Practice OSPF Questions Now

Start a timed practice session focusing on Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) topics from the CCNA question bank.

CCNA OSPF Question Bank (25 Questions)

Browse all 25 practice questions covering Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) for the CCNA certification exam. Answers are intentionally hidden on this page so you can self-test first before checking results in quiz mode.

Question 1IP Connectivity
What is the final OSPF neighbor state indicating full adjacency?
A2-Way
BExStart
CLoading
DFull
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 2IP Connectivity
What is the purpose of OSPF Area 0?
AIt serves as a stub area for external routes
BIt is the backbone area that all other areas must connect to
CIt contains only default routes
DIt handles authentication for all OSPF areas
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 3IP Connectivity
How is OSPF cost calculated by default on Cisco routers?
AHop count
BReference bandwidth / interface bandwidth
CDelay + bandwidth
DAdministrative distance / metric
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 4IP Connectivity
What determines the OSPF Designated Router (DR) election on a broadcast network?
ALowest router ID
BHighest OSPF priority, then highest router ID
CFastest interface speed
DFirst router to boot
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 5IP Connectivity
What is the default OSPF Hello interval on an Ethernet interface?
A5 seconds
B10 seconds
C30 seconds
D40 seconds
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 6IP Connectivity
How is OSPF cost calculated for an interface?
AHop count
BReference bandwidth divided by interface bandwidth (default: 100 Mbps / interface bandwidth) — lower cost is preferred
CDelay × bandwidth
DRandom assignment
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 7IP Connectivity
On a multi-access OSPF network, how is the Designated Router (DR) elected?
AThe router with the lowest IP address
BThe router with the highest OSPF priority wins; if tied, the highest router ID breaks the tie
CRandom selection
DThe first router to boot
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 8IP Connectivity
What is the purpose of OSPF Area 0 (backbone area)?
AIt's optional for OSPF operation
BAll other OSPF areas must connect to Area 0; it acts as the transit area for inter-area routing traffic
CIt's used only for external routes
DIt handles authentication only
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 9IP Connectivity
Which OSPF packet type is used to establish and maintain neighbor adjacencies by exchanging hello messages?
AType 1 – Hello
BType 2 – Database Description (DBD)
CType 3 – Link-State Request (LSR)
DType 5 – Link-State Acknowledgment (LSAck)
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 10IP Connectivity
What is the OSPF router ID selection order of preference?
AHighest loopback IP → highest physical IP → manually configured
BManually configured → highest loopback IP → highest physical IP
CLowest loopback IP → lowest physical IP → manually configured
DManually configured → lowest loopback IP → lowest physical IP
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 11IP Connectivity
What is the default OSPF network type on an Ethernet interface?
APoint-to-point
BBroadcast
CNon-broadcast
DPoint-to-multipoint
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 12IP Connectivity
Which OSPF version supports IPv6?
AOSPFv1
BOSPFv2
COSPFv3
DOSPF-TE
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 13IP Connectivity
What is the effect of configuring an OSPF interface as passive?
AOSPF stops advertising the network
BOSPF includes the network in LSAs but stops sending Hello packets
COSPF removes the network from the routing table
DOSPF increases the Hello timer on that interface
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 14IP Connectivity
Which OSPF authentication type uses MD5 hashing?
AType 0 (null)
BType 1 (simple password)
CType 2 (MD5)
DType 3 (SHA-256)
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 15IP Connectivity
What is the key difference between OSPFv2 and OSPFv3?
AOSPFv3 only works with IPv4
BOSPFv3 supports IPv6 (and IPv4 with address families), uses link-local addresses for neighbor communication, and is configured per interface
COSPFv2 is faster
DOSPFv3 doesn't support areas
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 16IP Connectivity
Which command verifies the OSPF neighbor relationships on a Cisco router?
Ashow ip route ospf
Bshow ip ospf neighbor
Cshow ip ospf database
Dshow ip protocols
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 17IP Connectivity
An OSPF router is stuck in the EXSTART/EXCHANGE state with its neighbor. What is the most likely cause?
AMismatched OSPF hello/dead timers
BMismatched MTU values on the connecting interfaces
CMismatched OSPF area IDs
DDuplicate OSPF router IDs
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 18IP Connectivity
A router has two equal-cost routes to the same destination learned via OSPF. What will the router do by default?
AUse only the first route learned
BUse the route with the lowest next-hop IP address
CLoad balance traffic across both routes (ECMP)
DDrop both routes due to ambiguity
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 19IP Connectivity
Which OSPF area must all other areas connect to, serving as the backbone?
AArea 1
BArea 0
CArea 51
DAny area can serve as the backbone
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 20IP Connectivity
What is the administrative distance of an OSPF-learned route on a Cisco router?
A90
B100
C110
D120
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 21IP Connectivity
In OSPF, what role does the Designated Router (DR) play on a multi-access network?
AThe DR redistributes routes from other routing protocols into OSPF
BThe DR reduces the number of adjacencies by acting as a central point for LSA exchange on the segment
CThe DR performs route summarization between OSPF areas
DThe DR encrypts OSPF hello packets to prevent unauthorized neighbors
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 22IP Connectivity
Which command enables OSPF on all interfaces whose IP addresses fall within the 10.1.0.0/16 range on a Cisco router?
Arouter ospf 1 network 10.1.0.0 0.0.255.255 area 0
Brouter ospf 1 network 10.1.0.0 255.255.0.0 area 0
Crouter ospf 1 redistribute connected
Dinterface range gi0/0 - 3 ip ospf 1 area 0
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 23IP Connectivity
What metric does OSPF use to determine the best path to a destination?
AHop count
BBandwidth and delay (composite metric)
CCost (based on interface bandwidth)
DAdministrative distance
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 24IP Connectivity
What must be configured when redistributing routes between OSPF and EIGRP?
ANothing special — routes transfer automatically
BA seed metric must be configured for redistributed routes, and route maps can filter which routes are redistributed
CBoth protocols must use the same AS number
DOnly static routes can be redistributed
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz
Question 25IP Connectivity
If a router learns the same destination via OSPF (AD 110) and EIGRP (AD 90), which route is installed?
AOSPF (lower number always loses)
BEIGRP — lower administrative distance (90) is preferred over OSPF (110), indicating higher trustworthiness
CBoth routes are installed for load balancing
DThe route learned first
Answer hidden for practice.
Use the interactive quiz to reveal the correct answer and explanation.
Start CCNA Quiz

