Cisco ENCOR Practice Exam 2025 – All-in-One Comprehensive Guide to Mastering Enterprise Network Core Technologies!

In a VRRP (Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol) configuration, the Master router, also referred to as the primary router, plays a critical role in ensuring that IP traffic can continue to flow seamlessly in the event of a router failure. The Master is responsible for forwarding packets sent to the virtual IP address used by the VRRP group. This is crucial for maintaining high availability for network services.

When configured, VRRP allows multiple routers to participate in a redundancy scheme, with one router elected as the Master to handle the traffic. This election process prioritizes routers based on their configured VRRP priority value, and in the event that the Master router becomes unresponsive, another router can take over to maintain service continuity.

The Master responds to ARP requests for the virtual IP address and handles the routing duties for the VRRP group, ensuring devices in the network can communicate without interruption. Understanding this role is fundamental for network design and fault tolerance strategies, especially in enterprise network environments where availability is critical.