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Quizzes > Computers & Technology > Computers & IT

Router and Routing Basics Quiz - Test Your Skills

Ready for the routing paths and subnets quiz? Dive in now!

Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
Paper cut routers cables network nodes on coral background, for a router functions quiz on routing paths and subnets

Ready to put your network routing basics to the test? Our Router Functions Quiz: What Are Two Functions of a Router? invites IT enthusiasts and curious learners to master subnet and routing paths while exploring network routing basics through a friendly, motivating router functions quiz. You'll dive into core tasks routers perform - from directing packets along optimal paths to segmenting LANs with subnets - and confidently answer "what are two functions of a router choose two." Jump into our routing paths and subnets quiz, then challenge yourself further with this WAN edge router functions test . Sharpen your troubleshooting skills and see how you stack up against fellow network pros. Take the quiz now to prove your prowess and elevate your skills!

What is the primary function of a router in a network?
Forward packets between different networks
Amplify network signals
Filter network traffic by port numbers
Encrypt data between hosts
Routers operate at Layer 3 of the OSI model and their main function is to forward packets between different networks. They use routing tables and protocols to determine the optimal path for each packet. Unlike switches or hubs, routers examine IP addresses to make forwarding decisions. Learn more.
On which OSI model layer do routers operate?
Layer 3 (Network)
Layer 2 (Data Link)
Layer 4 (Transport)
Layer 7 (Application)
Routers function at the Network layer (Layer 3) of the OSI model, where they make forwarding decisions based on IP addresses. They do not operate at the Data Link or Transport layers, which are handled by switches and end hosts respectively. This layer is responsible for logical addressing and path selection. Learn more.
Which of the following does a router use to determine the best path for forwarding packets?
Routing table
VLAN database
MAC address table
ARP cache
A router relies on its routing table to decide the best next-hop for each destination network. The MAC address table is used by switches, not routers, and the ARP cache only maps IP addresses to MAC addresses on the local subnet. VLAN databases are for switches to segment broadcast domains. Learn more.
Which protocol is commonly used by routers to dynamically learn routes within an autonomous system?
ICMP
OSPF
BGP
STP
OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) is a widely used interior gateway protocol that routers use to exchange link-state information within a single autonomous system. BGP is used between autonomous systems, STP prevents loops in Layer 2, and ICMP is for messaging and diagnostics. Learn more.
What command would you use on a Cisco router to display its current routing table?
show interfaces
show vlan
show arp
show ip route
The 'show ip route' command on Cisco routers displays all known routes and their administrative distances, metrics, and next-hop information. 'show interfaces' shows interface status, 'show arp' displays ARP entries, and 'show vlan' is switch-specific. Learn more.
Which term describes the router process of selecting the best path among multiple routes to the same destination?
Load balancing
Route filtering
Route selection
Packet switching
Route selection is the process by which a router chooses the optimal path to a given destination when multiple routes exist. Load balancing may distribute traffic across equal-cost paths, but it is separate from selecting which routes appear in the table. Packet switching refers to the forwarding mechanism itself. Learn more.
A router uses which addressing to forward packets between networks?
Layer 3 addresses
Port numbers
Application layer addresses
Layer 2 addresses
Routers examine Layer 3 (IP) addresses to make forwarding decisions between different networks. Layer 2 addresses (MAC) are only used on the local network segment. Port numbers are part of the Transport layer and not used for network-level forwarding. Learn more.
What feature allows a router to automatically distribute routing information to other routers?
Dynamic routing protocols
Static routing
Policy-based routing
Port forwarding
Dynamic routing protocols like OSPF, RIP, and EIGRP enable routers to automatically share route information and adapt to network changes. Static routing requires manual configuration and does not adjust dynamically. Policy-based routing influences traffic based on policies rather than distributing route information. Learn more.
What is the purpose of Network Address Translation (NAT) on a router?
To encrypt internal traffic
To map private IP addresses to a public IP address
To prioritize VoIP traffic
To block ICMP packets
NAT translates private, non-routable IP addresses into a public IP address for Internet access. This conserves public IP space and provides a layer of address hiding. It also allows multiple hosts to share a single public address. Learn more.
Which device function allows a router to forward traffic between VLANs on a network?
Port mirroring
Inter-VLAN routing
DHCP relay
VLAN tagging
Inter-VLAN routing is the process by which a router forwards traffic between separate VLANs, each representing a distinct IP subnet. VLAN tagging marks frames so the router knows which VLAN they belong to. DHCP relay passes DHCP messages but does not route VLANs. Learn more.
Which of the following is a distance-vector routing protocol?
EIGRP
OSPF
IS-IS
RIP
RIP (Routing Information Protocol) is a classic distance-vector protocol that uses hop count as its metric. OSPF and IS-IS are link-state protocols, while EIGRP is a hybrid protocol. Distance-vector protocols share complete routing tables with neighbors at regular intervals. Learn more.
Which of the following is a link-state routing protocol?
RIP
BGP
EIGRP
OSPF
OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) uses link-state information to build a complete network topology and compute the shortest paths via Dijkstra's algorithm. RIP is distance-vector, EIGRP is hybrid, and BGP is a path-vector protocol used between autonomous systems. Learn more.
What is the role of a default gateway in a router configuration?
It filters incoming traffic by IP
It aggregates multiple links into one
