CCNA Routing and Switching (legacy) — Question 120

When a router is unable to find a known route in the routing table, how does it handle the packet?

Answer options

• A. It sends the packet over the route with the best metric.
• B. It sends the packet to the gateway of last resort.
• C. It sends the packet to the next hop address.
• D. It discards the packet.

Correct answer: B

Explanation

The correct answer is B because when a router does not have a specific route for a packet, it will utilize the gateway of last resort to attempt delivery. Options A and C are incorrect as they suggest forwarding the packet based on metrics or next hop addresses, which is not applicable when no route is found. Option D is not accurate since the router tries to send the packet to the last resort before discarding it.