Which statement best describes the default gateway?

• A. The device that assigns IP addresses to hosts.
• B. The router that forwards traffic to external subnets.
• C. The server that resolves domain names.
• D. The switch port that connects to the WAN.

Answer: (B)

The default gateway is the router that forwards traffic to external subnets. When a device wants to reach a destination outside its own local network, it sends the packet to the gateway, which acts as the next hop and uses its routing table to forward the packet toward the destination (often toward the internet). In most networks, the gateway is the router that connects the local LAN to other networks. This is why devices configure a gateway address as their default route. The other roles described—an IP address server that assigns addresses, a domain name resolver, or a switch port connecting to the WAN—do not capture the gateway’s primary function of routing traffic to external networks.