It assigns IP addresses to hosts
It serves as the next-hop for packets destined outside the local network
A default gateway is the next-hop router for traffic destined for networks not in the local routing table. It ensures that packets leaving the subnet reach the proper upstream router. Without it, hosts would drop traffic bound for external networks. Learn more.
If a router has no matching route and no default route, what does it do with the packet?
Drops the packet
Sends an ARP request
Buffers it indefinitely
Redirects it to a DNS server
When a router cannot find a matching route in its table and lacks a default route, it discards the packet. This prevents packets from looping or being delivered unpredictably. Some routers also send an ICMP "destination unreachable" message to the sender. Learn more.
What multicast address does OSPF use for IPv4 to communicate between routers?
224.0.0.9
224.0.0.1
224.0.0.5
224.0.0.252
OSPF routers send Hello and other protocol messages to the IPv4 multicast address 224.0.0.5 to communicate with all OSPF routers on a link. Address 224.0.0.1 is for all hosts, 224.0.0.9 is for RIP, and 224.0.0.252 is for OSPFv3. Learn more.
What is route summarization used for in IP routing?
To prioritize specific traffic types
To encrypt routing protocols
To filter unwanted networks
To reduce size of routing tables by combining routes
Route summarization combines multiple contiguous subnets into a single summary route, reducing the number of entries in routing tables. This improves scalability and reduces memory usage and processing overhead. It is especially useful in large, hierarchical networks. Learn more.
What is the function of Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) in routing?
Manages routing within an autonomous system
Routes between autonomous systems on the Internet
Encrypts routing updates
Provides QoS for packets
BGP is the standard exterior gateway protocol used to exchange routing information between different autonomous systems on the Internet. It does not operate within a single AS for internal routing and does not provide encryption or QoS by itself. BGP uses path attributes to select the best routes. Learn more.
How does a router implement split horizon to prevent routing loops?
By discarding all routes learned from neighbors
By using a separate backup interface
By advertising routes back on the interface they were learned
By not advertising routes back on the interface they were learned
Split horizon prevents routing loops by ensuring that routes learned on one interface are not advertised back out the same interface. This stops information from bouncing back and forth between neighbors. It is especially important in distance-vector protocols like RIP. Learn more.
What is an Administrative Distance in routing?
A hop count limit for routes
A priority value that rates the trustworthiness of routing information
A time delay for route convergence
A physical distance between routers
Administrative Distance is a value used by routers to rank the trustworthiness of different routing sources. Lower values indicate higher trust; for example, directly connected routes have an AD of 0. When multiple protocols provide a route, the one with the lowest AD is chosen. Learn more.
Which table in a Cisco router holds the routes that are actively used to forward packets?
ARP table
CAM table
Multipeer table
Forwarding Information Base (FIB)
The Forwarding Information Base (FIB) is built from the routing table and contains the actual routes used for packet forwarding at line rate. The ARP table maps IP to MAC addresses, the CAM table is on switches for MAC learning, and there is no standard 'multipeer' table. Learn more.
What process allows a router to send DHCP messages between clients and servers on different subnets?
DHCP relay
DHCP proxy ARP
DHCP binding
DHCP snooping
DHCP relay (also called IP helper) enables a router to forward DHCP Discover messages from clients on one subnet to a DHCP server on another. It inserts options specifying the client's original subnet, so addresses are assigned correctly. DHCP snooping and proxy ARP serve different security and address resolution roles. Learn more.
In MPLS, what does a Label Switch Router (LSR) do?
Originates labels for new paths
Encrypts labels for security
Forwards packets based on short labels instead of IP headers
Aggregates multiple labels into one
An MPLS Label Switch Router (LSR) forwards packets by examining fixed-length labels rather than performing a full IP header lookup, speeding up packet forwarding. LSRs swap, push, or pop labels based on the forwarding information base. They do not encrypt or aggregate labels. Learn more.
Which QoS technique can a router use to guarantee bandwidth for critical applications?
Weighted Fair Queuing (WFQ)
Link aggregation
VLAN tagging
Traffic shaping
Weighted Fair Queuing (WFQ) allocates bandwidth proportionally based on assigned weights, ensuring critical applications receive guaranteed throughput. Traffic shaping controls outbound rate but does not guarantee bandwidth. Link aggregation combines links for redundancy and throughput, and VLAN tagging segments traffic. Learn more.
Which type of route is manually entered and does not change unless manually modified?
Static route
External route
Default route
Dynamic route
Static routes are manually configured by network administrators and remain in the routing table until changed or removed. They provide predictability but require hands-on management. Dynamic and external routes are learned via routing protocols, and default routes handle all unknown destinations. Learn more.
When configuring OSPF on a router with multiple equal-cost paths to a destination, how does the router distribute traffic by default and how can this behavior be modified?
It randomly selects a path and this can be changed using traffic policies
It uses path weight to choose one and this can be modified with interface metrics
It uses only one path and this cannot be changed
It load-balances traffic across equal-cost paths by default and this can be modified by changing the maximum-paths parameter
OSPF supports Equal Cost Multi-Path (ECMP) routing and will distribute traffic across multiple paths of equal cost by default. Administrators can adjust the number of allowed equal-cost paths using the 'maximum-paths' command under the OSPF routing process. This provides fine-tuned control over load balancing. Learn more.
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Study Outcomes

