT_HOP is used for reachability, not preference.
AS_PATH
Why it's wrong here
Longer AS_PATH makes a route less preferred; it cannot be used to prefer a route.
LOCAL_PREF
Why it's wrong here
LOCAL_PREF is used for outbound traffic from the AS, not inbound.
MED
Why this is correct
Lower MED makes the route more preferred for inbound traffic from on-premises.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "always" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse LOCAL_PREF (used for outbound path selection within an AS) with MED (used for inbound path selection between ASes), leading them to incorrectly choose LOCAL_PREF when the question asks about influencing Google Cloud's route preference from on-premises routers.
Detailed technical explanation
MED is an optional non-transitive BGP attribute exchanged between AS peers to influence inbound traffic; a lower MED value is preferred. In Google Cloud, Cloud Router uses MED to select the best path when multiple on-premises routers advertise the same prefix, and the MED is compared only if the routes come from the same neighboring AS. A real-world scenario is when an organization has two on-premises routers with different link capacities; setting a lower MED on the higher-capacity router ensures Google Cloud sends more traffic through that link.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A healthcare organisation deploys an application with a public-facing web tier and a private database tier. The database subnet has no public IP and only accepts connections from the web tier's security group. Questions like this test whether you can design cloud network isolation using VNets/VPCs, subnets, and security group rules.
What to study next
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FAQ
Implementing hybrid interconnectivity — This question tests Implementing hybrid interconnectivity — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: MED — MED (Multi-Exit Discriminator) is the correct BGP attribute to influence inbound traffic from Google Cloud to prefer a specific on-premises router when multiple paths exist. By setting a lower MED value on the on-premises router, the Cloud Router will select that route over others with higher MED values, ensuring Google Cloud always prefers this path for traffic destined to 10.1.0.0/16.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Yes — watch for: "always". Absolute qualifier. An answer using 'always' is only correct if there are genuinely no exceptions — absolute statements are often wrong in networking.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 25, 2026
This PCNE practice question is part of Courseiva's free Google Cloud 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 PCNE exam.
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