# Use Zero-Endpoint Services For Absent Route Targets

The complete CP9 staging route table preserves a target even when that business workload is not deployed. CP9 represents each such target with an explicitly marked Kubernetes Service that has the staging target name and declared port but no selector, endpoints, or Deployment. Kong can therefore materialize the real routing identity while requests remain visibly unavailable and status keeps route readiness separate from backend readiness. CP9 does not collapse absent targets onto a generic stub or emulate successful responses; a later real backend supplies endpoints behind the same Service contract and removes the placeholder marker without changing the route.