Dynamic routing refers to the process of automatically determining the optimal path for data packets to travel across a network. It is typically used in computer networks, such as the Internet, to efficiently deliver data from a source to a destination through multiple interconnected devices, called routers.
In dynamic routing, routers exchange information with each other to build and maintain a routing table, which contains information about the network topology and the best paths to different destinations. This information is typically exchanged using routing protocols, such as the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) or the Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) protocol.
Distance Vector Protocols are a type of dynamic routing protocol that calculate the best path based on the distance or number of hops between routers. These protocols periodically exchange routing updates with their neighboring routers to update the information in their routing tables. Here are a few examples of distance vector protocols:
Routing Information Protocol (RIP):
Routing Information Protocol (RIP) is a dynamic routing protocol used in computer networks to determine the best path for data packets to travel from a source to a destination. RIP is a distance-vector protocol, which means it measures the distance or “cost” of a route based on the number of hops (intermediate network devices) between routers.
Here are some key features and characteristics of RIP:
Hop count: RIP uses hop count as its metric to determine the best route. Each hop between routers increments the hop count by 1. The maximum hop count in RIP is 15, and routes with a hop count greater than 15 are considered unreachable.
Distance-vector protocol: RIP routers periodically exchange routing information with neighboring routers. They share their routing table, which includes the list of networks they know about and the associated hop counts. Each router uses this information to update its own routing table.
Split horizon: RIP implements the split horizon mechanism to prevent routing loops. It means that a router doesn’t advertise routes back to the same interface from which it learned them. This helps avoid incorrect routing information and looping packets.
Routing updates: RIP routers exchange routing updates at regular intervals (usually every 30 seconds) or when significant changes occur. These updates contain information about network reachability, hop counts, and routing metrics.
Routing loops: RIP has a limited ability to detect and prevent routing loops. It uses a maximum hop count of 15 to avoid infinite loops. However, in complex network topologies or networks with a large number of routers, RIP may still experience routing loops.
Convergence: RIP has relatively slow convergence compared to more advanced routing protocols. When a change occurs in the network, it takes some time for RIP routers to update their routing tables and reach a stable state.
RIP versions: There are two versions of RIP: RIP version 1 (RIPv1) and RIP version 2 (RIPv2). RIPv1 is the original version and has limited features, while RIPv2 is an enhanced version that supports subnet masks, authentication, and multicasting.
RIP is commonly used in small to medium-sized networks and is relatively simple to configure and manage. However, its limitations, such as slow convergence and hop count restrictions, make it less suitable for large and complex networks. More advanced routing protocols like OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) and BGP (Border Gateway Protocol) are typically used in such scenarios.
Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP)
Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP) is a proprietary routing protocol developed by Cisco Systems. It is an Interior Gateway Protocol (IGP) used to facilitate routing within an autonomous system (AS) in a computer network. IGRP is a distance-vector protocol that aims to determine the best path for data packets based on a composite metric that includes factors like bandwidth, delay, reliability, and load.
Here are some key features and characteristics of IGRP:
Composite metric: IGRP uses a composite metric called the “routing metric” to calculate the best path for routing. The routing metric takes into account several factors, including bandwidth, delay, reliability, and load on the network links. This allows IGRP to make more informed routing decisions based on multiple criteria.
Autonomous system: IGRP operates within a single autonomous system, which is a collection of networks under the same administrative control. It is typically used in medium-sized networks where all routers belong to the same organization or network provider.
Distance-vector protocol: IGRP operates as a distance-vector protocol, similar to Routing Information Protocol (RIP). It exchanges routing information between neighboring routers, sharing the information about network reachability and associated metrics. Each router maintains its routing table based on the received updates.
Convergence: IGRP aims for faster convergence compared to RIP by using various mechanisms, such as triggered updates and hold-down timers. Triggered updates allow routers to immediately exchange routing information when changes occur, reducing convergence time. Hold-down timers prevent the propagation of incorrect routing information during transient network conditions.
Hierarchical design: IGRP supports hierarchical network design by dividing the network into multiple areas, known as autonomous system boundary routers (ASBRs). This division helps in reducing the routing overhead and improves scalability.
Classful routing: IGRP is a classful routing protocol, meaning it does not support variable-length subnet masks (VLSM). Subnetting must be done using fixed-length subnet masks (FLSM), where all subnets within a network have the same subnet mask.
Authentication: IGRP supports a simple password-based authentication mechanism to ensure the security of routing updates exchanged between routers. This helps prevent unauthorized routers from injecting false routing information into the network.
It’s worth noting that IGRP is an older routing protocol and has been largely superseded by more advanced and standardized protocols such as Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP) and Open Shortest Path First (OSPF). These protocols offer more features, scalability, and compatibility with heterogeneous network environments.
Border Gateway Protocol (BGP):
Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) is an exterior gateway protocol (EGP) that is widely used in the Internet to facilitate routing between autonomous systems (ASes). It is the primary routing protocol used to exchange routing information and make routing decisions between different Internet service providers (ISPs) and large networks.
Here are some key features and characteristics of BGP:
Path vector protocol: BGP is a path vector protocol, which means it takes into account not only the reachability information of networks but also the path attributes associated with each route. BGP routers exchange information about the best path to reach a particular network based on these attributes.
Autonomous systems: BGP operates between autonomous systems, which are individual networks or organizations that have control over their routing policies. Each autonomous system has a unique identification number, known as an Autonomous System Number (ASN).
Policy-based routing: BGP allows network administrators to define and enforce routing policies based on their specific requirements. These policies can include factors such as path preferences, traffic engineering, load balancing, route filtering, and prioritization.
Scalability: BGP is designed to handle the scale and complexity of the global Internet. It can handle a large number of routes and can support diverse network topologies with thousands of routers and multiple paths to reach networks.
Path selection: BGP uses a set of attributes associated with each route to determine the best path to reach a destination. These attributes include factors such as the length of AS path, origin type, local preference, MED (Multi-Exit Discriminator), and others. BGP routers compare these attributes to select the best path for routing.
Slow convergence: BGP convergence can be slower compared to interior gateway protocols like OSPF or EIGRP. This is because BGP routers take their time to exchange and process routing information, and the convergence time depends on factors such as the size of the routing table and network conditions.
Peering relationships: BGP routers establish peering relationships with other BGP routers to exchange routing information. Peering can occur in two forms: internal BGP (iBGP) between routers within the same AS, and external BGP (eBGP) between routers in different ASes.
Internet routing backbone: BGP forms the backbone of Internet routing, enabling ISPs to exchange routing information and determine the best paths for data to traverse between networks and across international boundaries.
BGP is a complex and robust protocol that plays a critical role in the stability and scalability of the Internet. It is commonly used by ISPs, large enterprises, content providers, and cloud service providers to establish connectivity, control routing policies, and optimize network performance.