Computer Networks Laboratory Routing Experiment
COMPUTER NETWORKS LAB REPORT
Lab: Static and Dynamic Routing Using Cisco Packet Tracer
1 Objectives
1. To build and configure two separate IPv4 LANs connected through routers in Cisco Packet Tracer.
2. To provide end-to-end connectivity between the LANs using static routing and RIP, and confirm
communication through ICMP testing.
2 Equipment and Software
• Cisco Packet Tracer
• Two Cisco 1841 routers
• Two Cisco 2950-24 switches
• Four PC-PT hosts
• Ethernet connections for host-to-switch, switch-to-router, and router-to-router links
3 Network Design
The experiment consisted of two local networks joined by a point-to-point router network. Hosts
on the left belonged to [Link]/24, the routers communicated through [Link]/24, and
hosts on the right belonged to [Link]/24.
Figure 1: Two LANs interconnected through Router0 and Router2.
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Computer Networks Laboratory Routing Experiment
3.1 IP Address Plan
Device Interface IPv4 Address Gateway
PC0 FastEthernet [Link]/24 [Link]
PC1 FastEthernet [Link]/24 [Link]
Router0 Fa0/0 [Link]/24 –
Router0 Fa0/1 [Link]/24 –
Router2 Fa0/0 [Link]/24 –
Router2 Fa0/1 [Link]/24 –
PC2 FastEthernet [Link]/24 [Link]
PC3 FastEthernet [Link]/24 [Link]
Table 1: Addressing used in the Packet Tracer topology.
4 Concept Review
4.1 Default Gateway and Routing
A host can deliver a frame directly when the destination lies in its own subnet. For a destination in
another subnet, the host sends the packet to its configured default gateway. The router then checks
its routing table and forwards the packet toward the required network.
4.2 Static Route
A static route is entered manually by the administrator. The route identifies a remote destination
network and the next hop that should receive packets for that destination. Static routing is simple
and predictable for a small network, but it requires manual modification whenever the topology
changes.
4.3 RIP
Routing Information Protocol (RIP) is a distance-vector routing protocol. Routers exchange infor-
mation about reachable networks and use hop count as the routing metric. It reduces the need to
enter every remote route manually and is useful for understanding basic dynamic routing behavior.
4.4 ICMP Testing
The ping utility and the Simple PDU feature in Packet Tracer use ICMP messages to test whether
one host can reach another. A successful test indicates that addressing, gateways, interfaces, and
routing are operating correctly along the path.
5 Experimental Procedure
5.1 Step 1: Build the Topology
Two PCs were connected to each switch. Each switch was connected to the LAN-facing interface of
its router, and the two routers were linked through their remaining FastEthernet interfaces.
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5.2 Step 2: Configure the PCs
Static IPv4 settings were applied to all hosts according to Table 1. The two left-side PCs used
[Link] as their gateway, while the two right-side PCs used [Link].
(a) PC0 address configuration. (b) PC1 address configuration.
Figure 2: IPv4 configuration of hosts in the [Link]/24 LAN.
(a) PC2 address configuration. (b) PC3 address configuration.
Figure 3: IPv4 configuration of hosts in the [Link]/24 LAN.
5.3 Step 3: Configure Router Interfaces
The required IP address was assigned to each active FastEthernet interface and the interfaces were
enabled with no shutdown.
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(a) Router0 Fa0/0. (b) Router0 Fa0/1.
Figure 4: Interface addressing on Router0.
(a) Router2 Fa0/0. (b) Router2 Fa0/1.
Figure 5: Interface addressing on Router2.
