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Quizzes > Computers & Technology > Computers & IT

Take the HSRP vs VRRP vs GLBP CCNA Quiz

Think you know which statement describes HSRP? Dive in and prove it!

Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
Paper art illustration of network devices and icons representing HSRP VRRP and GLBP quiz on golden yellow background

This CCNA redundancy quiz helps you spot which statement describes HSRP and how it differs from VRRP and GLBP. You'll practice priorities, timers, interface tracking, and GLBP load sharing, then check your gaps before the exam. For more reps, try the full practice quiz .

What is the primary purpose of the Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP)?
To provide load balancing across routers
To establish dynamic LAN link aggregation
To redistribute routing protocols between domains
To ensure router redundancy and a virtual gateway
HSRP is a First Hop Redundancy Protocol (FHRP) designed by Cisco to ensure high availability by creating a virtual router that hosts use as their default gateway. If the active router fails, a standby router takes over, minimizing downtime. It does not perform load balancing or routing updates. For more details, see .
What is the default HSRP priority value assigned to routers?
110
90
120
100
Cisco routers running HSRP default to a priority value of 100 in their election process. Higher priority values have a greater chance to become the active router. Changing this default can influence which router becomes active in a multi-router scenario. For more, see .
Which multicast address does HSRP version 1 use for its hello packets?
224.0.0.2
224.0.0.102
224.0.0.18
224.0.0.5
HSRP version 1 sends hello messages to the IPv4 multicast address 224.0.0.2. This address ensures delivery to all routers on the local segment listening for HSRP packets. Version 2 of HSRP uses 224.0.0.102, so the address differentiates versions. More information is available at .
What is the default hello timer interval for HSRP hello messages?
3 seconds
1 second
10 seconds
5 seconds
By default, HSRP sends hello messages every 3 seconds to maintain state between active and standby routers. The standby router uses these periodic messages to detect failures. Altering this interval can make failover faster or slower. Catch more on timer tuning at .
Which HSRP state indicates that the router is currently forwarding packets for the virtual IP?
Active
Listen
Standby
Speak
The Active state in HSRP indicates that the router has taken over forwarding duties for the virtual IP and MAC. The Standby router monitors hello messages, while routers in Listen and Speak states do not forward client traffic. State transitions are part of HSRP's finite state machine. See for a detailed view.
What feature allows a higher-priority HSRP router to become the active router after it recovers from failure?
Preemption
Load balancing
Tracking
Authentication
HSRP preemption enables a router with a higher priority to take over the Active role when it becomes available again. Without preemption, the recovered router remains in Standby, even if it has a higher priority value. Preemption must be explicitly configured with the standby preempt command. Learn more at .
In an HSRP election, if two routers have the same priority value, what criterion is used to break the tie?
Lower MAC address
Higher MAC address
Lower IP address
Higher IP address
When HSRP routers have equal priority values, the router with the highest IP address is elected as the Active router. This deterministic tie-breaker ensures consistent behavior in the absence of a priority difference. MAC addresses are not used in this selection process. See for more information.
Why do hosts use the HSRP virtual MAC address?
To authenticate HSRP messages
To enable dynamic routing updates
To address frames to the active router acting as the default gateway
To identify the physical router interface
Hosts configure their default gateway to the HSRP virtual MAC and IP address, ensuring uninterrupted connectivity if the active router fails. The virtual MAC floats between routers, allowing seamless failover. Physical router MACs remain hidden from hosts during this process. More details can be found at .
Which Cisco IOS command displays detailed HSRP configuration and status information?
show hsrp status
show standby brief
show standby
show ip first-hop
The 'show standby' command provides detailed information about HSRP states, timers, priorities, and virtual IP/MAC addresses. While 'show standby brief' summarizes this data, the full command is preferred for in-depth troubleshooting. There is no 'show hsrp status' command. For more details, see .
HSRP version 2 extends the standby group number range up to which maximum value?
1023
4095
255
4096
HSRP v2 expands the standby group number range from 0 - 255 (in v1) to 0 - 4095, allowing more virtual routers per interface. This helps in large-scale environments with many VLANs. It also introduces a version field for compatibility checking. For more, consult .
What is the purpose of the 'standby track decrement ' command in HSRP?
To decrease the standby timer by a specified amount
To increase the hello timer dynamically
To disable HSRP when an interface fails
To lower the router's priority if a tracked object fails
The 'standby track' command reduces the HSRP priority by the specified value when a tracked interface or object fails. This dynamic adjustment can trigger a new election, promoting a different router to the Active role for continued redundancy. It does not directly alter timers or disable HSRP. For examples, see .
Which type of authentication is enabled by default in HSRP?
MD5
SHA
None
Plain text
By default, HSRP does not use any authentication, meaning all bytes in hello packets are treated as legitimate. Authentication must be explicitly configured if security is required. Cisco IOS supports simple (plain text) and MD5 authentication options. Learn more at .
