23 hands-on Static Routing scenarios you build in your own Cisco Modeling Labs instance and grade against the answer key. Focused Static Routing configuration and troubleshooting practice for CCNA and CCNP.
Build a realistic two-site branch topology with two edge routers linked over a /30 WAN and two isolated LANs on a shared L2 access switch. Configure static routes plus a default route at each edge so both LANs reach each other bidirectionally. Verify end-to-end from hosts and use show commands to confirm the routing tables.
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Troubleshoot classic static routing and connectivity issues in a 3-router, 2-site network. Faults seeded include a missing return route, wrong next-hop/mask, and a missing/misconfigured default route. Learners must identify and correct Layer 3 faults to restore end-to-end reachability between branch clients.
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Build a routed LACP EtherChannel (Port-channel 8) between two iol-xe routers and route real inter-LAN traffic using static routes. Two parallel physical links (Ethernet0/0 and Ethernet0/1) on each router are bundled into a single Layer-3 Port-channel with a /30 transit. Each router serves a local /24 LAN with an alpine host. Validate that Po8 is up/up, static routes are present, and end-to-end host pings succeed across the aggregated uplink.
Configure a centralized DHCP server on an IOS-XE router and relay DHCP from a remote branch LAN using ip helper-address on a branch router. Verify leases, helper configuration, and end-host reachability across a routed path.
Build a central DHCP service on an IOS-XE router and service two branch departments across a routed hop via DHCP relay. Configure two DHCP pools (SALES and SUPPORT) with proper options and excluded ranges on the HQ server, and enable ip helper-address on both branch LAN interfaces so clients obtain leases from the correct pool. Verify leases and bindings using Linux and IOS show commands, and confirm return-path reachability with prebuilt static routes.
Hands-on static routing lab in a small branch–WAN–branch triangle. You will configure recursive, directly-attached, and fully-specified static routes to enable end-to-end reachability between two hosts across three routers. You will learn how next-hop resolution works, how it appears in show ip route, and how to troubleshoot when static routes don’t resolve or forward as expected.
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Build a 5-node edge/DMZ topology. Implement a named extended ACL on the EDGE router to allow only TCP/80, TCP/443, and ICMP echo from the Inside LAN to a DMZ web server, deny all other traffic to that server with logging, and still permit general traffic elsewhere. Apply the ACL inbound on the EDGE inside LAN interface. Harden router SSH management with a standard ACL. Verify with wget, ping, and an intentionally denied SSH attempt that increments the deny log counter.
Build a 3-router triangle with two branch LANs and real Alpine clients. Deploy primary static routes via the hub and floating backup statics over a direct branch-to-branch link. Verify reachability, path selection, and failover by simulating a hub outage.
Build a small hub-and-branch network to master default static routes and the gateway of last resort. Each branch uses a default route toward the hub; the hub holds specific routes back to branch LANs. Verify routing tables and end-to-end host connectivity, then troubleshoot common misconfigurations.
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Deploy IP addressing and bidirectional static routing across a three-router topology to connect two branch LANs through an HQ hop. Practice verification from end hosts, analyze routing tables, and troubleshoot asymmetric reachability.
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Beginner CCNA ACL lab on a compact 5-node CML-Free topology. You will configure static routing end-to-end, implement source NAT (PAT) at the source edge, and then build a standard numbered ACL near the destination to allow a single NATed host and a specific subnet while denying all others. You will validate with pings from end hosts, observe ACL hit counters and NAT translations, and troubleshoot common mistakes such as ACL placement, wildcard masks, and pre-/post-NAT address matching.
Dual-router Branch/HQ lab with a branch client and an HQ server. You will apply an extended IPv4 ACL inbound near the source on the Branch LAN to block specific traffic (TCP/80) while permitting others (ICMP), and a standard IPv4 ACL outbound near the destination on the HQ LAN to admit only the approved source. Validate from real hosts, confirm ACL hitcounts, and keep inter-site connectivity via static routes over a /30 transit.
Hands-on CCNA ACL practice using standard ACLs and wildcard masks to allow a single host, a contiguous range, and an entire subnet while proving a deny. You will place the ACL near the destination, order statements correctly, verify with end-host pings and ACL counters, and troubleshoot common mistakes.
