Cisco "show ip route" Command Explained
show ip route — displays the IPv4 routing table — every network the router knows, how it learned it, and where it will forward matching traffic. Runs in privileged EXEC mode.
Syntax and common variants
| Variant | Purpose |
|---|---|
show ip route | Full routing table |
show ip route ospf | Only OSPF-learned routes |
show ip route 10.1.1.0 | Detail for one destination |
show ip route | include 0.0.0.0 | Find the default route |
Reading the output
| Output field | Meaning |
|---|---|
C / L | Connected network / Local interface address |
S / S* | Static route / static default (candidate) |
O | OSPF-learned route |
D | EIGRP-learned route (DUAL) |
[110/2] | [Administrative distance / metric] |
via 10.0.0.2 | Next-hop the traffic is sent to |
When to use it
The first command in almost every routing troubleshoot: is the destination in the table, which protocol won, and does the next-hop make sense? Missing route = check the protocol or static config; wrong route = compare administrative distances and metrics. Browse more in the command reference or practise in the free labs.
Frequently asked questions
What does the O mean in show ip route?
The route was learned via OSPF. C = connected, S = static, D = EIGRP, B = BGP.
What do the numbers in brackets mean?
[AD/metric] — administrative distance (trustworthiness of the source) and the protocol's metric for the path.
How do I see only the default route?
show ip route | include 0.0.0.0 — or look for the S* / Gateway of last resort line.
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