Chapter 6

Reading Organizer
After completion of this chapter, you should be able to:

Explain how network layer protocols and services support communications

across data networks.
Explain how routers enable end-to-end connectivity in a small to mediumsized business network.
Determine the appropriate device to route traffic in a small to medium-sized
business network.
Configure a router with basic configurations.

6.1 Network Layer Protocols

1. The network layer uses four basic processes. These are:
a. Addressing end devices
b. Encapsulation
c. Routing
d. De-encapsulation
2. There are several network layer protocols in existence; however, only the
following two are commonly implemented. These are:
a. Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4)
b. Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6)
3. List and explain the basic characteristics of IP.
a. Connectionless
No connection with the destination is established before sending data
packets.
b. Best Effort
(unreliable) - Packet delivery is not guaranteed.
c. Media Independent
Operation is independent of the medium carrying the data.
4. There is one major characteristic of the media that the network layer considers.
This is:
The maximum size of the PDU that each medium can transport.
5. What is fragmenting the packet or fragmentation?
When an intermediate device, usually a router, must split up a packet when
forwarding it from one medium to a medium with a smaller MTU.
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6. Mark the following IP characteristics as either:

a. Connectionless b. Best Effort
c. Media Independent.
_____A____ Will send a packet even if the destination host is not able to receive it.
_____B____ Does not guarantee that the packet will be delivered fully without
errors.
_____C____ Will adjust the size of the packet sent depending on what type of
network access will be used.
_____B____ Packet delivery is not guaranteed.
_____C____ Fiber optics cabling, satellites, and wireless can all be used to route the
same packet.
_____A____ No contact is made with the destination host before sending a packet.
7. An IPv4 packet has two parts. These are:
a. IP Header
b. Payload
8. The fields used to identify and validate a packet, or reorder a fragmented packet
include:
a. Internet Header Length (IHL)
b. Total Length
c. Header Checksum
9. Why would a router have to fragment a packet?
When forwarding it from one medium to another medium that has a smaller
MTU.

10. Draw a line between the IPv4 header function and the correct category.
Version

Identifies the IP address of the recipient

host
Total Length
the header

Identifies the number of 32-bit words in

Time-to-Live
Protocol

Always set to 0100 for IPv4

Identifies the IP address of the sending

host
Internet Header Length
used next

Identifies the upper-layer protocol; to be

Destination IP Address

Maximum value is 65,535 bytes

Differentiated Services

Commonly referred to as hop count

Header Checksum
Source IP Address

Identifies the priority for each packet

Error-checks the IP header if correct, the
packet is discarded

11. List and explain the three major issues IPv4 has.
a. IP address depletion
IPv4 has a limited number of unique public IP addresses available. Although
there are approximately 4 billion IPv4 addresses, the increasing number of
new IP-enabled devices, always-on connections, and the potential growth of
less-developed regions have increased the need for more addresses.
b. Internet routing table expansion
A routing table is used by routers to make best path determinations. As the
number of servers (nodes) connected to the Internet increases, so too does
the number of network routes. These IPv4 routes consume a great deal of
memory and processor resources on Internet routers.
c. Lack of end-to-end connectivity
Network Address Translation (NAT) is a technology commonly implemented
within IPv4 networks. NAT provides a way for multiple devices to share a
single public IP address. However, because the public IP address is shared,
the IP address of an internal network host is hidden. This can be problematic
for technologies that require end-to-end connectivity.

12. List four improvements that IPv6 provides.

a. Increased address space
b. Improved packet
c. Eliminates the need for
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d. Integrated security
13. How many addresses does IPv6 provide?
340,282,366,920,938,463,463,374,607,431,768,211,456
14. The IPv6 simplified header offers several advantages over IPv4. These include:
a. Better routing efficiency for performance and forwarding-rate scalability
b. No requirement for processing checksums
c. Simplified and more efficient extension header mechanisms
d. A Flow Label field for per-flow processing with no need to open the
transport inner packet to identify the various traffic flows
15. The fields in the IPv6 header include:
a. Version
b. Traffic Class
c. Flow Label
d. Payload Length
e. Next Header
f. Hop Limit
g. Source Address
h. Destination Address
16. Draw a line between the IPV6 header description and the IPV6 header field to
which it belongs.
Traffic Class
Hop Limit
Next Header
Version

Is always set to 0110

Identifies the packet fragment size
When this value reaches 0, the sender is notified that
the packet was not delivered
Classifies packets for congestion control