  1. Identify Two Core Router Functions -

    After completing the quiz, you can accurately pinpoint what are two functions of a router, such as packet forwarding and network segmentation.

  2. Analyze Routing Paths -

    You will be able to interpret routing table entries and determine the optimal path for data packets across different network segments.

  3. Apply Subnetting Principles -

    You'll gain the skills to calculate subnets, assign IP ranges, and understand how subnet masks influence routing decisions.

  4. Differentiate Static and Dynamic Routing -

    You will learn to compare static routes and dynamic routing protocols, understanding when to use each in real-world network scenarios.

  5. Troubleshoot Basic Routing Issues -

    You'll develop the ability to identify common routing misconfigurations and apply corrective measures based on clear quiz feedback.

  6. Reinforce Network Routing Basics -

    By the end of the quiz, you will have solidified your grasp of network routing basics and improved your confidence in managing router functions.

Cheat Sheet

  1. Routing Table Lookup & Longest-Prefix Match -

    As outlined in Cisco's CCNA curriculum, routers use a routing table and always select the entry with the longest matching prefix in the destination IP. For example, between 10.0.0.0/8 and 10.1.0.0/16, traffic to 10.1.2.3 goes via the /16 route. A handy mnemonic is "LPM Wins" (Longest Prefix Match Wins).

  2. Packet Forwarding & Layer 3 Switching -

    Per RFC 791, once the best path is chosen, routers rewrite the Layer 2 header and forward packets out the correct interface based on its routing table. This process, known as Layer 3 switching, enables seamless data movement between different IP networks. Think of it like a postal sorter directing letters to the right city.

  3. Subnetting & Network Segmentation -

    University networking courses teach that subnetting breaks a larger network into smaller subnets using masks like /24 (255.255.255.0), improving performance and security. For example, dividing 192.168.0.0/16 into four /18 subnets creates blocks of 16,384 addresses each. A quick tip: each borrowed bit doubles your subnet size (e.g., /29 has 8 IPs, /28 has 16).

  4. Dynamic Routing Protocols -

    Studies from the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) show that OSPF and BGP automate route discovery and adapt to network changes in real time. OSPF uses Dijkstra's algorithm to compute shortest-path trees, while BGP shares path-vector updates for inter-domain routing. These protocols anchor many routing paths and subnets quiz scenarios.

  5. Access Control Lists & Security Filtering -

    Industry sources explain that routers apply Access Control Lists (ACLs) to permit or deny traffic based on IPs, ports, or protocols, bolstering edge security. For instance, an ACL can block all inbound TCP on port 23 to disable insecure Telnet access. Integrating ACLs into router functions fortifies your network defense.

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