Three-router static-routing lab with two Linux endpoints. An extended IPv4 ACL is intentionally misordered inbound near the source, causing Telnet to be permitted unexpectedly. Learners must observe first-match behavior via hit counters, enable buffered logging to see ACL log entries, and then correct the ACL sequence so Telnet is blocked while SSH and ICMP are permitted. All routers include a complete SSH management plane. The final solution forwards end-to-end and is enterprise-clean.
Configure a default route on a branch edge router and a return static route on an upstream core router to enable full bidirectional connectivity between a stub branch LAN and a core server LAN. Verify the S* default route, gateway of last resort, and end-to-end reachability from real hosts. Troubleshoot missing default or return paths.
Hands-on CCNA static routing troubleshooting in a realistic three-router core/edge topology with two user LANs. Static routing on the network was recently changed and users at SITE-A (10.10.10.10) and SITE-B (10.30.30.10) can no longer reach each other; you will investigate the routers' route tables and next-hop reachability to diagnose and restore full bidirectional connectivity.
Hands-on IPv6 static and default routing across a 3-router, 2-LAN topology with end-user hosts. You will enable IPv6 unicast routing, apply IPv6 addressing, configure hub-and-spoke static and default routes, and validate bidirectional host reachability. The guide provides scenario context, step-by-step tasks with the why behind each action, and targeted troubleshooting.
Hands-on CCNA static routing lab: build a small hub-and-spoke with two stub routers and a hub router. Configure default routes on the spokes and specific static routes on the hub so two user LANs reach each other end-to-end. Validate from real hosts and practice first-hop and return-path troubleshooting.
Hands-on CCNA static routing and manual summarization lab using a compact HQ–Branch–Remote topology. You will replace three specific static routes to Branch networks with a single /22 summary at HQ, verify end-to-end host reachability, observe the routing table reduction, and prevent over-aggregation loops by adding a Null0 discard route at Branch. A recommended step has you add the same /22 summary at Remote (replacing its default) to practice summarization on both sides.
Deploy primary static routes between two branch LANs via a hub router and add a higher-AD floating static for a direct inter-branch backup. Verify end-to-end reachability, simulate a hub outage to trigger automatic failover, then restore the primary path. Includes realistic addressing, unique /30 transits, and host-based verification.
Design and implement a 3-router full-mesh with two edge LANs using static IPv4 routes only. Edges use primary defaults toward the core plus floating (higher AD) backup defaults; the core uses specific routes for the edge LANs. Validate bidirectional reachability, path choice, and failover behaviors from real hosts.
Deploy a compact two-site topology with a WAN core and two end hosts to practice IPv4 static host routes (/32) versus subnet routes (/24). You will configure a specific /32 host route to steer one destination host over the direct R1–R3 path while a broader /24 for the same remote LAN is sent via the R1–R2–R3 core. Validate with show commands and traceroute, then troubleshoot longest-prefix match and return-path issues.
Build a small HQ–WAN–Branch triangle with two independent WAN paths. Configure equal-cost static routes on both edge routers so traffic to the opposite site’s LAN installs with two next-hops and is load-shared by CEF. Verify end-to-end reachability from real hosts, observe per-flow load sharing on the routers, and compare behavior to a floating static of higher administrative distance.
Static routing is the foundation everything else builds on: before you trust a dynamic protocol, you need to reason confidently about a routing table, next-hops, administrative distance, and the default route. Static routes are also still everywhere in production — stub sites, a default route to an ISP, and floating statics for backup paths.
In these labs you configure ip route statements on real Cisco IOS in Cisco Modeling Labs: static routes, next-hop vs exit-interface, a default route (0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0) as the gateway of last resort, and floating static routes with a higher administrative distance for failover. Verify with show ip route and end-to-end reachability, then upload your export for per-requirement grading. Troubleshooting labs give you a broken static — a wrong next-hop, a missing return route, an overlapping subnet — to diagnose and repair, which is the single most common real-world routing ticket.
A static route configured with a higher administrative distance than the primary path, so it stays out of the routing table until the preferred route fails — then it 'floats' in as a backup. Several labs have you configure and test one.
Yes — configuring ip route 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 as the gateway of last resort and verifying it's used, including the distinction between a static default route and default-information originate in a dynamic protocol.
Yes — IPv4/IPv6 static and default routing is a core CCNA objective. The troubleshooting labs also build the diagnostic habits that carry into CCNP.
Study the theory behind these labs — the concept explainer and step-by-step guides.
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