Flow Label
layer protocol

Identifies the application type to the upper-

Payload Length

Can be set to use the same pathway flow so that

packets are not reordered upon delivery

6.2 Routing
17. Another role of the network layer is to direct packets between hosts. A host can
send a packet to:
a. Itself
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b. Local host
c. Remote host
18. The router connected to the local network segment is referred to as the ____default gateway____.
19. What is the purpose of a default gateway?
To route traffic from the local network to devices on remote networks.
20. Explain what a routing table is.
A routing table is a data file in RAM that is used to store route information
about directly connected network, as well as entries of remote networks the
device has learned about.
21. The routing table of a local host typically contains what information?
a. Direct connection
b. Local network route
c. Local default route
22. The default gateway is only used when a host must forward packets to a
remote network. When is a default gateway not required, or needed to be
configured?
If you are only sending packets to devices on the local network.
23. What commands on a Windows host can be used to display the host routing
table?
a. route print
b. netstat -r

24. Identify the five different destination address sections shown in the netstat r
output.

___The local default route___

____Loopback addresses___
_______Local network______
____Multicast addresses____
_____Limited broadcast_____

25. List and explain what the routing table of a router stores information about.
a. Directly-connected routes
These routes come from the active router interfaces. Routers add a directly
connected route when an interface is configured with an IP address and is
activated. Each of the router's interfaces is connected to a different network
segment. Routers maintain information about the network segments that
they are connected to within the routing table.
b. Remote routes
These routes come from remote networks connected to other routers. Routes
to these networks can either be manually configured on the local router by
the network administrator or dynamically configured by enabling the local
router to exchange routing information with other routers using dynamic
routing protocols.
26. What does a local host require to send packets to a remote destination?
A default gateway
27. What command is used on a Cisco IOS router to display the routing table
information?
show ip route

28. What does each circled part of the routing table below tell the network
administrator?
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_____How the route was learned_____

___Identifies the interface through which the routes reaches the
destination network__
C
L
C

192.168.10.0/24 is directly connected, GigabitEthernet0/0

192.168.10.1/32 is directly connected, GigabitEthernet0/0
220.200.20.0/24 is directly connected, GigabitEthernet0/1
_____The destination network and how it was learned_____

29. Explain what the following letters in the routing table represent?
a. ____C____ Identifies a directly connected network. Directly connected networks are
automatically created when an interface is configured with an IP address and
activated.
b. ____L____ Identifies that this is a link local route. Link local routes are automatically
created when an interface is configured with an IP address and activated.
c. ____S____ Identifies that the route was manually created by an administrator to reach a
specific network. This is known as a static route.
d. ____D____ Identifies that the route was learned dynamically from another router using
the Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP).
e. ____O____ Identifies that the route was learned dynamically from another router using
the Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) routing protocol.

30. Based on the routing table entry shown what is the.

D

200.20.2.0/24 [90/2170112]

via
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10.250.1.1, 00:15:35, Serial0/0/1

a. Route Source (which protocol)

EIGRP

b. Destination Network

200.20.2.0/24

c. Administrative Distance

90

d. Metric

2170112

e. Next-hop

10.250.1.1

f. Route timestamp

00:15:35

g. Outgoing interface

Serial0/0/1

31. Which metric has the highest priority; 2170112 or 1?

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32. If a router receives a packet to a destination network that is not in the routing
table and no default gateway is available, what happens to the packet?
The packet is dropped

33.

Based on the graphic assign the correct letter to each statement.

_____B____ Shows the destination network.
_____C____ The administrative distance (source) and metric to reach the
remote network.
_____A____ How the network was learned by the router.
_____F_____ The outgoing interface on the router to reach the destination
network.
_____E____ The elapsed time since the network was discovered.
_____D____The next hop IP address to reach the remote network.

6.3 Routers
34. All router models are essentially computers. Just like computers, tablets, and
smart devices, routers also require:
a. Operating systems (OS)
b. Central processing units (CPU)
c. Random-access memory (RAM)
d. Read-only memory (ROM)
35. A router also has special memory that includes:
Flash and nonvolatile random-access memory (NVRAM)
36. A router has access to four types of memory. Explain each.
a. RAM
RAM is used to store various applications and processes including:
Cisco IOS - The IOS is copied into RAM during bootup.
Running configuration file - This is the configuration file that stores the
configuration commands that the router IOS is currently using. It is also
known as the running-config.
IP routing table - This file stores information about directly-connected
and remote networks. It is used to determine the best path to use to
forward packets.
ARP cache - This cache contains the IPv4 address to MAC address
mappings, similar to the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) cache on a

PC. The ARP cache is used on routers that have LAN interfaces, such as
Ethernet interfaces.
Packet buffer - Packets are temporarily stored in a buffer when received
on an interface or before they exit an interface.
Like computers, Cisco routers actually use dynamic random-access
memory (DRAM).
DRAM
It stores the instructions and data needed to be executed by the CPU.
b. ROM
Cisco routers use ROM to store:
Bootup instructions - Provides the startup instructions.
Basic diagnostic software - Performs the power-on self-test (POST) of all
components.
Limited IOS - Provides a limited backup version of the OS, in case the
router cannot load the full featured IOS.
c. NVRAM
Is used by the Cisco IOS as permanent storage for the startup configuration
file (startup-config).
d. Flash memory
Is non-volatile computer memory used as permanent storage for the IOS and
other system related files.