Full IOS command form
Router0> enable
Router0# configure terminal
Router0(config)# interface fastEthernet 0/0
Router0(config-if)# ip address [Link] [Link]
Router0(config-if)# no shutdown
Router0(config-if)# exit
Router0(config)# interface fastEthernet 0/1
Router0(config-if)# ip address [Link] [Link]
Router0(config-if)# no shutdown
Router2> enable
Router2# configure terminal
Router2(config)# interface fastEthernet 0/0
Router2(config-if)# ip address [Link] [Link]
Router2(config-if)# no shutdown
Router2(config-if)# exit
Router2(config)# interface fastEthernet 0/1
Router2(config-if)# ip address [Link] [Link]
Router2(config-if)# no shutdown
Common abbreviated form
R0> en
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R0# conf t
R0(config)# int fa0/0
R0(config-if)# ip add [Link] [Link]
R0(config-if)# no sh
R0(config-if)# ex
R0(config)# int fa0/1
R0(config-if)# ip add [Link] [Link]
R0(config-if)# no sh
R2> en
R2# conf t
R2(config)# int fa0/0
R2(config-if)# ip add [Link] [Link]
R2(config-if)# no sh
R2(config-if)# ex
R2(config)# int fa0/1
R2(config-if)# ip add [Link] [Link]
R2(config-if)# no sh
5.4 Step 4: Establish Connectivity with Static Routes
Router0 required a route to the right LAN, and Router2 required a route to the left LAN. The
next-hop addresses were the opposite router interfaces on [Link]/24.
Router0(config)# ip route [Link] [Link] [Link]
Router2(config)# ip route [Link] [Link] [Link]
(a) Route to [Link]/24 on Router0. (b) Route to [Link]/24 on Router2.
Figure 6: Manual routes configured for the remote LANs.
5.5 Step 5: Configure RIP for Dynamic Route Exchange
RIP was enabled on both routers and the directly connected networks were advertised. Router0
advertised the left LAN and the inter-router network, whereas Router2 advertised the right LAN
and the inter-router network.
Full IOS command form
Router0(config)# router rip
Router0(config-router)# network [Link]
Router0(config-router)# network [Link]
Router2(config)# router rip
Router2(config-router)# network [Link]
Router2(config-router)# network [Link]
Common abbreviated form
R0(config)# router rip
R0(config-router)# net [Link]
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R0(config-router)# net [Link]
R2(config)# router rip
R2(config-router)# net [Link]
R2(config-router)# net [Link]
Figure 7: RIP network statements entered through the router CLI.
Technical note: If RIP is being tested independently after the static-routing phase, the static
routes should first be removed. Otherwise, the router normally prefers the static route over the
RIP-learned route because the static route has the lower administrative distance.
6 Verification and Observations
After configuration, ICMP packets were sent between hosts located in different LANs. Packet Tracer
recorded successful Simple PDU transfers from PC3 to PC1, PC0 to PC2, and PC0 to PC3. This
demonstrated that packets could leave one subnet, pass through the routers, and arrive at the remote
subnet.
Figure 8: Successful cross-network ICMP tests in Packet Tracer.
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Computer Networks Laboratory Routing Experiment
Check Observed Outcome
Local addressing Each host was placed in the intended /24 subnet.
Default gateway Hosts used the LAN-facing address of their local router.
Router link Router0 and Router2 communicated through [Link]/24.
Static routing Each router was given a manual route to the opposite LAN.
RIP configuration Connected networks were advertised through RIP.
End-to-end test ICMP communication between hosts on opposite LANs succeeded.
Table 2: Summary of the practical observations.
7 Discussion
The practical demonstrated the difference between local switching and inter-network routing. The
switches were sufficient for communication inside each LAN, but traffic intended for the other subnet
had to be forwarded to the default gateway and then routed across the inter-router link.
Static routing worked well for this small topology because only one remote route was needed on each
router. Its limitation is administrative effort: additional networks would require additional manual
entries. RIP provides a more automatic approach because routers share reachability information
with their neighbors, making it easier to adapt when a small network changes.
The successful ICMP tests also showed that routing alone is not enough; correct host addresses,
subnet masks, gateways, interface addresses, and active interfaces are all necessary. A wrong value
at any of these points can prevent end-to-end communication even when the routing commands
themselves are correct.
8 Conclusion
A two-LAN IPv4 network was successfully implemented in Cisco Packet Tracer. The router inter-
faces and host gateways were configured according to the planned addressing scheme. Inter-LAN
reachability was achieved using static routes, and RIP configuration was also performed to demon-
strate dynamic exchange of routing information. Successful ICMP PDUs confirmed that packets
could be forwarded between the [Link]/24 and [Link]/24 networks.