Which HSRP timers must match on all routers in the same group to ensure correct failover behavior?
Hello and hold timers
Hello and retry timers
Hello and authentication timers
Hold and retry timers
HSRP uses the hello timer to send periodic messages and the hold timer (sometimes called the dead timer) to determine when to declare a failure. These two timers must be identical on all routers in a group to prevent inconsistent failover behavior. Mismatched timers can lead to unnecessary switchover or delays. See .
HSRP hello messages are sent over which UDP port number?
112
1985
179
224
HSRP operates over UDP port 1985 for hello packets between routers. While the protocol uses IP protocol number 112, the actual packets are encapsulated in UDP datagrams on port 1985. This behavior can be verified in network captures. More details at .
During normal HSRP operation, which state follows immediately after the 'listen' state?
Speak
Standby
Active
Learn
HSRP uses a finite state machine where a router transitions from Listen to Speak before becoming Standby or Active. In the Speak state, routers participate in elections by sending periodic hello messages. The Learn state occurs earlier, while Active and Standby denote roles. For a detailed state diagram, see .
What is the prefix of the virtual MAC address used by HSRP on Cisco routers?
0000.0C07.ACxx
000C.0007.ACxx
0050.56C0.00xx
0000.5E00.01xx
HSRP virtual MAC addresses use the Cisco OUI 0000.0C and the protocol identifier 07AC, followed by the HSRP group number in hexadecimal. This results in MAC addresses of the form 0000.0C07.ACxx. Other protocols like VRRP and GLBP use different prefixes. For verification, refer to .
Which IP protocol number does HSRP use in its packet header?
112
1985
1
89
HSRP uses IP protocol number 112 to encapsulate its own control messages. Although HSRP hello packets are sent over UDP port 1985 at the transport layer, the IP header's protocol field is set to 112. Protocol 89 is for OSPF, and 1 is for ICMP. More at .
Which HSRP operation code is sent when a router wants to immediately assume the active role during preemption?
Resign
Update
Coup
Hello
The Coup operation code (value 1) instructs other routers that the sender intends to take over as Active, triggering them to adjust their roles accordingly. This code is sent only when preemption is enabled on a higher-priority router. Hello messages use code 0, while Resign (code 2) indicates graceful role relinquishment. Details are documented at .
Which HSRP operation code is used by a router to gracefully relinquish the active role?
Hello
Standby
Resign
Coup
An HSRP Resign message (operation code 2) notifies other routers that the sender is stepping down from the Active role in a controlled manner. Upon receiving this, the Standby router immediately transitions to Active. The public draft outlines this mechanism. For more details, see .
What is the effect of the 'standby use-bia' command in HSRP?
It converts the virtual MAC to a universally administered address
It enables BIA authentication
It uses the interface's burned-in MAC address for the virtual router
It binds the HSRP group to the physical MAC
By default, HSRP uses a virtual MAC address derived from the Cisco OUI and group number. The 'use-bia' option forces the router to advertise its burned-in hardware MAC address as the virtual MAC. This can be useful for hardware compatibility. See .
How many routers can actively forward packets for a single HSRP group at any given time?
Three
Two
One
Unlimited
HSRP is a First Hop Redundancy Protocol that allows only one Active router to forward packets for the virtual IP at a time. The Standby router takes over only if the Active router fails. Other routers remain in other HSRP states without forwarding client traffic. More info at .
Which HSRP state indicates the router has learned the virtual IP and MAC but is not yet participating in elections or forwarding?
Initial
Standby
Learn
Listen
In the Learn state, an HSRP router has discovered the virtual IP and MAC but does not yet send hello messages or forward packets. After Learn, it moves to Listen to await further election messages. Initial is the starting state, and Standby is a hot standby role. For a state description, see .
Which command is used to configure a minimum delay before HSRP preemption occurs?
standby delay preempt
standby hold preempt
standby preempt delay minimum
standby preempt timer
The 'standby preempt delay minimum ' command configures HSRP to wait a specified time before allowing a higher-priority router to preempt the Active role. This helps prevent frequent role flapping in unstable networks. Without this, preemption happens immediately. Details are in the Cisco IOS manual: .
Which command on a Cisco router interface enables HSRP version 2?
standby hsrp v2
hsrp v2
standby version 2
hsrp version 2
To use HSRP version 2, the command 'standby version 2' must be entered in interface configuration mode. This directs the router to send versions of packets compatible with HSRP v2 features. Without this, the router defaults to version 1. More information at .
Router A and Router B are in HSRP group 10. A's priority is set to 150 with 'preempt' and 'track Gig0/1 decrement 20'. B's priority is 145 with 'preempt'. If interface Gig0/1 on A fails, which router becomes Active?
Routers enter a split-brain scenario
Router B becomes Active
Router A remains Active
Both routers stay in Standby
When Gig0/1 fails on Router A, its HSRP priority is reduced from 150 to 130 (150 - 20). Since Router B has a priority of 145, it wins the election and transitions to the Active state. This demonstrates how interface tracking influences HSRP failover. Read more about tracking in .
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Study Outcomes