37. Identify the internal components of this 1841 router.

___Power Supply___
WAN Interface Card___

___Nonvolatile RAM (NVRAM)___

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___Shield for

___Shield for WAN Interface Card___

___Fan

___

___CPU___

___Synchronous Dynamic RAM (SDRAM)___

___Advanced Integrated Module
(AIM)___

38. Identify the ports on this 1941 ISR.

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39. The connections on a Cisco router can be grouped into two categories. List and
explain each.
a. Management ports
These are the console and auxiliary ports used to configure, manage, and
troubleshoot the router. Unlike LAN and WAN interfaces, management ports
are not used for packet forwarding.
b. Inband Router interfaces
These are the LAN and WAN interfaces configured with IP addressing to carry
user traffic. Ethernet interfaces are the most common LAN connections,
while common WAN connections include serial and DSL interfaces.

40. Similar to a Cisco switch, there are several ways to access the CLI environment
on a Cisco router. List and explain the most common methods.

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a. Console
Uses a low speed serial or USB connection to provide direct connect, out-ofband management access to a Cisco device.
b. Telnet or SSH
Two methods for remotely accessing a CLI session across an active network
interface.
c. AUX port
Used for remote management of the router using a dial-up telephone line
and modem.
41. Router interfaces can be grouped into two categories. List and explain both.
a. Ethernet LAN interfaces
Used for connecting cables that terminate with LAN devices, such as
computers and switches. This interface can also be used to connect routers
to each other. Several conventions for naming Ethernet interfaces are
popular: the older Ethernet, FastEthernet, and Gigabit Ethernet. The name
used depends on the device type and model.
b. Serial WAN interfaces
Used for connecting routers to external networks, usually over a larger
geographical distance. Similar to LAN interfaces, each serial WAN interface
has its own IP address and subnet mask, which identifies it as a member of a
specific network.
42. Draw a line between the router component name and the correct
function/description.
WAN interface
interface.
Aux port
networking.

A way to remotely access the CLI across a network

Connects computers, switches, and routers for internal

LAN interface
modems.

A port to manage routers using telephone lines and

Telnet or SSH
large distance.

Connects routers to external networks, usually over a

Console port
43.

A local port which uses USB or low-speed, serial

connections to manage network devices.

Where is the Cisco IOS stored?

Flash Memory
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44. During boot up the Cisco IOS is copied into?

RAM
45. Which two files are loaded when a router is booted?
a. IOS Image File
b. Startup Configuration File
46. There are three major phases to the bootup process. These are:
a. Perform the POST and load the bootstrap program.
b. Locate and load the Cisco IOS software.
c. Locate and load the startup configuration file or enter setup mode.
47. What command can be used to verify and troubleshoot some of the basic
hardware and software components of the router?
show version
48. The output from the show version command includes:
a. IOS version
b. ROM Bootstrap Program
c. Location of IOS
d. CPU and Amount of RAM
e. Interfaces
f. Amount of NVRAM and Flash
49. The configuration register has several uses, such as:
Password recovery
50. The factory default setting for the configuration register is 0x2102. What does
this value mean?
This value indicates that the router attempts to load a Cisco IOS software
image from flash memory and load the startup configuration file from
NVRAM.
51. List the four steps to the router boot process in correct order.
a. Preform POST
b. Load Bootstrap
c. Load the IOS
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d. Load the configuration file from flash

6.4 Configuring a Cisco Router

52. What are the recommended steps that should be completed when configuring
initial settings on a router?
1. Assign a device name
2. Set passwords
a. Secure privileged EXEC mode
b. Secure the console port
c. Secure virtual access
d. Set the service password-encryption
3. Set the banner motd (message of the day MOTD)
4. Save the configuration
5. Verify the configuration using the show run command
53. What steps are required to activate a router interface?
a. IPv4 address and subnet mask
b. Activate the interface
54. There are several commands that can be used to verify interface configuration. Which is the most useful of
these is the commands?
show ip interface brief

55. What are three other commands that can be used to verify interface
configuration?
a. show ip route
b. show interfaces
c. show ip interface
56. For an end device to communicate over the network, it must be configured with
the correct IP address information, including the default gateway address. When is
the default gateway used?
When the host wants to send a packet to a device on another network.
57. Where is the default gateway generally located?
The router interface address attached to the local network of the host.

58. What is the command used to configure the default gateway 10.250.1.1 on a
switch?
S1(config)# ip default-gateway 10.250.1.1
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59. A common misconception is that the switch uses its configured default
gateway address to determine where to forward packets originating from hosts
connected to the switch and destined for hosts on a remote network. What does
the switch use its default gateway for?
The IP address and default gateway information is only used for packets that
originate from the switch. Packets originating from hosts connected to the
switch must already have default gateway information configured to
communicate on remote networks.

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