Cisco CCNA (200-301)IP ConnectivityEasy
A technician issues the command 'show ip route' on a branch router and sees the line: S* 0.0.0.0/0 [1/0] via 203.0.113.1. What does this entry represent?
- AA dynamically learned OSPF default route
- BThe gateway of last resort configured as a static default route
- CA blackhole route used to prevent routing loops
- DA directly connected network to 203.0.113.1
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: B. The gateway of last resort configured as a static default route
The 'S*' code indicates a static route flagged as the candidate default route (gateway of last resort), pointing to 0.0.0.0/0 via next-hop 203.0.113.1 with AD 1 and metric 0. This is created by an 'ip route 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 203.0.113.1' command.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. OSPF routes appear with 'O' or 'O*E2', not 'S*'.
- C. A blackhole/null route would show Null0 as the interface, not a next-hop IP.
- D. Directly connected networks use the 'C' code, not 'S*'.
Gateway of Last Resort
The route used when no more specific match exists in the routing table, typically the default route 0.0.0.0/0.
- Marked with '*' in show ip route output
- Can be static (S*) or learned dynamically (e.g., O*E2)
- AD and metric shown in brackets [AD/metric]
Memory trick: Star marks the map's emergency exit route