Static Route: Wrong Next Hop
A configured static route cannot be installed because its next hop is unreachable. Diagnose it and repair the forwarding path yourself, live, right below.
Symptom
Healthy link, no neighbor
Your mission
Prove the cause, then fix it
Format
Guided CLI investigation
Mission briefing
Investigate before you configure.
Use the CLI evidence to isolate the fault, make the smallest safe correction, then verify the network state changed.
01 · Observe
Check the symptom and link state.
02 · Diagnose
Compare the protocol evidence.
03 · Verify
Confirm adjacency and reachability.
Console access: R1
Need a hint?
Reveal the root cause when you're ready.
The diagnosis is free to reveal at any point. Try the investigation first, then use this as your escape hatch—not a dead end.
Lab debrief
Turn the session into a repeatable troubleshooting pattern.
Use this reference after your attempt: first explain the symptom, then verify the evidence, then confirm the repair.
The problem
R1 is configured with a route for 10.20.20.0/24 through 10.0.12.6. That address is not reachable on R1's 10.0.12.0/30 transit network, so IOS keeps the prefix out of the routing table. R2 at 10.0.12.2 is the valid next hop.
What you'll practice
- Read a prefix-specific route lookup
- Distinguish a destination network from its next hop
- Replace an invalid static route safely
- Verify both the routing table and end-to-end reachability
The topology
R1 connects to R2 on 10.0.12.0/30. R2 provides the remote 10.20.20.0/24 LAN and is the valid static-route next hop.
Commands to run yourself
The real diagnostic commands for this lab, copy-paste ready. Run these in the same order to reproduce the investigation on your own session.
show ip route 10.20.20.0show running-config | include ^ip routeping 10.0.12.2Frequently asked
Why is the command present but the route missing?
IOS stores static-route configuration, then installs it only when it can resolve the next hop. An unreachable next hop leaves the command in configuration but keeps the prefix out of the routing table.
Ready to run this lab yourself?
No setup, no image sourcing. Book a session or ask for a live demo.