| Let's say you have configured five tagged VLANs to switch globally through an otherwise all layer 3 core. There are two switches at the core that are fully redundant and each connects to a switch at the distribution layer. There are nine distribution layer switches, each with a link back to the core, as well as a single link to the switch on its "left" and its "right", as it were. That is, each distribution layer switch has a bunch of access layer switches connected to it, as well as four layer three links. One to each of the core switches, one to another distribution layer switch X 2. Hopefully I haven't lost anyone here. It is at the distribution layer that the 802.1q trunks are built. OSPF is the routing protocol. All the links are gig ethernet and have equal path costs. If I'm doing a traceroute from one of the tagged VLANS from a host behind one access switch to a host that has to traverse two or more distribution switches, I won't see any hop counts because it's switching at layer 2 through the VLAN. Easy. Now, if I'm doing the same thing, only I'm not on one of the tagged VLANs and I traverse say....six of the distribution layer switches to go from point 'A' to point 'B', is the switch going route all of it at layer 3, via the shortest path, or is it going to tag it, switch it at layer 2, until it reaches the last switched "hop" (for lack of a better word, I know it's not really a hop if it's switching) then put it back onto layer three for the last mile. In a nutshell, will I be able to see hops through these switches using traceroute if I'm originating on a non-tagged VLAN? | 
