"In routing, a control plane describes all the functions and processes that determine the path a data packet will be routed over. On the other hand, the data plane refers to all the functions and processes that move packets across the network based on the control plane's settings and logic. When experiencing a problem with packets not being routed properly, I would first analyze whether the packets were being dropped during transmission or routed incorrectly. I would then review the functions of the data plane elements to see if they accurately followed the protocols established by the control plane. If this checked out, I would begin to analyze the control plan to determine if the routing tables were set up properly or other issues were causing the packets not to reach their destination."