  1. Analyze HSRP Operation -

    Dissect the key characteristics of HSRP and pinpoint which statement describes HSRP in Cisco high-availability deployments.

  2. Differentiate HSRP vs VRRP -

    Compare the functionalities, election algorithms, and failover mechanisms of HSRP and VRRP for robust network redundancy.

  3. Explain GLBP Fundamentals -

    Summarize core GLBP features to understand how it distributes traffic and maintains gateway availability across multiple routers.

  4. Apply VRRP Basics -

    Demonstrate VRRP setup by identifying master and backup router roles and configuring basic parameters for seamless failover.

  5. Evaluate Failover Scenarios -

    Assess various link or device failure situations to predict how HSRP, VRRP, and GLBP protocols respond under stress.

  6. Prepare for CCNA Redundancy Protocols Quiz -

    Leverage quiz insights to reinforce your understanding of high-availability concepts and boost your CCNA exam confidence.

Cheat Sheet

  1. HSRP Essentials -

    To answer "which statement describes HSRP", recall that Cisco's Hot Standby Router Protocol provides a virtual IP and MAC address shared by an active and standby router. The active router processes traffic while the standby listens to hello messages every 3 seconds (hold timer 10 seconds). Mnemonic tip: think "Hot Standby" to remember the active/standby roles (Cisco Official Documentation).

  2. VRRP Basics -

    VRRP (RFC 5798) elects a master router based on priority (default 100) and sends hello packets every second with a hold timer of 3 seconds. The highest priority router becomes master, but routers with equal priority default to highest IP address. Use the phrase "Very Reliable" to cement VRRP election behavior (IETF RFC Reference).

  3. GLBP Fundamentals -

    GLBP allows multiple routers to share a single virtual gateway and supports host-level load balancing across up to four routers simultaneously (per Cisco Live training). Each GLBP member has a unique virtual MAC (0007.b400.xxxx) and responds to ARP in round-robin fashion by default. Remember "Gateway Load Balancing" to link functionality with acronym and traffic distribution.

  4. HSRP vs VRRP Comparison -

    On the HSRP vs VRRP debate, note that HSRP is Cisco-proprietary while VRRP is vendor-neutral, each using different virtual MAC formats (HSRP: 0000.0c07.acxx, VRRP: 0000.5e00.01xx). HSRP defaults to priority 100, VRRP to 100, but their timers and preemption settings vary - HSRP preempts off by default, VRRP requires explicit preemption. Compare these side-by-side in a chart to reinforce distinctions (Cisco Press CCNA Routing and Switching).

  5. CCNA Redundancy Protocols Quiz Tips -

    Preparing for the CCNA redundancy protocols quiz? Focus on default timer values (HSRP 3s/10s, VRRP 1s/3s, GLBP 3s/10s), preemption keywords, and election criteria to nail scenario-based questions. Simulate failover in Packet Tracer to see live transitions and reinforce your understanding of virtual IP shifts (Cisco Networking Academy).

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