Key OSPF Concepts for CCNA

ospfarealsadrbdrneighboradjacencycosthellodead timerspflink-state

CCNA OSPF Exam Tips

Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) questions in CCNA are typically scenario-based. Focus on network fundamentals, IP connectivity, security basics, and automation concepts. Priority concepts: ospf, area, lsa, dr, bdr, neighbor.

What CCNA Expects

Anchor your answer in choose the configuration that correctly applies to the described network topology and requirements.
OSPF scenarios for CCNA are frequently mapped to Domain 3 (25%), so read the objective carefully before picking controls or architecture.
Expect multi-topic scenarios where OSPF interacts with routing, switching, security, or automation patterns rather than appearing as an isolated question.
When two options are both technically valid, prefer the choice that best aligns with the exam's operational scope (Associate) and vendor best practices.

High-Value OSPF Concepts

Know the core OSPF building blocks cold: ospf, area, lsa, dr.
Review the edge-case features and limits for bdr, neighbor; these details are commonly used to differentiate answer choices.
Practice service-integration reasoning: how OSPF pairs with Routing, IP Addressing, Network Fundamentals in real deployment patterns.
For CCNA, explain why the chosen OSPF design meets reliability, security, and cost expectations better than the alternatives.

Common CCNA Traps

Watch for confusing similar protocols or mixing Layer 2 and Layer 3 behavior.
Questions in IP Connectivity often include distractors that look correct for OSPF but violate security policy, convergence, or redundancy requirements.
Avoid picking options purely by feature name; validate data path, failure handling, and governance impact before answering.
If the prompt hints at automation or repeatability, eliminate manual-only operational answers first.

Fast Review Checklist

Can you compare at least two OSPF implementation paths and justify which one best fits the scenario?
Can you map the chosen answer back to IP Connectivity (25%) outcomes for CCNA?
Can you explain security and access boundaries for OSPF without relying on default-open assumptions?
Can you describe how OSPF integrates with Routing and IP Addressing during failure, scaling, and monitoring events?

Exam Domains Covering OSPF

Domain 3IP Connectivity25%

Related Resources

🎯 Free CCNA Mock Exam Routing Questions IP Addressing Questions Network Fundamentals Questions

More CCNA Study Resources

← CCNA Study Hub 30-Day Study Plan Full Practice Exam

🔄 Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) - CCNA Practice Questions