What action do routers take with packets that do not match any entries in the routing table?

Routers are designed to forward packets based on the information available in their routing tables. When a packet arrives at a router, the device looks for a matching entry in its routing table to determine the appropriate next hop or path for that packet. If there is no matching entry, it means the router does not have a defined route for that particular destination.

In this scenario, the router will typically drop the packet. This decision is made because the router has no way to further handle or forward a packet that lacks a recognized route. Dropping packets that can't be routed helps maintain the integrity of the network and prevents unnecessary processing of unmanaged traffic.

This mechanism ensures that only packets for which there is a valid path are processed and passed along, thereby maintaining efficient use of the router's resources and minimizing potential network congestion.